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Diana Vilchis : First Visit

If you have never had an at-home massage, trust me, you are totally missing out!!! Usually much cheaper, WAY more relaxing, and totally more convenient, I really don’t know why anyone would ever go to a spa for a regular massage after having one at home!

It has occurred to me though that some people may not know how to actually go about getting one, so I thought I would copy some of the info that Diana has provided on her Facebook page detailing her home visit and what you can expect of the appointment:

“Positive touch encourages growth, development and feeling of well-being. Vilchis Touch provides Professional and Therapeutic Touch. Before each Massage Session, it is required that you take a hot shower in order to enhance the benefits of the treatment, relax tensed areas, and create a clean surface for your pores.”

First time visit and what to expect:

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Super Relax Chinese Foot Massage in Chatsworth

At $19 for a one hour massage experience, I thought it quite the research experiment to go to Super Relax, especially since my favorite spot The Jolly Foot was booked for the day. After my acupuncture appointment, I noticed a man smoking outside the Super Relax door as I walked in and asked for a session.

Of course, as my luck would have it, the cigarette smoking man followed me in and was my designated ‘walk in’ masseuse. I sniffed the air really quick and didn’t smell any cigarette smoke, so I thought maybe I was wrong in seeing him with my own eyes smoking a cigarette, and complied and sat down as he gave me a super rough massage.

The staff was nice, but the overall feel was kind of shady – not even as nice as the Jolly Foot. The massage was just ok, and as I walked out, I made a mental note to not visit them again. I don’t know exactly what it was, as nothing bad happened, but I just kind of got weird vibes from that place. I think this is the same chain that has their stations set up at the malls in Woodland Hills and Northridge, but I am not 100% sure.

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Tiger Balm for Sore Muscles

Tiger Balm has been around for as long as I can remember, but let me remind everyone, including myself how awesome it is!! It’s fantastic to use after a workout – AFTER showering, and right before bed. I got the best sleep and woke up without any muscle ailments that would inhibit me from moving comfortably the next morning.

Diana Vilchis, who is the BEST massage therapist who will come to your home and give you the bomb massage, uses Tiger Balm on my muscles after she is done with each section, which is just absolute heaven!

Mind you, I WAS sore, but not to the point of being unable to move, like I have been in the past. That’s my feel-good tip of the day for all of us fitness mamas! Tiger Balm comes in ointment form, rub form, extra strength, sports rub formula, pain relief formula

for more info on how to use Tiger Balm:

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Moisturizer Doesn’t Really Moisturize, You know.

To put it simply, moisturizers really only act as a blocking mechanism to keep your hydrated skin, well, hydrated. When you apply your lotion, you are really layering on a thick barrier to keep whatever moisture is already in the skin layers, in.

So to get the best out of your moisturizer, make sure that you stay hydrated by drinking LOTS of water, and put on your moisturizer right after your shower, to lock in the most hydration as possible. As an added measure for extra dry skin (like I have these days) I apply a home made mixture of half and half when I am still damp. Here’s my recipe:

1 pump of Alba’s unscented extra emolient mositurizer
1 pump of SunSpa’s essential Aruvedic oil
rub together and massage into skin. Typically one pump of each will be enough for 1 limb/area, so I use a total of approximately 6 pump combos total. The reason why I prefer to get the unscented moisturizer is so that I am free to get different varieties of the essential oil blends without it being too perfumy. This way, I get a dual layer of blocking in my skin’s existing moisture, and don’t get as dry/tight/ashy as often.

for details on some of my favorite essential oils:

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Vilchi’s Touch

If you are a facebook persona, like me and everyone else I know, be sure to join Diana’s massage group Vilchi’s Touch for massage wellness. It’s free and fabulous!

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Love Movement at BodyWorks Studio

I posted the photos on Flickr that I took at the Love Movement hosted by Trina Lewis at BodyWorks Studio. It was SO much fun, it was an evening filled with good for you food, amazing pampering services, a mini-yoga sequence, some sexy dancing techniques, and fun bellydancing. Foot massage, chilled wine and all around good company made this an especially great night to remember…thanks SO much to Trina for even doing this! I can’t wait until next year’s!

Related links:
Trina Lewis Blogs
BodyWorks Studio
BodyWorksStudio on YouTube
My photo album on Flickr

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JollyFoot Reflexology & Chinese Foot Massage

The Chinese style Foot Massage spots are popping up left and right all over the Valley, some even having specials promoting foot massages for as low as $15 and averaging about $20 for an ENTIRE HOUR of amazing massage focusing on your feet.

I stopped by the JollyFoot yesterday for a quick fix on my feet, especially since for the first part of the treatment, you soak your feet in a warm water bath infused with healing herbs, which my feet absolutely needed in this cold & dry weather. While you stay fully clothed, and share space with other clients (see photo below for interior layout) the technician will do a head, neck and shoulder massage, followed by a full acupressure and reflexology massage on your feet with specialty herbs. After that, you will be asked to turn over, and they recline the chair all the way flat so that you can get a full back/body massage. At the end of your treatment, you feel invigorated and enlighted, and you are only out of $25 at the Jollyfoot, plus a tip for your technician. I typically tip $10 – $20 depending on how great the massage was. This is definitely a place that will change your life for less than half price of a full service spa, which is ALWAYS a good thing, regardless of the state of the economy!

I’ve gone on weeknights and it has been rather busy, so I opt to go on weekday afternoons, you can always call ahead of time and book an appointment too, although I usually just walk in.

If you visit the Jollyfoot and tell them Spa-View.com sent you, you MIGHT get the coupon price of $20 per hour, depending on how generous they are feeling LOL.

Jolly Foot: Foot Acupressure & Reflexology
(818)993-7512
0533 Devonshire St in Chatsworth (in the Panda Express shopping center on Mason & Devonshire).

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Parting is Such Sweet Sorrow…

I went in for my last massage at Camarillo’s Massage Envy, as I cancelled my membership after over 2 years of really enjoying the benefits of massage. Today I had an appointment with Harmony and she was absolutely the BEST. She had the best aromatherapy techniques and a really smooth and strong touch. I’m super sad that it’s my last one. Sigh…

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Deep Tissue Massage

I just got my first deep tissue massage - and I’m not really sure what to think. During the actual massage, it was soooo euphoric and relaxing and almost exhausting. It was probably the most effective massage experience I’ve ever had because it forced me to relax my muscles and focus on my breathing, but now, approximately 6 hours later, I feel like I have been hit by a truck. I’m sooooo achy and tired, and I just want to pack it up and lounge in bed for the first time at 10 pm in years.

Ouch.

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Thai Yoga Massage

Ok people, I’m not really sure if I like the Thai Yoga massage…and maybe because yoga is actually challenging to me, so I don’t really find a massage that incorporates any sort of flexibility and restrictive moves to be relaxing in any capacity. It’s hard enough to even undergo a Shiatsu massage for me, which I suppose is a red flag that I am either choosing to ignore or am going to have to address later on…but back to the TYM review:

I booked an appointment at one of my favorite spas Burke Williams Sherman Oaks. I took my shower, sat in the hot tub for a while and was waiting in the quiet room in my fluffy BW robe. When the therapist called for me, she was wearing a gi and a martial arts style headband. I kind of wondered why my therapist was rocking a teenage mutant ninja turtles motif, but then thought that maybe I was being completely out of line and politically incorrect and just sucked it up to being ignorant and followed her to the room. On our way to the room, she asked if I had ever experienced an ‘eastern style massage” before – answer: no. Her response was that it was very ‘interactive’ and that I needed to ‘work with her’ to make it easier. Hmmm….ok.

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