Try Old World and New World ways to rest, relax, and resist growing old
Mankind has been searching for the Fountain of Youth for almost three millennia. Although no one has found a specific location, each era brings discoveries that improve health and wellness. Some of the latest measures include infrared saunas, cold plunges, and vitamin C showers, and they’re readily available in Greenville.
Sauna House
“There’s nothing like it. You feel like a million bucks when you get out.” Rachael Liles recalls her first visit to Sauna House Nordic Spa in Asheville. “My sister had given us a gift card, so we went. It was amazing. It releases a bunch of natural endorphins. We were on cloud nine throughout the experience, became regulars, and our life changed.”
And for the better. Liles and her husband soon opened Sauna House in Greenville in 2025. “People have been so excited to have a wellness place and gathering space that wasn’t a restaurant or bar,” she says. “There are so many benefits, both mental and physical.”
Sauna House’s Thermal Cycle uses a traditional European sauna, with water and rocks, that reaches 195 degrees. Visitors relax for set amounts of time in the heat, and then move to cold plunge pools before warming back up on heated stone benches and a silent salt room. Multiple rounds of hot, cold and rest prompt the nervous system to reset. Rachael explains, “It’s good for detoxifying and helps your skin, blood pressure, and cardiovascular system. It also improves mental health, lessening anxiety and depression.”
Sauna House mimics Old World public bathhouse traditions with its communal areas, where etiquette requires avoiding super-loud talking and pinging electronics. Private rooms, including one with an infrared sauna, are available. “It’s wonderful to see people come together in the bathhouse like they do in big cities,” Liles says. “It’s a really cool way our culture is embracing this healthy manner.”
SWTHZ
“There’s a growing movement to health and wellness,” shares Mathew Trowbridge, who transitioned within the healthcare industry from treatment and recovery to prevention. “People are taking ownership of their own health and I’ve got a front row seat. It’s inspiring.” Trowbridge opened Sweathouz last December on Augusta Road. “People are no longer waiting for someone to have a magic pill for them. They’re using all of the tools in their toolboxes to prevent injury and poor health.”
Sweathouz focuses on the private experience inside Contrast Therapy suites equipped with an infrared sauna, cold plunge pool, and vitamin C shower. “The infrared saunas are more of a dry heat, and they penetrate deeper into the tissues,” the franchisee says. “I’ve done both types of sauna. Some say infrared is more comfortable because it’s dry, and you can stay in there longer at about 145 degrees.” Guests then rinse off in a shower infused with vitamin C. “It’s really good for your skin, especially right after you get out of the sauna and your pores are open,” Trowbridge says. “It’s like a high-end skin cream. It leaves your hair and skin nice and soft.”
Trowbridge points to studies showing a 40 percent reduction in all-cause mortality when people use saunas on a consistent basis.* “Sauna is one of the best things anyone can do for muscle recovery and systemic health,” he advises. “Traditional or infrared, both are pushing blood out to all of your extremities and reducing inflammation. When you’re done with that and the cold plunge, you’ll feel re-energized and refreshed. There’s a reason professional athletes have used this ritual for decades. And now it’s mainstream. It’s wonderful.”
Hot Trivia:
- The earliest known sauna is a prehistoric pit sauna dating back 10,000 years.
- Between 2021-23, archeologists in Pompeii, Italy, unearthed the city’s largest public bath complex with ancient saunas.
- In the US, many Native American tribes used sweat lodges with heated stones.
- Finland is credited with the roots of the modern-day sauna.
*The Mayo Clinic reports many studies have found some proof that infrared saunas may help conditions including high blood pressure, heart failure, dementia and Alzheimer’s disease, headache, type 2 diabetes, and arthritis, “but larger and more-exact studies are needed to prove these results.”
