Numerous spas and resorts can promise rest, relaxation and rejuvenation, but inside one institute, there is a spa that through science, as well as eastern and western techniques, is providing a 360-degree approach to wellness and health that goes beyond the traditional spa treatment.The California Health and Longevity Institute (CHLI) located at the Four Seasons hotel in Westlake Village, California was created in November 2006 with the purpose of providing those in search of a healthier lifestyle all the medical, nutritional and physical resources they needed to promote a longer life span.A partnership between David H. Murdock, chairman and owner of Dole Food Company, Inc. geneticist Andrew Conrad, PhD. and Wellpoint, Inc., made this institute possible; an institute that continues to strive to promote the idea of preventative medicine and proactive healthcare.An innovative element of CHLI is their work to support corporate wellness and a conscious culture of health in the workplace. As co-founders of the institute, Wellpoint Inc., one of the largest health benefits companies, saw the need to educate their corporate clients on the importance of corporate wellness. These strategies were seen as a way to increase productivity and decrease health costs and absenteeism. CHLI's approach to wellness is not only offered to the individual, but for organizations and corporate leaders alike.Unique to CHLI are the five pillars that combine to create the ultimate client experience. The five pillars are: medical, nutritional, fitness, life balance and spa. Certified experts and professionals in their designated fields oversee each of these unique principals. With professionals with varied expertise and knowledge from around the globe, the institute works to promote scientific based techniques that work to create a balance for each individual client.
Walking into the CHLI facilities, guests are welcomed by a friendly, professional staff dedicated to the individual needs and goals of each client. Adjacent to the institute is the Four Seasons Westlake Village, where spa treatments are given and where guests can receive accommodations.Guests experiencing the facilities will receive a medical clinic overview and tour where they will visit and become familiar with all that CHLI has to offer. From the medical, gym and spa facilities, CHLI will also take you to the kitchen where they teach many of their clients' proper nutrition and how its science plays a part in the composition of our bodies and how eating properly can lengthen our life span.
CHLI follows a proactive approach to medicine that puts emphasis on preventative medicine rather than reactive healthcare. The institute promotes this method in the many conventional and alternative medical treatments they offer.What would typically be a routine medical check-up is a comprehensive and personal experience with a customized evaluation for each visitor to CHLI. With alternative procedures as acupuncture and hypnotherapy to more conventional procedures as radiology and dermatology, CHLI's medical facilities works to help find the best possible treatment for each guest.Coinciding with their alternative medicinal approach, the institute features Eastern world treatments under the supervision of such physicians as staff acupuncturist Christy Bacigalupo L.Ac, M.S. and director of the complementary and alternative medicine at CHLI, Dr. Steven Tan M.D., M.T.O.M., L.Ac.Acupuncture, an alternative medicine in the United States, has been used for centuries in the Eastern part of the world and has been used to relief such ailments as nausea, headaches and relieve various forms of pain. This century old technique at the institute is a one-hour appointment where guests experience a painless therapy through the use of hair thin needles that work to stimulate the body's own healing responses.
As a main component of what determines our health and longevity, CHLI has made nutrition a focus in their plan and the second of its five pillars of the institute. Each guest is scheduled to sit with a registered dietician and determine a diet that will support the health of each individual.The institute is a firm believer in the role of a nutritious diet and claims that a healthy diet and controlled calorie intake can extend life 10 to 20 years and provide better quality of life.Consultations with registered dieticians, such as Erika Wong M.S., R.D. and director of nutrition Paulette Lambert, R.D., CDE, provide guests with a well-rounded view of one's diet and how to improve it in order to receive the maximum benefits of health.To show that they are not all about preaching, CHLI practices proper nutrition by providing classes in their specialized kitchen to teach guests how to cook a nutritious meal. The wellness kitchen interactive cooking experience takes place two to four times a week for two hours and features a dish that guests themselves can cook at home. These classes teach how to select foods and prepare dishes; a teaching lesson that guests can take with them long after they have left the institute.
As part of overall health and longevity, CHLI incorporates fitness and provides one-on-one consults to satisfy each guest's needs and personal goals. Whether you are an avid exerciser or haven't seen a gym in years, the fitness facilities works with guests and offers the latest in technology to measure body composition, metabolic rates, as well as providing personal training, classes and fitness workshops.Your first visit to the fitness facilities will begin with a consultation by professionals like Michael Brazeal M.A., exercise physiologist and director of fitness as CHLI where they will cover individual goals and the benefits of aerobic, strength and flexibility training.Technology and fitness meet when it comes to assessments as body mapping, metabolic testing and body composition. Guests can enter a "Bod Pod" which measures a person's body composition or mass and determines the percentage of body fat in the body. No need to pinch skin to measure percent body fat; the "Bod Pod" provides a relaxed and comfortable setting with accurate results.Keeping Life in BalanceAs part of your experience at CHLI, you will meet with consultants one-on-one and discover ways to keep both mind and body in balance and discover strategies for a healthier lifestyle and a longer life span.Whether its stress management or learning ways to commit to a healthier lifestyle through relationships at home and work, life balance is a important element to the CHLI initiative. Consultants, such as Claudia Dunn M.A., OTR/L, will meet with guests to discuss ways to relieve stress and how to remove negative habits in order to get the most from a fruitful life.
Along with alternative treatments, CHLI offers such traditional spa services for their guests to enjoy, all set away in a relaxing atmosphere at the Four Seasons West Village. Guests can enjoy from a wide array of therapies and massages, as well as the spa lounges that include steam rooms, saunas, whirlpools and serenity pool.
In the end, the primary goal for The California Health and Longevity Institute is to combine all five pillars of their philosophy to create a one of a kind experience for their guests and allow them to experience a life change that they can carry with them long after they've left the resort. With medicine, nutrition, fitness, life balance techniques and the spa, the institute combines the physical and the mental with East and West methods to create a well-rounded experience.
