May 8, 2013 at 12:14 PM ET

Getty stock, Mohonk Spa

Sore from texting and typing too much? Spas are now catering to aches and pains caused from too much tech use.

As more and more technophiles seek relief from computer-caused discomfort, spas are getting creative about meeting their needs. And they don’t plan on being a flash (drive) in the pan.

New York’s Mohonk Mountain House — named #1 resort spa by Conde Nast Traveler— now offers a Texting Tension Tamer, a consistently-booked massage for the shoulders and neck, with help from an organic vanilla cream.

Stuck in a Silicon Valley rut? Dash over to California’s luxurious Burke Williams spa for a Dot.Com enhancement, where customized stretching and massage is meant to “relieve the stress and muscle tension we all develop working at a computer.” Launched in June 2012, the tech-focused treatment has since jumped to the number two position this year, accounting for 28 percent of Burke Williams’ enhancement sales.

And for some wrist rest, national spa chain Massage Envy offers a one-hour massage that focuses on pain associated with carpal tunnel syndrome — targeting the palm, thumbs and wrists. Notice a consistent breakout on your right cheek, where your iPhone rests? Fear not: the Smartphone Regeneration Facial at Gotham Skincare in New York City should clear that up in no time.

Texter’s thumb
Industry veterans say this trend was a long time coming, and medical experts affirm that it’s much more than skin (or even muscle) deep.

Susie Ellis, president of SpaFinder Wellness, has noticed a definite trend towards “designing and branding treatments that alleviate pain, tension or conditions” in tech-affected areas, though the treatments themselves are not necessarily new, but just with “new labels.”

“Therapists are now are much more attuned to tech-centered needs, recognizing, for example, tight shoulders, as a sign someone has been at a computer all day,” Ellis told TODAY.com. (Just consider your posture as you read this article.)

Paul Guditis used to be a commercial pilot, but stress in the cockpit actually led him to think about wellness and de-stressing in the workplace. He is now the owner of Body Charge, bringing massage chairs into corporate environments.

“I go into offices where people’s hands are bandaged from carpal tunnel from being on computers too long,” said Guditis. “Massage therapists come back reporting shoulder injuries and migraines.”

Cornell University professor Alan Hedge, an expert in ergonomics, confirms that our hunched hacker posture has ushered in some new pains. “We jokingly call it ‘homo computeris,’ but it’s also called ‘turtling,’” he said: people sitting in a rounded position like the shell of a turtle.

Overuse of the thumb can also cause injury. “When you’re using thumbs to text — which aren’t very dexterous — those tendons get an awful lot of use, and if they get inflamed, can be very painful.”

Relief, but not a cure
So far, the tech-massage movement already has its loyal devotees. Jenna Groesch, 23, an executive assistant at an advertising agency in New York City, affirms there’s nothing gimmicky about this trend — that these rubdowns generate real results.

“I feel incredible afterwards,” Groesch says of the Body Charge massages which help her alleviate stress built up from working at a computer. “I can really take on my day, without worrying about neck and back pain.”

Others concur: Heather Franks, 28, a digital marketing consultant from Irvine, Calif., goes to Burke Williams every three months for their Dot.Com treatment. “I feel immediate relief and change in my posture,” she said.

“Massage is fantastic for preventing and reducing tension build up,” attests Susan N. Servetnick, a physical therapist who specializes in correcting work positioning in her New York City practice, Back Into Balance.

So are these pod-patron pampering massages the answer? In part, says Hedge. “Massage doesn’t fix the problem; it temporarily alleviates the symptoms. The real key is to change the way they’re working or texting.” He’s hopeful about the improvements that might be brought by touch-free technology like Siri.

Detox from texts
Even spa hotels are addressing the problem. From California to Costa Rica, retreats offering travelers a digital detox experience are gaining popularity. Guests are told to relinquish all their various gadgets or are even offered 15 percent off for checking their iPhones at the door.

Barbara Stirewalt, spa director at Mohonk Mountain House, understands that treatment doesn’t end when her guests leave the spa. “We do try to be the antithesis of technology in some ways — a historic resort that does not have TVs in the rooms,” Stirewalt told TODAY.com. “In a subtle way, we’re enabling people to come back to nature.”

If DIY is more your bandwidth, let your digits do the walking: try some stretches from the experts at HealthyComputing.com, or a quick search on YouTube generates dozens of massage demonstrations for computer aches and pains. And hey — you can live-tweet it, too.

“These spas have hit on something real here,” said Hedge, adding: “Probably the most helpful thing about them is that people won’t be texting while they’rein the spa.”

 

 

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The post Text tension, computer cramps: Spas offer relief for techno-woes appeared first on Body Charge USA.

At the Drucker School of Business  in Claremont, California, students working on their MBA are being taught to be in the moment.  That is to say, mindful and  aware of what is actually happening in the present.  Companies including Google Inc. and General Mills Inc. are embracing mindfulness training with the aim of making their workforces less reactive, more resilient — even more creative.

A brass bowl and a leather covered mallet. are the tools that are used in classes for this exercise.  Clearing the mind of all the chatter (monkey mind as some Buddhists call it), is the key element for mindfulness.  It’s about paying attention to what’s going around you.  Jeremy Hunter, a professor at the Drucker School of Business says it’s like upgrading human ability.

Meditation is no new fad.  It’s been happening for about 2500 years in Indian and Asian cultures.  American business are learning something about being less reactive in situations and  more about choosing to change behavior in stressful situations.  Steve Jobs credits Zen meditation as a way of being focused while he was running Apple.

