DO WHAT YOU LOVE, LOVE WHAT YOU DO

Local business owners fill a v oid with their expertise

Grant Martens was hooked after experiencing his first Thai massage in Budapest, but when he got back to Saskatoon and couldn’t find anyone practicing it in the city he decided to fill the gap himself.

So, he travelled to Thailand to learn the more than 2,000-yearold techniques before opening Sirius Health with the aim of bringing together traditional techniques in a contemporary setting.

“It’s completely different than a regular massage,” Martens explained. “It’s more about flexibility and range of motion and it’s actually not based on science ... The way Thai massage is taught, when you ask the question ‘why are we doing this?’ their answer is ‘because we’ve done it this way for 2,000 years.’ ”

Basically, it’s like doing yoga — but instead of doing the hard work yourself, Martens takes the lead, and your only job is to relax and follow a few simple instructions.

When arriving for a session — which can range from one to three hours in length — each client is provided with loose fitting clothing to wear during the massage and once changed, the experience begins with a relaxing foot wash before moving to the massage room.

Then, the massage begins after Martens determines how comfortable you are with body contact.

“I do know the Royal Thai technique,” he said, referring to the massage practised on Thai royalty due to the strict rules that govern touching.

“So, for someone completely uncomfortable with body contact or new and strange experiences we can utilize that technique — which is arms-length distance and much more North American than a true Thai massage.”

For the next hour — or more — he will take you through stretches and massages from the toes upwards on a comfortable mat that looks up to the mesmerizing starry lights on the ceiling. And just as the massage ends and you think you can’t feel any more relaxed the experience ends with a chat over a warm mug of lemon grass tea.

“I want to encourage people to come here and take time to actually relax,” he said. “So when they leave half an hour after their treatment they are both mentally and physically relaxed.” into the world can be stressful and sometimes scary, but Lindsay Sanderson is hoping to ease that pressure by helping others discover the perfect products that are a fit not only for their newborn but also for their lives.

Sanderson originally started out as a certified baby-wearing educator after she became a new mom and discovered the benefits baby carriers had on her son who suffered from reflux and only wanted to be held upright.

Soon, she was teaching other mothers about these benefits and was selling carriers left and right as parents flocked to her for help.

Though her store now offers a lot more than carriers — including everything from sleeping solutions to toys to health products — it remains her specialty, regularly hosting classes to teach new parents the basics of baby-wearing and helping them find the carrier that works best for the child.

“New parents are exhausted and overwhelmed. No matter how much research they sometimes still feel like they don’t know what they are doing, so they get paralyzed and can’t make a decision,” she said.

“So I like to sit down with them, make a cup of tea, and find out what they are really hoping to get out of their parenting experience.”

Sanderson says she simply acts as a guide for anyone who comes into the shop, whether they are a parent or simply looking for baby shower gift advice.

Raising A Little was the store she would have wanted to shop at when she was a new mom, so she is trying to make it as accessible as possible — offering free delivery to Saskatoon, Warman and Martensville, online shopping and even hosting baby-wearing classes and parent support groups.

“There’s a lot of pressure in the parenting world to do all the research and buy the right products,” Sanderson explained.

“But the reality is that there is no right, there’s no best and no worst — there is the one that works for you, your baby, your family and your body.”

RAISING A LITTLE

Owner: Lindsay Sanderson Address: 1540 Alberta Avenue Phone: 306-230-7340 Hours: Wednesday, Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Thursday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Website: raisingalittle.ca or check Facebook and Instagram

ERIN PETROW Grant Martens loved his first Thai massage so much he travelled to Thailand to learn how to do it himself when he learned no one offered it in Saskatoon. He now does the 2,000-year-old technique at his clinic.

LIAM RICHARDS Lindsay Sanderson opened Raising A Little in response to the challenges she encountered finding educational and quality baby products after giving birth to her son.