I had a brief exchange with one of our clients friends at the spa last week as she was looking over our journals in the boutique. I pointed one out that I bought for myself and showed her how beautiful the inside pages were, how cute the cover was, etc. Her response was one I’ve heard from so very many people, even myself from time to time- “I don’t know how to write in a journal, I just don’t have time and don’t really get it”. We put the journal down and moved on to talk body butters and glitter eye liner. 

I came to reflect on that conversation again this morning as I found myself feeling conflicted about writing in my own journal, my shiny, new, empty journal for 2012. “Is someone going to read this some day? Should I edit for future generations-  make it interesting for my grandkids? Am I writing for ME? If so, why not just keep it in my head and not bother putting it down on paper?” – All these questions.

I have two journals, actually. One is for yoga musings and study, basically, the other (the new one I christened this morning with my first entry) is for more personal reflections.

my beautiful journals

I started writing in a journal after purchasing it because I thought it was just so darn PRETTY and that I’d surely be inspired to at least pick it up and touch the textured cover and un-do the magnetic closure every now and again.  Turns out that you can take notes and write down quotes and explore lots of things on the pages of a journal!  I took my tiffany glass one (blue above) to a yoga retreat and used IT as my notebook.  How beautiful it felt to have a gorgeous, special, inspiring book with me every day to absorb my notes and hold space for reflections on those notes. Ol’ Tiff is all but used up now and she’s a really useful resource for me as I go back through to see what I was studying, what I found to be useful or meaningful in 2010 and ’11.  I’ve now moved on to the spiral bound, cool paged journal for 2012.  Each page has new designed paper, somewhat wavering lines and is exciting to flip through even before I write a single word in it.

I guess what I’m getting at is that there is a ceremony, a ritual, if you will, of intending to keep a journal, in selecting one that you find visually pleasing, one you feel you’ll want to write in because it deserves to be written in.  If my journals weren’t pretty, I probably wouldn’t write as often as I do, but I see them sitting there, empty, waiting, asking to be opened and caressed and it inspires me to write.  Not for me, but for them.  I jest, but there is some truth to it.

What got me off the journaling couch this morning was a passage in one of the books I’ve got going right now.  I got to thinking about it and couldn’t really continue reading because I was stuck on that one passage.  It became clear to me that that was my way in! That was my way into my first journal entry of 2012- I was going to start with that quote and then sort out all the feelings I was having about it.  It started so simply and 4 pages later, after shifting topics and unleashing a whole bucket of thoughts I can’t share with anyone without a mountain of disclaimers, I came to rest.

My journal frenzy behind me, I took a breath and acknowledged how easy it was to get my journal started.  I realized how easy it can be to take time (no longer than it would have taken someone to eat a bowl of cereal or watch a quickie morning news show) and I thought of that dear client friend at the spa.
Writing in a journal is not for the poetic, the skillfully introspective, it is not just for artists or those with an abundance of free time.  It starts by choosing your medium, it starts by selecting the home for your rogue thoughts, your frustrations, your favorite or least favorite quotes of the year, it starts by wanting to be able to journal and wanting to have or make time to care for yourself a little better, a little more tenderly.

With light and love, Namaste,

Calvert

We at Calvert Rejuvenations are proud and excited to announce that we’re unveiling our new So Sound Table at the Valentine’s Day Party on Wednesday evening, February 8th.

This has been a long time coming at Calvert Rejuvenations. We fell in love with this technology while visiting spas in the Pacific Northwest in 2011, and we’ve been working to bring it to our spa ever since. The Sound Table provides an experience of music most of us have never had before. As you relax on the table and enjoy the familiar auditory sensation of listening to music, the table transforms that music into waves of acoustic vibrations, thereby engaging your entire body in the sensory experience. Music tends to relax us, to take our minds away from what is in front of us and bring us to a calmer, meditative state. With the So Sound experience, this therapeutic effect is magnified as every muscle, head to toe, is engaged. Simply, we’re taking what soothes and relaxes us mentally and emotionally and spreading it out over the entire body.

It’s a truly wonderful experience, and here at Calvert Rejuvenations, we’re cooking up custom playlists and aromatherapy combinations to really drive home the relaxation. We can’t wait to show off what we’ve done, and we’re debuting the whole thing this Wednesday evening. Look for more specific ways to enjoy this experience both as an upgrade to your massage or facial or as a stand-alone treatment in the coming days!

Are you feeling a little yucky after indulging in holiday treats? Here’s a beautiful and tasty way to support your liver and gallbladder as they rid your body of toxins. I’m calling it the “Save Your Gallbladder Salad“. Enjoy this and feel free to improvise – listen to what your body is drawn to.

One shredded beet
One chopped apple (I used fuji)
A handful of chopped kale
The juice of half a lemon
Olive oil, drizzled on
Agave nectar (a gentle sweetener, to balance the tartness of the lemon)

Mix all together and enjoy. These amounts served two.

Kale is very high in beta carotene, vitamin K, vitamin C, lutein, zeaxanthin, and reasonably rich in calcium. Kale, as with broccoli and other brassicas, contains sulforaphane (particularly when chopped or minced), a chemical with potent anti-cancer properties. It’s a superfood! Beets, too, are packed with nutrients, and have been used for centuries to protect against oxidative stress, an imbalance linked with many diseases. And apples, as we all know, are delicious. I’m sure they’re healthy, too. Something about keeping the doctor away . . .

