THE LATEST WAYS TO DE-STRESS

Test-driving the newest relaxation offerings, from sound baths to sweat studios

THE KIT

The end of the year can feel like a marathon of socializing, errands and tying up loose ends. How about a little R&R to recuperate? We set out to try the latest ways to relax, from sci-fi frequency spas to New-Age sound baths.

Sweat session

$55 (50 minutes), Dew Sweat, 811 Gerrard St. E., Toronto, dewsweathouse.com

á What it is: A 55-minute “deep penetration” sweat induced by FAR infrared light technology. The idea is that the FAR infrared rays penetrate into tissue, joints and muscle, warming your body from the inside out. Co-owners Sue Kuruvilla and Julianne Smola cite benefits including revved up circulation, muscle relaxation and deeper sleep. But, as Smola explains, there are less-tangible benefits, too: “A big part of the mission was helping people give themselves the gift of care.”

What it’s like: The sweat studio is housed in a minimalist space on an unassuming strip of Gerrard Street. Wearing loose clothing, I clambered into a spa bed while Smola pulled heated linens over me. Then I put on headphones, lay

ck and watched Queer Eye, sipping ice-cold water.

Smola came in after 30 minutes to place a chilled cloth scented with lavender on my forehead. By then, I had my arms out of the blanket because the heat was intense. Post treatment, my clothing was soaked through on the level of a hot yoga session.

Relaxation rating: 10/10. I floated out of the studio, intending to take a taxi back to the office. Instead, I found myself walking for 12 blocks. I ducked into a café and ordered a fragrant peppermint tea, which warmed my hands on the walk to the streetcar, then home. Laura deCarufel, editor-in-chief

Frequency spa $99 (45 minutes), Soul 7, 17 Yorkville Ave. #100, Toronto, soul7.ca

What it is: A “neurofitness” session combining sound therapy, guided visualizations and personal mastery coaching to rewire your response to stress. You recline in a zero-gravity chair, pop on some headphones and watch a sort of self-help video. But the star of the show is the frequencies, which are set to music, delivered through the chair itself and feel like vibrations, emitting a buzzing that acts as a tuning fork for your nervous system. They trigger the “theta state,” the border between the conscious and subconscious worlds.

What it’s like: The program is meant to “shred subconscious-limiting beliefs and replace them with more positive thought patterns — to help us become version 2.0 of ourselves,” said NeuroFit’s co-founder Jacob Charendoff. Since my jaw had been tensed up for weeks, I decided to give it a whirl. I sat back in a neuro-pod as Charendoff handed me a weighted blanket and switched on the tablet. First came the guided visualization, led by a neuroplasticity expert who asked me to picture a pretty beach, and then … well, I don’t remember what happened next. I’m told a mindset coach told me how to change my perception of stressful situations, but I have zero recollection of her. Before I knew it, I was awake again, slightly confused but admittedly less tense.

Relaxation rating: 8.5/10. Soul 7 guarantees results for its 90-day boot camp, but even after one go, I felt way more chill when deadlines crept up.

Katherine Lalancette, beauty director

Sound bath $20 (60 minutes), Focus Mindspace, 49 Ossington Ave., Toronto, focusmindspace.com

What it is: A soothing “bath” of sounds promoting stillness and relaxation. You wrap yourself in a yoga blanket like a baby and lie on one of the comfy mats, set up in a circle around a central spread of instruments. Their vibrations are said to invite meditative and therapeutic effects into the mind and body.

What it’s like: I ascended from traffic-logged Queen and Ossington into the airy Focus Mindspace studio, where roving sound bath practitioner Kiko of Kiko Sounds had set up shop for the evening. Around her were translucent cylinders and bowls, metal prongs and clusters of what looked like dried seed pods. She played each one in turn for a few minutes; they made sounds ranging from melodic tone to hum to crackle. Initially, my mind kept drifting to the tasks I didn’t finish at work. But each new sound pulled me back to the experience and, eventually I drifted off, not quite asleep but not quite conscious, either. Occasionally, I felt a thrumming instrument graze my head or upper arms. Kiko ended the class with group sighs and hums, which felt like a release of energy.

Relaxation rating: 8/10. I was pleasantly bleary, like after a good restorative yoga class and, indeed, Kiko often combines the two practices. I vowed to try that next in my new quest to bring mind and body together in calm cosiness.

Rani Sheen, executive editor

Deep mind meditation $23 (30 minutes), Hoame Meditation Studio, 430 Adelaide St. W., Toronto, hoame.ca

What it is: You lie in a dark room, with a ceiling lit with twinkly faux stars, under a blanket. Through your headphones comes occasional guidance from the class leader but, mostly, it’s moody, space-age electro music called binaural beats. According to Psychology Today, binaural beats are a technology combining two sound frequencies, one in each ear (one that you can’t actually hear!) that, when perceived by the brain, slow down brainwaves.

What it’s like: I showed up with my stress level at a 9. “What is this weird slow-warp Star-Wars-intro music, anyway?” I thought. I did my best to shelve my skepticism because there’s nothing less relaxing than trying to meditate when you’re grumpy. Turns out, the trippy music does half the work for you. My mind wandered far less than usual; silence can heighten a racing mind.

When beeps signified the end of the class, I was shocked because I hadn’t realized it was only a half-hour long … which brought my skepticism back. “How is half an hour supposed to do anything?!”

But I was amazed when I found myself walking slowly to my car, a marked departure from my usual hurried pace. I also didn’t turn on the radio and frantically flip through the stations, a sure sign that I was able to embrace peace and quiet.

Relaxation rating: 9/10. This class calmed me down! Significantly! The annoying hippie music turned out to be the most effective meditation I’ve ever done.

Eden Boileau, managing editor

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