Want an easy way to pamper yourself that costs nothing, takes almost no time and improves your health? Taking a few extra minutes each morning to do a hot towel scrub can open pores to release stored toxins, promote circulation, and relieve stress and muscle tension – and those are just a few of the hot towel scrub benefits.
Here’s everything you need to know about this simple but effective daily ritual that can revitalize, detox and calm your body all at once.
Our skin is our largest organ. So it makes sense that paying just a little bit of extra attention to it can bring great benefits to the rest of our body.
Essentially, a hot towel scrub is exactly what it sounds like. By wetting a towel with warm water and rubbing it in a circular motion over our body, a hot towel scrub can have a great and immediate impact on our body’s tissues, pores and muscles.
Most people recommend doing this act of body scrubbing either before or after a bath or shower, as it may have a deeper physical and mental effect. However, if you are pressed for time, scrubbing during your shower is fine, too. All you need is a medium-sized cotton towel and water and you’ll be ready to reap all of the hot towel scrub benefits this easy self-care regimen offers.
Although some say doing a hot towel scrub in the sink before or after a bath or shower is more effective, if you are pressed for time, we think scrubbing in the shower is just fine.
It sounds so simple, and it really is! There are many hot towel scrub benefits that come from this easy, daily health and beauty ritual:
Just below our skin, there are hard fat deposits. The circular motion of this deep scrubbing technique softens the fat deposits and prepares them for discharge. This allows them to come to the surface, rather than accumulate around deeper vital organs.
An easy way to reduce muscle tension, a hot towel scrub is the perfect daily ritual for athletes. The circular motion can deeply relax muscles.
This deep self-care ritual can improve your relationship with your body. Especially for anyone with body image challenges, a hot towel scrub can help one connect with and show love to areas of their body they don’t typically explore.
Hot towel scrubs open the pores in our skin, allowing toxins to surface and exit the body. It also exfoliates our skin, getting rid of dead skin cells and making way for new ones.
Hot towel scrubs help get our blood moving and promote circulation throughout our body.
The circular motion used during a hot towel scrub can deeply relax your mind and body and serve as a meditative practice. People have used water for centuries to cleanse their mind, body and soul. Done at night, a hot towel scrub can help detox your body from the stress of the day.
At the same time, some believe a hot towel scrub can spread energy through the chakras. Done in the morning, a hot towel scrub can help energize you for the rest of the day.
A hot towel scrub can be as simple or as elaborate as you’d like. In it’s most simplest form, all you will need is:
Although you can do a hot towel scrub in a bath or shower, most people recommend doing it in a sink to maximize its physical and mental benefits.
A hot towel scrub can take as little as 2 minutes in the shower or as long as 30 minutes, followed by a meditation session and other self-care rituals.
If you have a bit more time, make the most of your hot towel scrub by incorporating these additional self-care practices:
Essential oils: Incorporate some of these essential oils, either by placing them on the towel itself or using them in moisturizers or sprays on your skin after your scrub.
Candles: Lighting candles can create an atmosphere of happiness and peace.
Music: Play soft flute, piano or classical music while you are doing your scrub for the day.
Meditation: Either using an app for a guided practice or doing a meditation on your own, the circular motion during the hot towel scrub lends itself to a meditative practice.
Unplug: Need a break from the constant influx of news, texts and emails? Set an intention to unplug during your hot towel scrub. Even just 30 minutes of unplugging a day can greatly improve your health and overall well-being.
Visit our Live Life Healthy blog for daily self-care ideas and other health hacks. And be sure to follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for more daily health inspiration. #takeitwithu
While you're at it, learn the stress-relieving, metabolism boosting benefits of hydration in our free, downloadable guide: How to Rehydrate.
