Story
Recover with Intention
Epic adventures are found around every corner and atop every peak at Blackberry Mountain. From leisurely bike rides along the creek to high energy HITT classes up the Mountain, our activities are designed to suit a variety of experience levels. Whatever adventure you choose to embark on, one fact remains the same: Recovery is an important part of the journey.
The Blackberry Mountain Recovery Lab invites guests to relax their bodies and minds with personal assistance from our team. We offer a variety of experiences to help guests achieve their desired goals and leave with valuable information they can utilize for future adventures.
Below, Blackberry Mountain Wellness Manager Tina Cheema shares all about the Recovery Lab’s thoughtful purpose, unique treatments and lasting impact on guests. Discover more for yourself, and join us at Blackberry Mountain for a Great Smoky Mountain adventure you’ll never forget!
What inspired the creation of the Recovery Lab, and how does its philosophy relate to Blackberry Mountain’s broader wellness approach?
The goal behind each Recovery Lab session is for guests to leave feeling physically restored and mentally empowered to continue on their own wellness journey. No matter the offering, each Recovery Lab session includes individualized education from one of our trainers on topics like fascial health, training for current life situations (maybe a grandparent wanting to be more limber to play with grandchildren), and the importance of recovery in relation to physical activity.
When I think of Blackberry Mountain’s broader wellness approach, one of the first words that comes to mind is “presence.” A huge part of all our wellness offerings – from Recovery Lab to soundbathing – is encouraging guests to be present in the moment. So much of our lives revolve around getting as much done as possible in a given day, so every wellness offering at the Mountain encourages guests to be present, both in a physical and mindful sense.
How does the Recovery Lab embody the idea that recovery is part of the adventure, not separate from it?
In terms of recovery being part of the adventure, this is where the educational aspect really comes into play. By understanding the importance, benefits and impact of recovery, we are more likely to seek out opportunities for it and prioritize it.
I like to think of our wellness journey as a bank account. Some things will act as a withdrawal, lowering the overall balance, while other things act as a deposit to build our balance back up. Intentional recovery is one of the most valuable “deposits” we can make in our wellness accounts!
Each Recovery Lab experience starts with the opportunity to calm the nervous system via infrared or sonic resonance. What makes this so foundational to the experience?
Infrared and sonic resonance are not only some of my favorite parts of the overall experience, but often one of the most impactful things for the guest. Think of your nervous system as the “command center” of your body. Comprised of the brain, spinal cord and nerves, the nervous system is one of the most primal aspects of our being. It controls both conscious and unconscious processes.
In today’s world, it’s easier than ever to lose track of maintaining and aiding in its healthy function. Things like scrolling social media, working long hours with minimal breaks and living with consistently high levels of stress all act as “withdrawals” from the nervous system’s account. But by simply pausing and taking a few deep breaths, we can help regulate the nervous system to calm body and mind.
Every Recovery Lab experience begins with either infrared light or sonic resonance and percussion. For infrared, we use the HealthyLine crystal mat, which has three main healing modalities: infrared light (red light), healing crystals (amethyst, jade and tourmaline), and pulsed electromagnetic field therapy (PEMF). Guests spend the first 10 minutes of their session laying down on the mat and being present in their body.
Infrared light has so many benefits. It is excellent for reducing inflammation, as it penetrates relatively deep into the body, provides gentle heat to immediately aid any aches and pains, and essentially acts as a catalyst to jump start the body’s natural recovery process by increasing blood flow. To put it in simpler terms, it is such an amazing tool because it provides both short- and long-term relief.
For sonic resonance and percussive therapy, we use a combination of two tools: Shokz bone conduction headphones and the Sensate pendant, which gently stimulates the vagus nerve. Bone conduction headphones do not go in the ear like a traditional earbud, but rather sit in front of the ear. These create gentle vibrations that are converted by the cochlea into electrical signals that the brain interprets as sound. These are synced to an immersive audio meditation that works in tandem with the Sensate. The Sensate is worn at the sternum and gently vibrates to stimulate the vagus nerve, which helps control digestion, heart rate, mood, immune system response, etc. It is an incredibly relaxing experience, and guests often joke that they could spend the entire session with just these two things!
Both of these opportunities allow guests to be physically and mentally present by tuning in to their breath cycle and embracing stillness as an opportunity to check in with the body and mind.
Thinking about the adventure opportunities specific to the Mountain and what a guest might experience in a day, is there a particular treatment or two you would highlight to support recovery?
My absolute favorite offering for immediate relief is Weightless Compression. Guests wear the Normatec boots, which gently compress the entire lower body from toes to hips. If someone has soreness from hiking or mountain biking, this is my number one recommendation. It is truly amazing how they almost completely get rid of delayed onset muscle soreness after a tough workout or hike. I often try to squeeze in a session myself if time allows.
My other top recommendation is Assisted Stretching. In this offering, a trainer provides hands-on adjustments to get guests deeper into a stretch than they would be able to themselves. You’ll get both immediate relief from the trainer’s adjustments while also getting some tips and tricks individualized to your specific needs that you can use in the long term. This is great for anyone who feels extra tight.
Some of our treatments, like Assisted Stretching, Fascial Scraping and Flossing, and Roll and Release use hands‑on tools that create a more physical recovery experience. How do you balance performance‑oriented goals (like muscle recovery) with relaxation and mindfulness during those sessions?
These offerings are actually more relaxing than you may think. A variety of intensities can be used to achieve recovery goals. I like to compare these to aesthetic treatments like microneedling, where a micro-injury is intentionally introduced to encourage and speed up the body’s natural healing process. All of our Recovery Lab options are essentially trying to do the same thing.
A few of our treatments include a take‑home tool – like a Theragun, Sidekick or RAD roller. How do these tools empower guests after their session?
These are our most educational sessions. In each of these offerings, the trainer is showing the guest exactly how to use the tool by mirroring them as they do it (so the trainer is scraping their own calves while the guest is mirroring them).
I once had a guest tell me in a Fascial Scraping session that she was initially disappointed that she wasn’t being scraped by a trainer but doing it herself. Then she said, “This is actually even better because now I can do this at home every night!” The goal is for guests to leave their session with a comprehensive understanding of how to best use their tool for their own needs.
How does the Recovery Lab integrate with our other offerings to create a seamless wellness journey during a guest’s stay?
It’s such a great addition to just about any path one chooses at the Mountain. There’s something for everyone – more educational offerings for the intense athlete and more laid-back offerings for those in relax mode. Overall, I think it all ties back to being present in one’s mind and body so that we can make informed decisions from there!
Knowing that guests only have access to our specific Recovery Lab options during their stay, are the treatments mostly designed for immediate physical relief, or can they play a role in longer‑term shifts in mobility, restfulness or overall nervous system balance?
Each offering truly combines both immediate and long-term relief in some way, and by having the opportunity to work one-on-one with a trainer, guests can ask questions about their own particular wellness journeys.
I once had an avid equestrian in Assisted Stretch, and we spent quite a bit of time talking about how to balance the considerable strength she had in the lower body with more limited strength in the upper body.
I have also have had many guests say things along the lines of, “I’m so glad I booked this, because now I have an idea of what to do when I go back home.” Helping others feel empowered in their own wellness journeys is one of our biggest goals, and the Recovery Lab is a great place to do it!