Believe it or not, our relationships with our partners and friends have a big impact on our health and wellbeing. Mostly for obvious reasons such as passively sharing habits, peer pressure as well as social inclusion.
And while most of us instantly think of negatives such as smoking, drinking alcohol or overspending which might cause anxiety or stress, there are also a wealth of wellness and mental benefits to spending time with those who mean something special to us.
This point of this blog isn’t to point the finger at who is responsible for encouraging us to do bad things. Or perhaps which people in our lives we should be spending more time with to become healthier, fitter or to just be all-around happier.
The point of this article is to focus on ways in which we can spend more time together to create a more positive mindset, build our confidence from within us and all-round be kinder to our soul.
Here at The Spa at Bowood, we’ve got a few ideas of our own. We know that togetherness is more powerful in a wellness sense than any moisturiser, serum or oil. And when it comes to bringing people together, we’re the masters of it.
While on one hand, we can highly recommend coming to visit us for a bit of ‘you time’, we cannot stress enough just how beneficial paying us a visit with some who you love can be for you (and them).
With Valentine’s being on the horizon, it would only be opportunistic to identify some ways which we can help here on the Bowood Estate…
With Valentine’s just around the corner, come and rehabilitate together for a few hours in a warm and cosy spa environment. Have a snooze on one of our lavish loungers, take a swim in the pool, bubble away in our Jacuzzi. Daydream while you’re detoxified in the steam room.
The more you can relax and clear your mind, the more therapeutic you will find spending time with that special someone either side of the above.
View all our Wiltshire Spa Days here.
It is probably very rare (if even at all possible) for both you and your partner to have the opportunity to enjoy a soothing and tension relieving spa treatment in perfect alignment with each other. Here at The Spa at Bowood, we have a beautiful Dual Treatment Room where we can make this happen.
During the month of February, we’re also offering a special 60-minute couples spa treatment including a back, neck and should massage teamed with a skin-specific Eminence Organic facial treatment. Find out more here.
Once your treatment is complete, we can guarantee that you’ll be feeling even more relaxed, rejuvenated and most importantly in awe of your partner that you’ve felt in a long time.
Located here in the heart of the Wiltshire wilderness, while we might not have access to an onsite shopping mall or five dozen trendy bars and restaurants, we do have acres of tranquil countryside for you to explore… ok and perhaps a couple of rather indulgent restaurants.
Taking long walks gives you and your other half the chance not only to benefit from burning a few calories and getting a breath of fresh air, but it will also give you both a chance to talk and discuss things which otherwise you might not get around too.
Discussing deeper and meaningful things can not only help to reduce anxiety and stress but also promote a new sense of optimism within your relationship. It may also bring a sense of clarity to things which might have been at the back of your mind which is invaluable in a world where we’re continually bombarded with information.
For quite some time now, couples setting fitness goals together has certainly become ‘a thing’. Every day it would seem more and more couples and friends are setting goals and targets to get fit for a particular occasion. Example include getting fit for summer, getting beach body ready or training to do a half marathon for charity.
These kind of social bonding activities are a lot more challenging to maintain alone. Doing them with a friend or partner can have huge benefits for your self-esteem, confidence and in helping meet your goals.
We have the privilege of working every day with couples, many of whom are Spa Members here at Bowood.
Eating delicious healthy food isn’t as fun when you don’t have someone to share it with (even if by sharing we mean just telling them how delicious it is).
If you’re planning to feed the love this February, here are a few foodies fantasies which you’re welcome to come and piggyback on…
If you take anything away from this article, this February, be kind to yourself and to others.
Whether that is to your family, friends, partner or even a stranger, being kind feeds the soul and your soul feeds your body and mind. In doing this, not only are the repercussions good for you, but they will be replicated by others.
What does the phrase ‘New Year New Me’ have in common with Michael Bublé, tinsel… cloves?
For 91.7% of our lives, the phrase is dormant. Out of sight, out of mind (in the dusty attic of the brain). But, just like clockwork, when mid-December comes around you can be sure it’ll be back.
We grow out of Santa and the Tooth Fairy, but if we grow out of New Year then, as of December 2019, we haven’t. Like a cringeworthy but ultimately loveable Christmas film, it wins us round every year. The reason we are so receptive to it is simple.
Human cultures find the possibility of re-invention compelling. We always have. The ancient Babylonians are said to have been the first people to make New Year’s resolutions, 4,000 years ago. Wind forward two millennia and the Romans made January the western calendar’s reset button. Roman new year celebrations honoured Janus, their god of beginnings and endings. We honour beginnings and endings to this day. They frame our lives. They divide up the profound dimensions of time and space into neat sections. Today, tomorrow, next year. It gives us control in a mysterious and often unknowable universe.
Few people make religious resolutions these days. Even fewer know who Janus is (now you’re one of them). But the first day of the year and the decade (1/1/2020 of course being both) are new beginnings to us now as much as they were to the Romans.
At the dawn of a new decade, maybe we should ask ourselves if traditional resolutions are worth the sacrifices we make for them? Think of the classics: you buy a gym membership, or vow to diet, or give up something you enjoy. Resolutions usually involve strict sacrifice and obedience. It’s small wonder we tire of them so quickly; we need wriggle room and more positive reinforcement. Forget compulsive exercise and carb vetoes. Maybe the answer lies in finding sports and healthy foods we actually enjoy, and slowly building them into our routine?
So far so good, but the meteoric rise of wellness trend has changed our New Year New Me mentality. Wellness, the pursuit of optimum wellbeing in our emotional and physical lives, has changed when we seek re-invention. It needn’t be once a year. It cannot be undone by a false move. Wellness suggests that we can improve ourselves in any moment of any day. It’s as easy as breathing deeply with a calm app, and as quick as a five minute sauna session to sweat the small stuff away.
Crucially, wellness is about feeling good, rather than looking good. You know the fizz-fuelled optimism of midnight on December 31st ? Wellness rides the same wave, but it doesn’t come crashing down on Jan 1st , or even Blue Monday. Wellness won’t tell you you’ve failed, or serve you a mocktail of guilt.
The best thing about focusing on wellness in 2020 over a set of narrow resolutions is that it tends to last. Traditional NY resolutions tend to be about purging ourselves after our festive indulgences. They smack of guilt and dissatisfaction. But wellness is part of a wider commitment to living a good life.
Maybe it’s the lack of regiment that makes it sustainable in the long-term? We might like to shake things up every now and then, but that’s the exception to the rule. We are creatures of habit. Harsh measures like giving up sugar or signing up for a 6am boot camp might last a few weeks. Making time for simple pleasures and noticing how they benefit your health can last a lifetime.
Escape the city to wander in dense greenery, spotting wildlife and breathing fresh air. Curl up before a roaring fire and read a good book. Take a reflexology class or have a massage and reconnect with your body’s signals. These behaviours are naturally rewarding, so you are far more likely to fall into the habit of repeating them.
