By Joey McWilliams
DURANT – Ordinarily, I keep myself out of the article. But this time I just had to try it.
Cryotherapy. Yes, Durant now its own cryosauna. In its new location on University Blvd., Element 5 Day Spa has brought cryotherapy to the area. And it’s cool.
No, that’s not right. It’s really, really cold.
Cryotherapy is treatment involving freezing or near freezing temperatures. The equipment Cammi Mowles, owner of Element 5, brought to Durant fits the bill.
“What we have is a whole body chamber,” Mowles said. “You stand inside with your head out. The air around you is cooled down to -250º F with liquid nitrogen. You would essentially get down to your underwear in order to get the best benefit, because the clothes hinder the treatment by keeping you warm. We do give you socks and gloves to protect you from frostbite. You would want to look out for tingling and pain sensations, but essentially it is a safe session.”
So I stripped down to my swimsuit (a DRY swimsuit) put on gloves and socks for safety and stepped into the chamber to test the nitrogen-cooled air. And it was interesting and invigorating to watch the unit’s thermometer show the temperature dropping down below minus-200º F.
“It pulls all the blood to your core, circulates it around, picks up oxygen and nutrients and once you warm up, it pushes it back out to your limbs,” Mowles said. “And because your limbs are cold, it’s like being in an ice bath where it breaks down the inflammation and helps your joints to move better and to feel better. You metabolism gets boosted and you can burn up to an extra 800 calories.”
It was a neat experience. I did the three-minutes session to get my foray into freezing a quick start. And I did feel better. During the next few hours, I felt relaxed and generally better.
Also, it was something special and I didn’t have to make a special trip to get to it.
“That was part of the reason why I decided to take the leap and bring this to Durant,” Mowles said. “I had done the research and found the closest cryosaunas were either Oklahoma City, Dallas or Tulsa. And over the past few weeks that we’ve been doing this, I found out that people from our area were driving to these places to have this treatment done.
“And they’ve contacted me and been so grateful and it just really blessed us that they are helping us to get the word out there and to bring knowledge to other people that this is something that really does help in their daily regimen.”
Benefits of the cryosauna are stated to include increased energy, pain relief, weight loss, better mood and faster recovery after injury or workout.
Element 5 recently moved the new location is 2915 W. University Blvd., in the space previously occupied by Greg Phillips State Farm.
“Come on out and try it,” Mowles said. “There is a $25 first session fee. It’s just a three-minutes session. You can be in and out in 15 minutes.
“It impacts your day. It boosts your mood. When you leave here, you feel amazing. You feel energy. Your muscles move better. The feedback that I’ve gotten over the last couple of weeks is that everybody says that in general they just feel better. And one of the reasons why is that when your blood is circulating it releases serotonin and that gives you a ‘feel good’ feeling. And that is released in massage, as well.”