Stepping into Kico Life Wellness Hub is like being transported to a slice of Balinese heaven. Jennifer Campbell was lucky enough to experience some of what the gorgeous space has to offer.
Set just one road back from the beach in a beautiful house, Kico Life boasts an incredible sea view from its outdoor seating area. Inside, each room has been thoughtfully decorated in an eclectic, but tasteful style. A newcomer to the growing Ballito wellness scene, the centre is the culmination of hard work and passion for three friends: Cayli Varejes, Devon Lailvaux and Courtney Hunt. Their vision is to create a space where people can come together to relax, take time out for self-care and look after their overall health in a setting that doesn’t feel intimidating or medical.
Devon started his journey into wellness through rugby. “Aspiring to be an elite athlete taught me a lot about the body, mind belief and our potential,” he explains. “I started exploring natural approaches to health and wellness using plant medicines, which helped me significantly. I’ve found a passion for helping people find the tools they need to unlock their potential to have a better quality of life.”
Cayli, on the other hand, describes herself as a free spirit with a gypsy soul. She has been involved in what she calls the spiritual and alternative community her whole life. “I started meditation at the age of 4 and only grew from there,” she says. “I love to travel and meet others in this community, gaining knowledge and sharing the incredible life which alternative wellness has gifted me.”
While Devon and Cayli have been interested in health for as many years, Courtney’s path has been a little different. She was diagnosed with stage three breast cancer in 2019 at the age of 25, an experience that she says forced her to find an entirely new perspective on the life she wants to live. “I am purpose-driven to seek growth, help others and honour the body which fought hard to allow me to do so. I live for sunrises, adventure and the people walking this journey alongside me.”
Kico Life offers a range of services – there’s a gym and yoga room, a café, ice baths, sauna, hyperbaric chamber, and rooms for massage and ozone therapy. Eager to fully embrace the intention of the wellness studio, I started the experience with an ice bath. Guided by Kico’s lovely Robyn, I began by learning the proper breathing technique necessary to prepare the body for cold water immersion before stepping into what is essentially a freezer of nine-degree water. To say it was a shock to the system would be an understatement, but with Robyn’s help, I stayed focused on the benefits of the technique and managed to stay submerged for the recommended three minutes. Research suggests that ice baths help to reduce muscle pain and soreness and decrease inflammation – unsurprisingly, the practise is proving particularly popular with runners on the North Coast.
There are three ice baths available at Kico Life, the coldest of which is three degrees. All of them are set up in an outdoor space that’s ideal for small groups to enjoy together.
Next, a session in the sauna was a welcome – and relaxing – treat. The sauna is set up in a private bathroom, where it’s possible to shower or enjoy a herbal bath afterwards. After a 30-minute session, it was onto ozone therapy, a treatment in which ozone gas is administered to the body while seated and zipped into a protective covering. The aim of ozone therapy is to increase the amount of oxygen in the body in order to promote healing and support the immune system through cell regeneration.
After a 20-minute treatment, during which I was able to look out over Salmon Bay and beyond through big, one-way glass windows, I was welcomed to the massage therapy room. The room is beautifully designed with soft lighting and tasteful décor and my therapist Steph made me feel completely at ease, tailoring her massage techniques to my particular needs.
Feeling completing rejuvenated, there was time for a freshly-blended smoothie on an outdoor couch. Besides a selection of healthy drinks, the kitchen also whips up a small menu of nourishing meals, which can be enjoyed in the café or outside.
“I would love people to use this space to come together and relax,” says Courtney. And, with its exquisite setting, range of wellness services and attention-to-detail, it’s easy to imagine the centre becoming just that – a place to regroup, unwind and focus on well-being.
Details: www.kicolife.com; 072 039 1934; IG: @kico_life
