![]() In the 1980s the New York Times 4 reported the market was developing (Robin Williams and Yoko Ono were early, private “flotation pod” owners), but until recently, most commercial “float centers” remained rather bare-bones businesses. In the late 70s, University of British Columbia psychology professors, Peter Suedfield and Roderick Borrie, began re-investigating flotation tank benefits, rebranding it REST (“restricted environment stimulation technique”), or “floating,” to get away from the cultish, “mind-control” Lilly era. When you think weightless, saltwater flotation therapy, you don’t usually think of Benjamin Franklin! (Although his diary captures his astonishment at the profound relaxation delivered.) One is more likely to associate early flotation tanks with the 1980 film “Altered States,” based on neuro-psychiatrist John C Lilly’s well-publicized sensory-depriving, isolationflotation tank experiments in the 1950s and 1960s, which, while pioneering, took an odd turn, often involving psychedelic drugs. If ’70s hippies were the first to embrace flotation chambers, now spas report that it’s executives at tech start-ups who are climbing in. Given our info-bombarded lifestyles, people are increasingly seeking new experiences that “wipe clean” their brains, and mind-body approaches that might have seemed extreme a few years ago are becoming mainstream. Several studies2 show ongoing flotation chamber sessions can positively “reset” stress response hormones like cortisol, ACTH and epinephrine–and much of the research concurs that these positive effects last months after “floats.” Studies on flotation’s brain impact showed it improved creativity in jazz musicians and boosted focus in academic examinations.3įitness approaches (whether aerial yoga, anti-gravity treadmills or in-water workouts) that “unweight” the body from gravity’s pull can prevent more injuries, and the wear-and-tear on joints, tendons and muscles, than the earth-bound equivalents. and Sweden indicate flotation therapy (tested in tanks) delivers wide-ranging benefits: significant reductions in stress, chronic pain, swelling, headaches, depression and insomnia while lowering blood pressure and improving skin. Gravity compresses our spine/discs, so we lose an average of ½-inch in height every 20 years, the culprit behind backaches, swollen feet and varicose veins, and it compresses our organs so they function less well. No other force impacts our bodies so radically, and while you can’t see gravity, you can witness its cumulative damage, and downward drag, on your face, neck, back, chest, organs and feet, as you age. Nordik Spa-Nature in Quebec, Canada, offers a weightless Källa treatment, which takes place in the only indoor flotation pool More spas are breaking the saltwater flotation experience out of the usual “pod” and adding new flotation pools. And some downright space-age innovations include a planned Space Resort (Barcelona) where spa-goers will experience the world’s first “zero-gravity” spa. There’s also a new obsession with in- or on-water flotation experiences and fitness: from classes like aqua-spinning or stand-up paddleboard to new spa properties that actually float. And more spas are incorporating new technologies like anti-gravity massage beds and futuristic pods that simulate the experience of floating on a cloud. ![]() On the fitness front: a global craze for aerial and anti-gravity classes and yoga, and new equipment like anti-gravity treadmills. We’re seeing more weightless, stress – and mind-melting flotation tanks, chambers and pools at spas. ![]() People have a deepening psychological and physical desire to escape from gravity’s relentless pull, and a distinct “suspending gravity” or “floating” trend is rising up. Something’s in the air… something’s floating out there. ![]() At Fairmont Scottsdale’s Well&Being Spa, aerial yoga classes are so popular with both guests and locals they just keep adding more. ![]()
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