You could also throw in a handful of chopped walnuts, pecans, or some goat cheese. Have fun with it!

- Cheryl

Cheryl, in addition to being a wonderful Massage Therapist, is a Certified Health Coach, one who happens to be bursting with just this kind of excellent, practicable advice for developing a cleaner, healthier way of life. To schedule a Health Coaching session with Cheryl, please call the spa at (571) 323 1088.

I popped on to Facebook this morning and found some much needed support from our friends over at Snap Fitness at Franklin Farm:

“With the holiday season upon us we stress over gaining weight and staying in fit. There are the office parties, friend parties and of course our family parties! This time of year is baked goods everywhere too. Many temptations how can we NOT be tempted?

There ARE ways to beat the ‘battle of the bulge’, stay fit and avoid holiday weight gain.

1.Use moderation when cheating on your diet. Eat here and there watching your portion size. Only grabbing a taste over a plate full. Remembering your ‘eat every 3 hours’ plan.

2. Make a goal to do something active during the day. Try and get out at least once a day for 30 minutes. One easy thing to do is grab the dog and go for a walk. Even if there isn’t a dog…walking around the block is great.

3.Don’t have ‘danger’ food out. The temptation is will be there if these ‘danger’ foods are in the house. Make sure they leave the house.

It’s all up to YOU to stay fit during the holiday season. Start NOW over waiting till January 1st!
“Make the holiday season about being with your loved ones rather than feeling guilty about eating too much”.
That’s what the holidays are about! Tell us your goals during the holiday season to stay fit. We’d love to hear from you.”

Holiday Campaign: First Month Free
Herndon Snap Fitness
Get started with a fast, convenient and affordable workout every time – at Snap Fitness in Herndon, VA . Minutes from your home and packed with the industry’s best cardio and exercise equipment, our gym gives you more for your money. Enjoy a better experience, achieve better results.

Off Rte 7100 and Franklin Farm Rd.
13300 Franklin Farm Road
Herndon, VA 20171
Phone: 703-463-9886

Tip of the day:
One of the healthiest, easiest and most refreshing ways to get relief from stiffness in your back from a night’s sleep is to pay attention to your breath.

Before you jolt out of bed in the morning take a few long, full, slow breaths. It’s particularly helpful if you visualize your rib cage expanding evenly on both sides and front to back.  Imagine breathing evenly in the front and back of your lungs.

Allow your shoulders to stay relatively level and instead expand your chest and belly and back outward with your breath, giving your lungs all the space they need to fill completely and relieving contraction and pain in your upper back and chest.
Hint-  the back of your ribs will move gently apart as your breathe wholly and evenly.  You may even, as I do, hear your back pop as your spine realigns!

Often throughout sleep, particularly if you’re a stomach or side sleeper, your diaphragm and intercostal muscles (rib cage muscles, basically) get compressed, shortened and tight.  It’s so easy to get into the habit of breathing mostly in the front of your body that you miss out on the expansive feeling breaths that happen in the back body.  We’re meant to breathe (and live) right in the middle of front and back, right over our ankles- if we’re leaning forward, or breathing forward, (or sleeping curled up in a ball for 6+ hours a night) we’re out of optimal alignment which causes problems, pain, weakness.

Join me today? I intend to check in with my breaths (and my back) once an hour and really hone in on a) fullness, b) evenness, c) shoulder blades flat on my back (good posture comes from all this breath awareness, too, of course).  I will focus on taking 5 truly healthy breaths per hour…who knows, I may develop a habit. 

Happy breathing,

Calvert

At long last we are excited to announce we’ve completed our expansion! From 3 treatment rooms to 6! A new, expansive boutique! A wonderful new relaxation Oasis! And we want YOU to come see it for yourself!

We’ll kick off our three-day open house Grand Re-Opening on Thursday, November 3, 4th and 5th all day, with special events from 5pm-7pm on the Thursday the 3rd, and Friday and Saturday from 11am-1pm.
Bring a new-to-us friend and take home a FREE pair of our cozy World’s Softest Spa Socks!

We’ll have raffles throughout the celebration, with prizes such as free spa services, a gym membership to Snap Fitness in Franklin Farm (love them!), training sessions, and spa products. Guests will also receive a $10 coupon for retail purchases of $100 or more, and we’ve got a brand new assortment of hand-picked favorites to choose from in our new boutique.  Enjoy $10 spa dollars to use however you like for every $200 in gift certificates purchased during the 3 day extravaganza.

Featured guests and presenters will include local jewelry artist Ann Carney and Psychic Medium/Spiritual Counselor Sheila Cash, with catering by Cookology and Morton’s of Reston. The activities will take place during the hours listed above, but if those don’t fit your busy schedule, you can still stop by anytime to enter the raffles, receive your retail voucher, and view the newly expanded spa! And during our three-day Grand Re-Opening celebration, we’re offering a special 30% discount on select, same-day services. These will fill up fast, so make sure you stop by when you can!

We’re so excited about our newly expanded space, and we can’t wait to show it off. RSVP via email to info@calvertrejuvenations.com so we can reserve a glass of champagne for you!

Select services include:

• Ahh, sinus relief treatment
• Express Herbology Scrub- Love Your Limbs! arms and legs, feet and hands, warm booties, oh my!
• 30 min. massage
• Petite facial

The 30% off services may only be booked same-day, in person at the event.  Join us for the party!