Gannis to Enhance Human Touch Wellness Council with Insight into both High-Impact Sports Recovery and a Personal Journey through Scoliosis Rehabilitation
Long Beach, CA – Human Touch®, the U.S. market leader of innovative massage chairs, Perfect Chair Recliners, and other wellness solutions, is pleased to announce that it has formed a partnership with professional racecar driver with experience in the ARCA and NASCAR Camping World Trucks, Cassie Gannis. Miss Gannis, also a motivational speaker with a powerful scoliosis recovery story, will join the Human Touch Wellness Council to provide insight into the importance of wellness and recovery in high-performance sports.
The Human Touch Wellness Council is a recognized and universally respected team of experts with insight into a variety of wellness practices, from professional athletes to medical practitioners and natural healers. This council helps to shape and guide the development of Human Touch products, with a mission to create solutions that inform and benefit professionals, sports-enthusiasts, back pain sufferers, and consumers alike. Human Touch is pleased to have Cassie Gannis join with several other professional athletes on the Wellness Council, including 3-Time Olympic Gold medalist, Misty May-Treanor; two-time U.S. Open Champion, Retief Goosen; and World Champion Ironman, Andy Potts.
“I’m thrilled to join the Human Touch Wellness Council,” said Cassie Gannis. “I know firsthand the power of recovery when it comes to both high-impact sports and bouncing back from major health issues. My scoliosis surgery in 2006 could have been a career-ending experience, but instead I chose to battle recovery challenges and get back on the race track. I think that a lot of people share my passion for doing the things they love, and I hope to reach out to them through the Wellness Council to share my experience with Human Touch products and recovery.”
At just 26 years old, Cassie Gannis already has an impressive list of accomplishments. She began racing in 1999, and achieved 15 top five placements in her first 18 races. By 2003, she was named the Arizona State Champion for the INEX Bandolero Series races. After taking just 8 months off in 2006 to have surgery for scoliosis, Cassie worked through her rehabilitation and from 2009-2011 was named a member of NASCAR’s Drive for Diversity program. In 2012 she was named “Most Popular Driver” at the NASCAR Night of Champions Gala in North Carolina. In 2014 she was approved the ARCA Racing Series at Daytona International Speedway, and made her NASCAR Camping World Truck debut in November 2015 at Phoenix International Raceway.
Cassie also serves as a spokesperson for people who suffer from scoliosis and require surgical correction. Her personal journey with scoliosis began long before her official diagnosis at age 12, which required her to wear a back brace to attempt to correct the 15% left thoracic curvature of her spine. After several years, the curvature had progressed to a 50% left thoracic curve, and it was determined that Cassie would require surgery. Her surgery was a success, and Cassie dedicated herself to recovery so that she could get back to the race track. Making a full recovery in just 8 months, Cassie’s story has served as a huge inspiration for others who suffer from scoliosis and are left with surgery as the only solution.
“We’re excited to have Cassie join our Wellness Council,” said David Wood, CEO of Human Touch. “Her experience with surgery rehabilitation, as well as in meeting the demands of a physically demanding career, speak to a wide range of people. Her story is an inspiration, and she brings with her a wealth of information on recovery. We’re eager to share that with the following of people we have who are seeking to find a balance between wellness and an active lifestyle.”
About Human Touch
Human Touch is the leading provider of high-quality, innovative lifestyle products, massage chairs, and experiences that have been delivering indispensable, life-changing benefits to an ever-growing number of consumers for almost 40 years. Human Touch has been making people feel better by developing state-of-the-art massage products containing patented massage systems that replicate the hands and techniques used by massage professionals, thereby helping to reduce pain and stress caused by today’s hectic lifestyle. Products are available at fine furniture stores, back care specialty stores, and mass-market retailers across the U.S., through international retailers and distributors in more than 40 countries, and online at www.humantouch.com.
Media Contact:
Megan Harvey
Direct Ph: 562-733-7317
Direct Fax: 562-424-7846
Corp. Ph: 562-426-8700
mharvey@humantouch.com
www.humantouch.com
Human Touch recently welcomed two-time U.S. Open Champion, Retief Goosen, to our Wellness Council. Mr. Goosen’s long list of professional accomplishments include being in the top ten of the Official World Golf Ranking for over 250 weeks, titles of 2001 and 2004 US Open Champion, and 34 professional wins. In 2019, Mr. Reteif Goosen was also elected to the World Golf Hall of Fame.
