Heather Lawson has her hair extended by Dawn DeMario using Halo hair extensions exclusively at The Spa at Roop’s Mill in Westminster.
Written By Donna Engle, Photos by: Gregory Blank
Remember wonderfully forgiving winter clothes? Long sleeves concealed batwings, suit jackets hid flabby abs, pants covered varicose veins. Summer shifts and shorts won’t do that for you. And guys, if you’ve got BOB – belly over belt – you won’t be hearing, “Oooh, buff!” at the beach.
Help is available to make the best of the bare season. A summer boost can be as simple as changing hairstyles, switching from lipstick to lip gloss and painting nails in the coral, green or turquoise shades that are hot this year. You might make a longer-term commitment to shape up with diet and exercise, or a decision to seek medical removal of unsightly or painful swollen veins.
For a quick summer changeover, try a spa. Possibilities: new hairstyle; makeup in summer colors; deep tissue massage to promote circulation; facial to repair sun damage; waxing away unwanted hair on face, legs, underarms, bikini area or back. For a more permanent change, a personal trainer can help you slim down and firm up with diet, and cardiovascular and strength training. Consult a vein specialist for vein problems.
“Hair for summer is long and flowy, with soft curls and variations in color through the hair,” said Dawn DeMario, owner of The Spa at Roop’s Mill, Westminster. Bangs are hot this summer, braids have made a big comeback and ponytails remain perennially popular, she said. For those who want more length and thickness than nature provided, DeMario offers hair extensions that are easy to add. “I put mine on at a traffic light,” she tells customers.
A facial can even out skin porosity, help minimize sun damage and slough off dead skin. But don’t stop at the face. A back treatment can exfoliate the buildup of dead skin in that hard-to-reach area.
“We try to educate clients on how to prevent further damage,” said DeMario. That means advising sunscreen and limiting sun exposure. The spa offers a mineral makeup that contains sunscreen.
Men seek waxing to get rid of unwanted back or chest hair. Women want the treatments for legs, underarms, bikini areas and faces.
A great summer look needs a great tan, but the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warns that 61,646 Americans were diagnosed with skin cancer in 2009. Some sun worshippers, fearing the risk or concerned about the sun’s aging effects, opt for spray tans. The Spa at Roop’s Mill uses a gray base to eliminate the orange tint that can make spray tans shout “fake!” The staff contours the spray “to give the impression of strong, muscular lines,” DeMario said.
For mature women, DeMario counsels softer, less-coiffed hair, styled to minimize neck and jawline. “My job is to teach you how to look more youthful, to reflect your personality, not your age,” she said.
A swimsuit to make you look hot depends on your body type. Triangle bikini tops look best on smaller busted women; if you’re busty, try a halter neckline. A darker color bottom with a lighter top minimizes booty; sash bottoms or boy shorts help cover hips.
Hitting the gym won’t give you overnight results – after all, it took time, fast food and couch slouching to become flabby. How fast you go back up the fitness ladder is up to you.
“You can see changes in two months, but you would need to be dedicated and disciplined,” said Ricki Schneider, certified personal trainer and fitness director at Four Seasons Sports Complex and Fitness Center in Hampstead. Someone who wants results in 8 to 12 weeks is looking at a minimum of three to five gym sessions a week, “and no lounging for the rest of the day,” she said.
Hiring a personal trainer gains you a professional assessment of your fitness level and a workout program tailored to your needs and interests, whether you’d rather take a spinning class, swim or do aerobics. Schneider works with clients on diet, cardiovascular and strength training.
Schneider does not prescribe diets, but gives general dietary guidelines: reduce sodium intake to eliminate bloating, try three small meals and two mini meals instead of three heavier meals, and keep a food journal, “because you can’t outwork a bad diet,” she said.
Exercise doesn’t have to be a repetitious routine you soon learn to hate. Just ask Lisa Lowrey-Mondato, a Zumba instructor at the Westminster Family Fitness Center. She was a size 10 when she saw an advertisement for Zumba three years ago, loved the classes and became an instructor. Now, at 35, she’s a size 4, “and I can feel my abs,” she said.
Exercise must be consistent to work, said Sarah Carias, group fitness co-coordinator and personal trainer at the center. Zumba works because people enjoy the freedom of movement and the social aspect, so they keep coming back, she said. Firmer muscles and better cardiovascular fitness are happy side effects.
Varicose vein problems can be cosmetic spider veins or medically serious venous reflux disease, failure of leg vein valves to keep blood flowing back to the heart. Untreated, venous reflux disease can lead to cramps, charley horses, and ulceration, said Dr. Yash Kumar, founder of The Vein Center of Maryland, Westminster.
In 30 years of practice, Kumar has seen treatment techniques evolve. In place of the older technique of surgically stripping veins, he uses less invasive techniques such as laser beams or sclerotherapy, injection of a chemical to harden and collapse the vein and reroute blood through healthier veins, or ambulatory phlebectomy to close a section of vein. “Basically, we close these channels,” he said.
Vein Center patients who want only to eliminate spider veins will first receive a venous duplex scan to rule out more serious problems with main veins. If there are none, patients may be treated with sclerotherapy or laser beams. Color lasers target hemoglobin and heat it to make the vein disappear.
Treating vein problems is not an instant fix. Dr. Kumar said patients may need four to six treatments several weeks apart, he said. But many will notice immediate relief of symptoms such as pain and leg heaviness.
