What is Hydrotherapy?
This article is part of the symbol that deals with detoxifying body treatments
In essence, hydrotherapy describes a way to cure or invigorate your body via all kinds of water therapies.
This could be extra warm or cold water or a combination of both.
This is not a new concept. The Egyptian pharaohs and priests used hydrotherapy to their advantage. They also added perfumed oils to the water.
The Romans used it in the form of public baths, where ‘heated water’ caused a ‘steam bath’.
Hippocrates advocated a bath in a cold spring to invigorate the spirit and to harden the body and strengthen the immune response.
Over the centuries bathing in hot springs or ‘taking to the waters’ was a natural way of curing many ailments. One man has taken this principle even further and he was called Sebastian Kneipp (1821-1897)
He was the son of a poor weaver with an early ambition to become a priest. This was quite an uphill struggle for a poos weaver’s son. Kneipp studied so hard that it took a toll on his health and he suffered from lung problems.
One day he read a book about hydrotherapy and decided to cure himself with this knowledge. After recovering his full health, he experimented with many methods and finally published a book that explained all this knowledge involving water therapies and plant medicine.
How can you use hydrotherapy at home?
Here are a few tips. Kneipp saw strengthening the immune system and cleansing the blood and bowl as the pillars of a healthy body.
Varying cold and warm water, helps the blood to circulate and get rid of toxins.
It is important that you don’t feel cold when you start this program. If you do, have a hot shower first.
Exercise 1: Walking barefoot for a couple of minutes on a morning lawn, even in the winter. This sounds absurd at first, but it is cheap, easy, and invigorates your whole body. It is important to warm up your feet immediately after the walk with a hot water bottle or warm socks.
Exercise 2: Another method is walking in cold water. Take a big bucket of cold water (you could also do this in the bath, but make sure it is not slippery) and walk like a stork (one foot in the water, the other leg with knees bend and outside the water. Walk for a minute or two, alternating. This helps with tired feet, headaches, feeling tired, and helping you with better sleep. Again, warm your feet up after the exercise.
Exercise 3: Start your day with this exercise for good circulation, good sleep, and tired legs. When you are in the shower, turn the temperature down to 18 degrees (like a cold swimming pool) and with a hand shower direct the stream onto the little toe on the left leg, move the showerhead up the leg, over the knee to the middle of the thigh and stay there, counting to 3. Then move the stream down again, this time in the line of the big toe. Repeat with the other leg and warm up the legs.
Exercise 4: Take a bucket of cold water and put it on a table. Take a seat and immerse your hand and arms (up to chest height) into the cold water. Leave for up to a minute or until you feel very cold. Take them out and warm up with a warm towel and the jumper. This will strengthen your heart and will make up feel alert and alive.
There are many more exercises to choose from but start with these 4 ones. They are all quick and cheap to do. But you need to do it over some time to experience the real benefits.