Cryotherapy saunas use dry cold for healing (Credit: @sethprochazka)
No one moves through life unscathed. Fortunately, there are many massage and holistic healing studios here in Austin. The following are five local businesses that offer diverse, unique, and sometimes surprising services that can be enjoyed alone, or in conjunction with a massage treatment.
1/ Serasana
Come in and sample the tea of the day (Credit: Serasana)
There is plenty to discover at Serasana, but it all starts and ends at the tea bar. An impressive selection of teas and herbal infusions can be served piping hot to keep you warm in the winter, or iced to cool down in the summer. The bar also serves yummy seasonal smoothies and kombucha on tap.
Venture beyond the tea bar, and you’ll find a full schedule of yoga classes, group and individual acupuncture treatments, and regular workshops. Workshops include Tibetan singing bowl sound baths and tarot card study. And, of course, massage!
Serasana also offers cupping therapy, which can be a standalone treatment or incorporated into a massage. With cupping, either silicone or glass cups are placed on the body. Suction from the cups helps move stagnant blood and loosen tight muscles.
Once your session or class is finished, rejoin other guests at the tea bar to continue relaxing.
Multiple locations – Website
2/ Ace of Cups Massage and Wellness
Brush up on your anatomy with a workshop or study group (Credit: Ace of Cups)
Ace of Cups is tucked away in a mural-clad east Austin neighborhood, next to other quaint shops and eateries. This local business offers yoga classes, cupping therapy, and a variety of massage styles. The team’s method is to fuse magic and science. Classes are offered on topics like tea leaf reading, tarot cards, and herbal medicine, as well as study groups that delve deeply into anatomical knowledge.
One way Ace of Cups fosters a community atmosphere is by renting rooms to allow people to start their own practices. Many skilled healers, from acupuncturists to skincare specialists, make use of the space.
Ace of Cups also has an apprentice massage program that allows newly graduated therapists to study and work alongside more experienced therapists. Massages with an apprentice are available at a discount.
2121 E. Cesar Chavez St. – Website
3/ Sage Blossom
Up to five people at a time can enjoy the sauna (Credit: Sage Blossom Massage)
A massage and a hot sauna session. Sounds like a match made in heaven, doesn’t it? Sage Blossom uses a full spectrum infrared sauna. Infrared saunas use lower heat levels than traditional saunas, but can penetrate more deeply, allowing more detoxification with less intensity.
Saunas have a variety of benefits, including skin purification and improved cardiovascular function. At Sage Blossom, every sauna session comes with a refreshing peppermint towel and glass of cucumber water. With a spa package, guests receive a massage, then move to the sauna to continue detoxing while basking in post-massage bliss.
Cupping is also available as an add-on to any massage.
Multiple locations – Website
5/ Zero Gravity Institute Float Spa
Owners Carol and Kevin Johnson designed and built their float tanks to be bigger than average
(Credit: Zero Gravity Institute)
The moment you walk into Zero Gravity Institute Float Spa, all of the trappings of frantic daily life fall away. Before every float, you change out of your street clothes into a robe, and relax in a massage chair to allow the process of unplugging to begin.
What is floating? At Zero Gravity, it means climbing into a tank of skin-temperature water that contains 1,200 pounds of Epsom salt. Free from the constraints of gravity and the sensory overload that normally bombards us, you float in complete darkness for either 60 or 90 minutes.
This rare tranquil state has been shown to relieve stress, speed up muscle recovery, and even inspire heightened levels of creativity.
The therapists at Zero Gravity offer a variety of massage styles, including Lomi Lomi and Thai. You can enjoy a massage before floating, or afterwards. If someone has not floated before, a massage beforehand can help ease anxiety about the process. On the other hand, floating before a massage can help relax the muscles, which allows the therapist to work more deeply.
2919 Manchaca Road, Suite 105A – Website
5/ Evolve Cryo + Wellness
Infrared sauna pod (Credit: Evolve Cryo + Wellness)
Living up to its name, Evolve Cryo + Wellness is stacked with the latest technology to promote wellness and help guests feel energized.
The main attractions are the cryotherapy saunas. But Evolve also offers acupuncture, futuristic facials, an infrared sauna, compression therapy, and oxygen therapy in addition to massage.
Cryotherapy is popular with athletes to speed up recovery and improve endurance, but anyone can benefit from the anti-inflammatory effects. It’s recommended that the first time you try cryotherapy, you do three sessions close together, to allow the effects to accumulate. After that, listen to your body to gauge when to return for a session.
3411 S. Lamar Blvd. – Website
@theAustinot wants to know:
Have you been to a non-traditional massage studio in Austin?
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