 | Tom Peterie
is President of STM Factory Direct Hot Tubs and Spas. Factory Direct Hot Tubs and Spas is a wholly owned subsidiary of STM Inc. which is located in Augusta KS. It was founded in 1965 and is under its current owners since 1996. Tom and his partners started Factory Direct in response to a lack of mid-priced hot tubs and spas. It is one of the few facilities in the country that allows the customer to come into the factory and custom design a spa by picking out the location of the therapy jets. You can reach Tom at (316) 775-2223 or TPeterie@stmplastics.com. |
Hot Tubs & Spas
2003-10-01 08:50:00
Hot tubs
: What are the therapeutic benefits of a hot tub? Can you derive any benefits from just sitting in a hot tub?
ANSWER: Whirlpool water therapy is both physical and mental. A number of muscle-skeletal ailments and injuries are treated with whirlpool therapy, from arthritis to sports injuries. The hydrotherapy stimulates circulation throughout the body, causing blood vessels to expand and dilate as they rush oxygen and nutrients to your muscles. A properly designed operating system will have jets powerful enough to have a massaging effect for the "garden variety sore muscles" from which we all suffer from time to time. Those sore muscles often come from the stress of daily life, and therein lies the added effect of hot water bathing. As you relax in the whirlpool, you're working on the root cause of your problem - stress. Hot tubs that allow you to put the jets anywhere you like, whether it be high on the side for massaging your neck, low for your lower back, or even on the floor for your feet, provide the best therapy of all. There are many benefits of just sitting in a hot tub with or without the jets and the blower running. The natural buoyancy of water will remove 90% of your body weight from your aching joints, allowing you to move more freely. One can obtain even more benefits by doing some exercise while enjoying the same. Almost any exercise that can be done on land, including walking or jogging, can be done in water. If you have arthritis and you're exercising in a spa or hot tub, you will probably focus on range-of-motion exercises that work the toe, ankle, knee, leg, hip, hand, wrist and shoulder. The size and shape of the hot tub, of course, will determine the specific types of exercises you can do. Here are some exercises you can perform with warm water therapy:Forward Arm Reach - With both arms, reach straight in front of you. Raise your hands overhead as high as possible, keeping your elbows as straight as you can. If one arm is very weak, use your other arm to help raise it. Elbow Bend - Start with your elbows as straight as possible, fingers pointing down. Bend your elbows and try to touch your thumbs to your shoulders. Keep your elbows close to your body. You do not have to touch your shoulders. Then relax your elbows and straighten your arms down at your sides. Wrist Bend - Bend both of your wrists upward and then downward. You can also exercise one wrist at a time by placing your free hand, thumb up, under the exercising wrist. Hands and fingers should be relaxed. Finger Curl - Curl your fingers into your palm to make a loose fist, then straighten them out.Ankle Circles - While seated, make large inward circles with your left foot, moving it from the ankle. Repeat circles in the opposite direction. Then repeat the exercise with your right foot.Spread Eagle - While sitting on the edge of a bath seat, straighten one knee. While holding it straight, slowly move it out to the side. Hold it out for three seconds, then bring it back to the center and relax. Repeat these instructions with your other leg.