Some businesses might consider this as airy-fairy, but if Steve Jobs and Google find it useful, it might be worth giving it a try.

The post Meditation taught at business schools appeared first on Body Charge USA.

Body Charge is now offering a refreshing conclusion to companies that use our services on a regular basis.  Aside from a great seated massage, we’re offering lemon scented hot towels for your employees, so they feel refreshed and recharged, before going back to work.  We’re here to make your work day more pleasant.  Call us for our SPECIALS!

The post New Hot Towel Service for Massage Programs appeared first on Body Charge USA.

Here are 6 questions to ask a prospective massage company before you hire them.

1. Are the therapists given a hands-on interview where their skills and technique are tested?
2. Are the therapists licensed and insured in the state where they practice?  Ask for proof.
3. How long has the massage company been in business?
4. Does the company have managers in each city they work in to hold interviews and manage the local therapists?
5. What do the therapists bring with them to the job? Music, aromatherapy etc…?
6. Has the owner of the company been a massage therapist? Asking this will give you an insight to his/her ability to manage and judge the quality of a massage.

The post Read this before you hire a chair massage company appeared first on Body Charge USA.

Green make-up 

(my smoothie on the top picture)

For two 3dl glasses mix in the blender:

2 apples (I used medium organic apples from our garden)

a bunch of green spinach

2 apricots

1 lemon (peel it before)

1 carrot

rice milk (depends on how dense you want your smoothie to be)

1 tbs of barley grass powder (optional)

The post A Green Smoothie for the Summer appeared first on Body Charge USA.

Yes, we can’t believe it either, but Body Charge sent 5 therapists to Santa Monica on Saturday night (june 16) for the

Stanley Cup Party.

And I’m not blowing our horn, but it’s good to let people know some of the places we have worked.  Trisha you can see, is an LA Kings fan, and she is in hog heaven……the therapists massaged the Kings and their guests, and then sat down to a dinner catered by Wolfgang Puck.   As owner of this company, I should have brought my massage chair.  O well….

Just the latest news in a day in a life of a chair massage company.

Trisha, a Body Charge therapist, next to the Stanley Cup at the party Saturday the 16th of June

The post Body Charge massages the Stanley Cup? appeared first on Body Charge USA.

Body Charge’s main offices are Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York.  Paul Guditis, Body Charge owner: ” Spreading ourselves too thinly over the US sometimes gets us in trouble.  In staffing small markets, there really is no chance of interviewing all of the therapists.  It is just totally unrealistic.  That is why our main focus will be the major markets on the West, Midwest, and the East Coast.”

“I have a chance to go out and personally interview therapists, get a hands on demo, and find the best therapists available who want to do this work.  It’s amazing what people put down on paper, and what their massages are like.  Sometimes they are two different worlds.”

Body Charge has been in business for 15 years massaging trade shows, corporations, and health fairs all over the US.

” We can be called for anything, anywhere, anytime.  My job is to make sure it happens, with the best therapists available for the work.  I consider us one of the best out there.  And through the years, I’ve had a chance to see what is out there.”

Be a hero, and bring in some massage for your staff.  They’ll love you for it.

The post LA, Chicago and New York appeared first on Body Charge USA.

Healthy relaxed employees means less sick days and more productivity.

Are you looking for a way to keep your productivity up, sick days down, your company insurance premiums down, and your employee morale up?

Body Charge has been in the business of relaxing and rejuvenating employees since 1997.  From Warner Brothers to KPMG to Walt Disney to Hearst Publications, we have been in offices all over the country doing what we do best:  Stress Relief.

It is no secret that implementing perks like massage, you will be able to recruit, retain, relax and reward your employees.

Body Charge offers an on-line scheduling system to help keep your hands free of extra work.

NO CHARGE.

Call us for more info at 800-296-8634

The post Massage Wellness Programs appeared first on Body Charge USA.

Massage chair and a LaFuma Reflexology Lounger-Our standard equipment

Body Charge can provide reflexology and foot massage at your health fairs, trade shows and employee appreciation days. It is a great addition to the standard chair massages we offer.  Your guests and employees have a chance to get off their feet and be pampered with a great foot treatment by an experienced reflexologist and accupressurist who addresses specific health issues through the feet and accupressure points.

It’s another way of showing your employees that you care!

The post We provide Chair Massage AND Reflexology at your health fairs! appeared first on Body Charge USA.

1.  Massage reduces stress. Why?  Massage creates chemical changes within the body that reduce pain and stress.  One of the culprits is substance P.  Substance P is a neuro-peptide that transmits signals of pain and anxiety to the brain.  Studies show that massage twice a week showed a reduction of substance P in the patients saliva, and reduced pain.

2.  Massage strengthens your immunity.   Under stress your body produces cortisol, which in turn kills off important cells for your immune system.  Massage circulates white blood cells through out the body, and reduces the cortisol production.

3. Massage lowers blood pressure.

4.  Techniques:  There is no evidence supporting one massage technique over another.  As long as the pressure is enough to make a temporary indentation, it’s doing the job.

5.  Self massage.  Targeting the tendons in the forearm by stretching them can relieve pain and discomfort from long hours on the computer.  Also stretching those tendons by doing active stretches will also help with those computer muscles…..

The post 5 Surprising Benefits of Chair Massage appeared first on Body Charge USA.