Relaxing Facials

I've always loved the idea of having a facial, but up until a few weeks ago, I'd never had one before. My sister wanted to get one for her birthday, and we finally found time to go! We have a Aveda Institute near us, and as soon as we check it out online, we knew we had to get our facials there!

AVEDA is a company that uses flower and plant essences to create their products. They believe in using natural ingredients as much as possible to insure that their end products are as gentle and helpful as they can be. I love their products, especially their hair care lines!

AVEDA Institute  is an AVEDA cosmetology college. They have several branches, and one happens to be near us! The great thing about getting a facial, massage, hair cut and so on, at a institute is that the students are preforming the treatments(overseen by their teachers) so it tends to be a bit cheaper than a regular salon!

We booked our appointments and got excited about our facials! We arrived at the institute and were offered cool water and warm herbal teas while we waited. Then we met the students who would we doing our facials and they lead us to our rooms. We each had our own room and student to ourselves! The first thing the student asked me to do was to put on a towel, to make it easier for her to preform the facial. Then she gave me a mini foot-massage with some warm water and foot scrub. She explained that this was to help relive stress. Then I laid on a bed and she began the facial. She cleaned by face and then wrapped it in warm towels (which was amazing!). She also had a fog-machine of sorts waving back and forth over my whole body, which was really nice. Then she called her instructor in and they went over the students choices for products, selection of procedures and so on. They asked me if I was comfortable with the choices, I said I was, and then the instructor left. The student spritz my face with a hydrating spray, massaged my face, neck, arms and feet and calves with an oil of my choosing. Then she applied a clay mask to my face and neck areas. While she was doing this there was very relaxing music playing and the room was dim, which I found very relaxing! Then she cleaned my face and applied a warm towel. She applied a hydrating moisturizer to my face and neck. To wrap things up, she massaged my choice of a body oil into my neck, arms, hands. Then she had me sit up, and she applied the oil to my back as well. Next, she stepped out of the room to allow me to change back into my clothes. She brought me to the spa's waiting room and the instructor asked me a few questions about my experience, whether or not the student did a good job and so on. Then the student showed me a few products that she used in the treatment, and a few she recommended me using on a daily basis.

I enjoyed my facial at the Aveda salon so much, I can't wait to return for another treatment! The students were all very nice, informative, knowledgeable, and they went out of their way to make you feel as comfortable and relaxed as possible! Was there anything lacking? Only that I wish it could have gone on forever! We ended up getting a 60 minute facial which I found to be a perfect length in the end!
After the facial my skin was so smooth, bright and clean looking and feeling! I loved the treatment, the products, and the way I felt after my facial!

 

We loved our facials at the Aveda Institute, and I encourage you to look into the services they offer! I am sure that, if you chose to get a treatment at the Aveda Institute near you, that you will find it just as amazing as we did!

 

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Keep healthy and safe!

H. Banana

 

Some photos from http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/

5 Ways to Have an Active Rest Day

  Having a rest day is very important for over all health. But, a rest day doesn't have to be sitting on the couch or doing nothing all day! An active rest day is just as effective and tons better than being lazy all day!

In this post I will share with you 5 Tips or ways to have an active rest day! I hope it encourages you to be active more and take care of your body!

#1
Walking
Maybe your daily workouts are running, jogging or something like that. Walking is a great way to stay active but give your body the rest it needs. A nice walk(short or long) can be restful and relaxing mentally as well as physically. Take a walk with the dog, a friend, someone special or use it for some 'alone' time. I love to take my little brother for a walk up and down our drive way. Its great sibling bonding time and I get to listen to him chatter!

#2
Cooking or Meal Prep.
Your rest day, no matter where it falls in the week, can be a great time to prepare meals and food for the following week. Use the time you normally set aside for workouts to cook, cut up veggies, slice fruit and do whatever you need to do for easy meals the next week. Moving around the kitchen(or dancing!) is great exercise for your rest day and you can save time in cooking meals later!

#3
Gardening, Yard-Work or House Cleaning.
I know 'work' is the last thing you might want to do on your rest day and this isn't something that I do often, but not having to set time aside for a workout can give you free time for necessary chores that might have piled up over the week. Lately we've been busy with gardening and weeding outside, getting ready for the warmer weather. Its great exercise for a rest day because you're still moving around but not as much as a normal workout.

#4
Shopping, Running Errands, Going to a Museum.
Going out and shopping, running errands or going to a museum are great ways to stay active on your rest day because you do spend quite a good amount of time on your feet. It can be something you have to do anyways(like running errands or going to the grocery store) or something fun to do with a friend(shopping, museum or even the park!). Saving it for a rest day means you have more time for workouts during the week!

#5
Yoga, Stretching, Massage.
Doing yoga, stretching or getting a massage is a great way to loosen up tired and sore muscles after a week of workouts. Its also relaxing and refreshing for you mentally. Yoga and stretching can be done at home or at a gym. A massage is something that you can go and do by yourself or with a friend or even, invite some friends over and give each other massages! It is fun and relaxing while staying active on your rest day!

I hope these 5 tips will help you have an active rest day and can help you lead a healthier lifestyle. If you've enjoyed this post, please share it with a friend and give the blog a follow(if you haven't already)!

 

 

Keep it healthy and Safe!

H.Banana

 

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