On gray winter days, reaching for a chocolate bar or a glass of wine may seem like a quick fix for the blues. But Jessica Babine, spa director at the Boston Harbor Hotel's Spa at Rowe's Wharf, suggests a healthier antidote for the bone-chilling cold: a peppermint twist body treatment or a decadent Chardonnay massage. The soothing aromatherapy, combined with a head-to-toe deep tissue massage, pampers dry skin as well as rejuvenates and refreshes the body, says Babine. "Winter can make you feel sluggish and tired, and a massage can be a real pick-me-up."
Massage is a pampering treat as well as a therapeutic one, according to Mary Beth Braun, past president of the American Massage Therapy Association (AMTA), an industry trade group. Benefits range from simple stress reduction to improved circulation, pain relief, and enhanced sleep quality. "A massage can boost your immune system as well, which is a real boon now, during cold and flu season," says Braun.
Getting a spa treatment at a resort, high-end hotel, or even a historic inn can combine a winter get-away with luxurious treatment. Ann Abel, executive director of Luxury SpaFinder magazine, says that many of these facilities feature top-grade therapists, lavish massage services, and sumptuous, healthy cuisine. At Blantyre, a resort in Lenox, Mass., for example, Abel says you can find "a riot of old-fashioned richness," with eight types of massages and essential oil-based body treatments. Massage, one of the oldest healing arts, comprises more than 250 different types of massage and bodywork that use variations of stroking, kneading, tapping, compression, friction, and other pressure applied to the muscles and tissues. The hands-on treatment is often combined with the use of lotions, oils, or powders, or even innovative techniques like hot stones. Deb Garman, spa director at the Hotel Viking in Newport, R.I., says that a hot stone massage is her choice on a frigid February day. The massage uses heated stones, placed in specific points, to relax and improve energy flow. "It soothes cold muscles and takes the chill out of your bones," says Garman.
At the Spa at Chatham Bars Inn on Cape Code, a Napa Valley Shiraz Body Scrub and Massage helps heal dry, flaky skin and uses grape seed extract as an anti-oxidant. Massages can help stabilize collagen and maintain skin elasticity during the drying winter months, according to Braun.
More traditional massages, such as Swedish (which uses long gliding strokes and kneads individual muscles), sports therapy (focuses on overuse areas), and deep tissue (slow strokes and deep pressure on tissues and muscles), are also popular massage treatment options.
The type of massage you choose, says Braun, depends on the desired outcome you'd like to achieve. Margo Hanson, massage therapy manager at Topnotch Resort and Spa in Stowe, Vt., says that therapists use tools gained from their experience and education to treat clients and often incorporate both Eastern and Western massage techniques. At Topnotch, says Hanson, often they'll add elements such as hot clay packs for deep muscle relaxation, arnica gel to decrease inflammation, or tiger balm for pain relief.
And if it feels like nothing will chase away the dropping temperatures and your drooping spirits, four hands are better than two, says Lotus Mind+Body Spa owner Catherine Harris in Needham, where two massage therapists massage you at the same time, using mirror techniques for upper and lower body work. "Never underestimate the power of a good massage," says Braun.
