Beauty & Spas in Boulder

Relieve pressure, soothe aches, and maximize athletic performance with today’s Groupon. For $35, you get an hour-long massage session of either Swedish or sports at BodyActive Therapeutics, a $65 value. Recharge after routine laps around the rink or escape holiday stresses.

Aloha Healing Spa's director, Deborah Frazier, has seen the beauty industry from a variety of angles. As an international model, she knows the value of confidence and having a successful glamour team, insights she further combined with technical know-how by becoming a licensed aesthetician and makeup artist. Her time spent as a dancer gave her experience in maintaining her poise and grace, and practicing healing arts equipped her to help herself and others find peace and recuperation through alternative means. With this wealth of experience, she repairs and rejuvenates clients by exfoliating skin with chemical peels, unknotting muscles during raindrop therapy massages, and instilling calm through healing arts sessions. She also spends a portion of her time passing her skills onto future professionals at Polished by Deborah, a finishing school that focuses on career development, personal presentation, etiquette and ethics.

There are several paths to serenity at Nature Stone Yoga. Here, to help clients develop a peaceful mind and a relaxed body, yoga instructors conduct private, one-on-one sessions that allow them to develop a personalized, prescriptive series of asanas that will address each individual's issues. They begin each session by testing muscle groups for range of motion, strength, and tension, making a note of capabilities in each category, so that clients can easily chart their improvement. These sessions might address issues such as chronic tension, lack of flexibility in the lower back, or postural problems brought on by working at a desk all day or sleeping under one all night. Those seeking additional relaxation can enjoy a gentle warm stone massage, which uses heat to further melt tension in the muscles while also targeting acupressure points to refresh and rejuvenate the body.

Within his studio, Gary Remes, a second generation massage therapist, works to restore balance to bodies using a unique technique he created called Neuro-Fascial Re-Education. Remes perfected this technique over the years by drawing on his 25 years of massage experience. Taught at the Namti School of Massage and in Sedona, Arizona, the technique combines acupressure, myofascial release, and other healing methods, tailored to soothe a wide range of emotional and mental stressors, including carpel tunnel syndrome, fibromyalgia, migraines, postural problems, and TMJ. A graduate of the St. Jude Medical Center’s Chronic Pain program, he draws on extensive work and training experience with John Barnes PT; Dr. Gustave Suffin MD,DO; Dr. Karen Lee, OMD; Reggie Griffin and Danielle Boyer, Doctors of Chiropractic; as well as his grandfather and uncle to assess or treat chronic pain.

The massage therapists of Boulder Massage & NeuroMuscular Therapy possess different skills and backgrounds, but work toward a single goal: to relieve stress and chronic pain. Jason Summers specializes in treatment-oriented massage, while Zeona McIntyre excels in combining orthopedic work and Swedish massage. Lauren McWilliams also has a knack for rooting out pain, exercising her talents with myoskeletal therapy to gently realign the spine.

The practitioners respect each client's investment by devoting the entire session to massage, with time only deducted for undressing or sharing knock-knock jokes. Additionally, they support the community by volunteering at nonprofit organizations and hosting interns from local schools.

To secure its position as the best massage clinic of 2010, Massage Specialist presented Boulder Weekly with a suite of services that went beyond the basics. The clinic's therapists practice more than 10 massage styles including classic modalities (e.g., Swedish, deep tissue, and sports) as well as uncommon therapies (e.g., manual lymphatic drainage, infant massage, and shiatsu). Most treatments incorporate the clinic's signature water-dispersible oils and lotions that do not stain clothing but may dissolve witches. They prep for appointments by draping treatment beds with fresh, clean linens, and educating guests on therapies that suit their personal ailments. Aside from massage therapy, the clinic offers spinal adjustments, chiropractic care, acupuncture, and herbal consultations.