Wellness

Local Remedies for Active Bodies

Whenever my brother Mac comes to visit me in Sun Valley, he always says that by day three he gets the “Sun Valley Swagger.” Now this swagger is not the kind of swagger you might be thinking of, so drop the “Louis Vuitton-totin’-big-shades-wearing strut” you might have conjured. This swagger is more along the lines of a “hiked-up, biked-up, skied-down Baldy one too many times” kind of swagger. 

Mac calls his week-long visits his “Sun Valley Bootcamp,” whereas SV locals merely call this brand of overdrive a daily routine.

So how do our uber-active, full-time residents keep going? What I like to call our “Muscle Mystics” come to the rescue, keeping us–and visitors–tuned up and ready for the next adventure. There are many of these kind of body workers and healers in our community and everyone has their favorites. Here are a few of mine. 

Leslie Bray – Deep Tissue Massage Therapy

Meet Leslie Bray. For the last 23 years, her no-fluff massage has been helping endurance athletes recover more quickly. Married to the ultimate ultra runner, Scott Bray, Leslie found her passion for working with over-used muscles while helping scores of ultra-runners keep limber and moving. Her knack for diving deep in tissue kept these runners–and many active types in the Sun Valley area–ready and able for miles to come. 

Deep tissue massage, as Leslie describes it, “causes release of muscle tissue that thereby increases blood flow, hydrating the muscles and flushing out the by-products.” While Leslie specializes in deep tissue massage she can adapt to her clients needs. Her schedule is about as tight as your shoulders so plan ahead to book! You can reach her through call or text 206-427-5024

 

Erin Hill – Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine

Erin Hill not only has a private practice in Chinese medicine, but she is also a partner, along with Jacqui Terra and Sean O’Grady, in a business called “Tune Up.” Erin has deep understanding of the athlete’s body because, in addition to working at her practice, she’s often running in the Sawtooth backcountry or giving people a great sweat in her kettlebell class!

Through Erin’s experience, she has come to believe that the more experienced practitioners, the better and that frequency is key. That led her to to partner with Jacqui Terra and Sean O’Grady and create Tune Up. New to the valley, Tune Up is an innovative approach to health and wellness care, offering four 30-minute treatments a month with a monthly membership of your choice of commitment. The beauty of Tune Up is that it promotes frequency of care and consistency of use to improve your chances of getting better or getting even more awesome.  Think of it like an integrative health care system, but instead of in-house, there are multiple practitioners to choose from around the valley. 

Tune Up currently has massage, acupuncture, virtual nurse practitioner, chiropractic, private yoga and private pilates to offer as services from which to choose as you need. Learn more about Erin and Tune Up

tuneupgo.com | 208.471.8022 | [email protected]

    

 

Sandi Hagel – Chinese Medicine and Acupuncture

Sandi Hagel is a (mountain) biker chick and yogi through and through. When you hear yin and yang you think of Sandi. She is either shredding the dirt on her mountain bike or finding her namaste through the several yoga classes she teaches throughout the community. Needless to say Sandi understands the athlete’s life.

Sandi has made acupuncture accessible to the Wood River Valley for a number of years through her group acupuncture sessions, which are held Monday night at the Wood River Valley YMCA. Yes, you heard that right, you can get acupuncture as a group! The suggested donation is $25 on a first-come-first-serve basis! Each person who is treated that evening will receive 35-45 minutes of treatment. Sandi also has her own practice as well. You can book time with Sandi through her website, sandihagel.com and you’ll find her at the Wood River Valley YMCA 

Cupping - Sun Valley, Idaho  

 

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