Some of what we do has an obvious wow factor. The oxygen chambers look like they’ve landed from the future. The red light booth glows like a film set.
These two don’t. And when we ask people which session surprised them most, these are very often the answer.
The boots: for legs that have done too much
Picture the end of a long day on your feet, or the morning after a long run. You lie back on a recliner by the big windows in the main studio, trousers on, and Angelo zips a long inflatable sleeve over each leg.
Then they start to fill. One section at a time, from your feet to your thighs: a slow wave of pressure that travels up your legs, holds for a moment, and lets go. Then it starts again.
The first minute is odd. After that, most people describe it as the firmest, most rhythmic leg massage they’ve ever had, and they stop looking out of the window. You choose how firm, from a gentle hug to a proper squeeze.
Who books them? Runners, cyclists and gym-goers. Nurses, hairdressers, teachers, anyone in retail. People just off a long flight. If you have any condition affecting your legs, veins or circulation, or you’re pregnant, mention it at the health check and Angelo will talk it through with you first.
The mat: lying still, on purpose
Upstairs, in the quietest room in the building, are two PEMF mats. PEMF stands for pulsed electromagnetic field: coils inside the mat send out very low-strength magnetic pulses at a slow, steady rhythm. You lie on it fully clothed, under one of our blankets, and Angelo chooses a programme on the tablet beside you.
Most people feel nothing at all, or a faint tapping. What they notice instead is something far rarer: they are lying completely still, in the middle of the day, without a phone in their hand. When did you last do that?
If you like, Angelo adds a pair of light-and-sound glasses, something very few studios have. You close your eyes, and small lights behind the lenses glow and pulse in slow patterns and colours, with matching tones in your headphones, all following the same slow rhythm as the mat. Your eyes and ears get something calm to follow instead of your to-do list. Some people love it. Some prefer the mat on its own. Try both.
The mat isn’t suitable if you have a pacemaker or another implanted electronic device, or if you’re pregnant, and the glasses aren’t for anyone with epilepsy or light sensitivity. The health check covers all of this.
Better side by side
There are two of each, so you can come with someone and lie side by side. Thirty minutes is £25, or £35 for the two of you. Plenty of people pair them: the boots and then the massage chair after a long run, or the mat after the sauna at the end of the week. Not sure? Tell Angelo how you feel and he’ll suggest one.