Three women stretch with arms raised overhead in a light blue mineral pool. A river, town buildings, and green hills are in the background under a partly cloudy sky.
Help Enhance the Recovery Process

The Restoration Journey

A Step-by-Step Soaking Journey for Restoration & Physical Recovery

This Restoration Journey utilizes wellness tips, medical research, and soaking circuits to help flush “toxins,” improve circulation, and target hypertrophy and muscular micro-tears caused from intense exercise.

Introduction to The Restoration Journey

Pagosa Springs hosts an abundance of recreational activities to keep visitors and residents busy outdoors. After a big day of hiking, biking, or skiing, your body needs time to recover. Hydrotherapy is a form of therapy that uses water to relieve pain and promote physical wellness, and it can be an excellent way to speed up your post-activity recovery process. 

“Intense activity creates an excess of metabolic wastes that can accumulate in the body. People often name these ‘toxins.’ The build up of normal metabolic wastes at a rate that is faster than your body’s current ability to eliminate them will cause increased post-activity fatigue and extended recovery times. Using Hydrothermal therapies can physically and metabolically enhance the metabolic waste ‘toxin’ elimination process, speed tissue repair, and will ensure you are able to get the most out of your outdoor recreation vacation.”

Dr. Marcus Coplin, ND

Medical Director at The Springs Resort

Recovery Journey Overview

Day 1

1. Pre-Activity

Intense Contrast Bathing Circuit

  Warm Soaking (5 – 10 Min.)
  Hot Soaking (15 Min.)
 Cold Soaking (1 Min.)
Repeat Contrast Ciruti up to 3x

Aqua Yoga

  Warm Soaking (5 – 10 Min.)

2. Recreational Activity

3. Post-Activity

Vitality Tonic & Nourishment
Roll & Recover
  Warm Soaking (45 – 60 Min.)
  Cool Off (10 Min.)
Nutritional Dinner

Day 2

4. Post-Activity

Aqua Yoga
Massage
  Warm Soaking (45 – 60 Min.)
  Cool Off (10 Min.)
River Walk & Stretch

An outdoor thermal springs complex, marked
A light blue wooden pier stretches over steamy, blue-green water. In the background, resort buildings and steam rise from multi-tiered, mineral-stained hot spring formations.
A steaming outdoor hot tub with a person relaxing, flanked by stone walls and a river, with a distant bridge under a clear sky. Signs read: WATERFALL TEMP: 106° THE SPRINGS RESORT & SPA QUIET ON!

Soaking Journey Temperatures:

 Cold Soak  |  64°F and below

 Warm Soak  |  up to 100°F

 Hot Soak  |  101°F – 104°F

 Very Hot Soak  |  105°F and above

The Elements of Recovery

Prepare for a trip full of adventure and wellness.

  • Recreational Activity Plans

  • Wellness Activity Reservations

  • Soaking Essentials

    Flip Flops, Robe and Towel (available at the Bath House)

  • Vitality Tonic

  • Spa Treatment | Book Ahead

    Schedule a Wrath of the Rockies deep tissue sports massage for enhanced circulation.

  • Stay Hydrated

    Hydration is key to recovery. Drink plenty of water throughout your Restoration Journey.

The Soaking Journey

1. Pre-Activity

Prepare for your Soaking Journey with intention. Drink plenty of water, fill a water bottle, and enjoy a nutritious snack at home or at the Barefoot Grill.

 

Start with a Contrast Bathing Circuit

Repeat the Contrast Phase up to 3x for optimal benefits. For more information on Contrast Bathing, visit our Soaking Guide page here.

Enjoy the moment as you ready yourself for a therapeutic, water-based wellness experience.

  1. Warm Soaking (5-10 Min.)
Relax and set healing intentions for yourself while your body focuses your healing energy inward.

  2. Hot Soaking (5-10 Min.)
Be mindful of your body’s temperature and consider a half-body soak to keep from overheating.

  3. Cold Soaking (1 Min.)
Take deep breaths to fill your lungs with fresh mountain air. Pause to enjoy the plentiful sights and sounds of nature that surrounds you.

Optional Practice:
Fully submerge your head just prior to departing the cold pool for an invigorating experience.

Stretch with Aqua Yoga

Aqua Yoga is one of over a dozen wellness activities included with your stay. This one-hour water-based wellness class infuses joint and muscle stretches with the healing properties of our mineral-rich hot spring waters.

  Warm Soaking (5-10 Min.)
Acclimate your body.

2 Recreational Activity: Enjoy the Outdoors

Be sure to fill your resort water bottle and grab a Recovery Enhancement kit from the Front Desk

3. Post-Activity

Nourish with a Vitality Tonic and Snack

Visit the Canteen and Barefoot Grill to grab a nutrient and vitamin-packed wellness mocktail and snack. Following a strenuous activity, your body needs Amino Acids and Vitamin B to replenish glucose, glycogen, and other recovery cofactors.

Dr. Coplin recommends a Broth like a Bieler’s Broth, packed full of plant-based nutrients, minerals, and vitamins.

Recommended Resort Option: Bieler’s Broth | Available at the Barefoot Grill.

Roll & Recover Wellness Activity

Our complimentary Roll & Recover class is the perfect way to ease muscle and joint tension.

  Warm Soaking (20-40 Min.)

Long warm soaks harness the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects of our mineral-rich waters, speeding up metabolic recovery and improving blood circulation.

  Cool Off in the Mountain Air (10 Min.)

Take deep breaths to fill your lungs with fresh mountain air.

Eat a Nutritious Dinner.

Focus on magnesium and iron-rich proteins paired with leafy green vegetables.

Recommended Resort Option: Kale Cranberry Salad – Add Chicken Protein | Available at the Barefoot Grill.

Day 2

4. Post-Activity

Start with Aqua Yoga

Unwind with a Massage at The Spa

A massage can help with improving circulation, encouraging lymph node drainage, and easing strained muscles.

  3. Warm Soaking (20 – 40 Min.)

  Cool Off in the Mountain Air (10 Min.)

Complete your Restoration Journey with a River Walk & Stretch Wellness Activity

Our River Walk & Stretch wellness activity provides you with an opportunity to stretch your muscles, preventing injury and increasing flexibility, while enjoying the natural beauty and biodiversity of our unique geothermal wetlands.

5. Reflection Phase

Research has shown that a regular practice of gratitude can help regulate stress, lower blood pressure, and improve sleep.

Dr. Coplin promotes gratitude as a powerful tool that can be incorporated into daily habits. “It is said that the grateful mind cannot feel negative emotions. When we are actively focused on the sensation of thankfulness, appreciation, and embodying the impulse to return kindness, ie.e feeling gratitude, not only does our mental health improve, but so does our physical health.”

Join us for a Guided Gratitude Ceremony  |  4PM Daily at the Mother Spring

Complete your Soaking Journey with a Gratitude Ceremony at the Mother Spring. Use this moment to allow yourself to take in the awe-inspiring vision of the Mother Spring. Connect with your feeling of gratitude for the healing you are here to receive and have experienced throughout your Soaking Journey.

An open, tri-fold pamphlet titled

Pick up a free copy of our Science-based Soaking Guides at The Springs Resort bathhouse.

Online Soaking Guides
A person soaks in a steaming outdoor hot spring pool beside a river, with mineral-rich rock formations. Buildings and umbrellas are visible under a bright, hazy sky.
The Nature of Wellness

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