Known to his fans as "The Goose," Retief is married and has 2 children. Off the course Retief is passionate about his award-winning Goose Wine collection and also his passion for golf course design.
A long-time advocate of Human Touch massage chairs, Retief Goosen was a natural fit for the Human Touch Wellness Council. We spoke to him briefly about his experience with his new Novo XT Massage Chair so far, and he was excited to share this feedback:
“I have been using massage chairs from Human Touch for a number of years, and just recently upgraded to the Novo XT which offers a higher performance of massage and stretching than any other massage chair out there.
I feel that use of the Novo XT helps me with flexibility and relaxation; not only after a week of playing professional golf, but also with the general stresses and strains that day to day life often brings. The therapeutic massage can also fit with any requirements as it can be customized to exactly where and what pressure suit your current lifestyle.
When I am at home, I use my Novo XT every day. It helps to recharge my body and fits in perfectly with daily life. With being a professional golfer, I feel that one of the most important parts of my training is stretching, and the Novo XT is able to help with keeping me supple. It definitely helps me recover when I come back from a week of traveling and playing golf.
Thank You Human Touch,
-Retief”
Learn how 3-time Olympic Gold Medalist, Misty May-Treanor, uses her Novo XT massage chair to relax.
© Craig Berry/flickr.com
PonyApp Pro-Tips brought to you by Human Touch® Super Novo.
We’ve come a long way from the days when riding was considered an exclusive, country pursuit, usually accompanied by corseted ladies in sidesaddle, plenty of tweed, and a healthy dose of sherry and whiskey. More and more today, equestrian competition is being recognized as the sport that it is by the general public, but we, as riders, often fail to recognize the other half of that equation. Riders are athletes, and we need to think about our sport, and how we train for it, like any other athlete would.
“Riders are athletes, and we need to think about our sport, and how we train for it, like any other athlete would.”
At the top of that list: taking a more holistic approach to the way we care for ourselves in and out of the ring, from our diet and exercise program, to the way we incorporate wellness techniques for the mind and body—be that through mediation and yoga, acupuncture and massage, or something else entirely.
So just why is thinking big-picture about health and wellness critical to a rider’s overall performance? For that, we caught up with Dr. Drew DeMann, a Doctor of Chiropractic specializing in Primary Care Sports Medicine at Manhattan Medicine in New York. Here, Dr. DeMann shares four reasons why taking a holistic approach to your training can help you hack your health, in and out of the saddle.
1. It can help you prevent injuries.
“If you don’t look at things holistically, and you just look at [pain] like ‘it’s a knee’, or ‘it’s a shoulder’, or ‘it’s a back’, often you miss the big-picture on how people get hurt,” explains Dr. DeMann. “You could be presenting [in my office] with knee pain because your hips are too tight, or because your back is too tight.” The goal: treating these associated areas with something like massage or physical therapy before there’s a sports performance issue.
2. It can help you eat the absolute right way.
You know what they say: you are what you eat. Ask any top rider and they’re likely to tell you that looking at your diet holistically, as an extension of your training program, can have a positive impact on your performance. From Dr. DeMann’s perspective, it’s just good common sense. “From a nutrition standpoint, it’s super important, because if you don’t [eat in a healthy way], you’re going to wind up with nutritional deficiencies over time.”
3. It can help you get your head right.
“Sports doctors can tell, when patients come in the office, who’s more likely to get better and who’s not, almost [based entirely] on their attitude,” says Dr. DeMann, who notes that taking steps to ensure your mental wellness is as fine-tuned as your physical health is essential. “If you tell your brain that you’re healthy, your brain will produce chemicals that will make you healthy. If you tell your brain that you’re sick, or that you’re not functioning properly, your brain will fulfill that outcome.”
4. It can help you train better.
Let’s face it, it’s a lot harder to maximize that hour in the gym or be the best you can be for the horse you’re riding in the moment when you wake up every day feeling stiff and uncomfortable from the training you’ve done the day before. For that, Dr. DeMann says, incorporating a massage program can be especially beneficial. “When you exercise anaerobically—as in, you’re training—you produce something called lactic acid. Lactic acid can get cleared out of the muscles, and [that’s when] you get post-exercise soreness,” he explains. “Massage increases blood flow to the muscle, and releases a lot of that lactic acid back into your lymphatic system, and that helps you to function a little more normally.”
Function more normally and ride a whole lot better. Who can argue with that?
The new Human Touch® Super Novo is a specially designed chair that delivers three dimensional massage along the entire length of your spine and all the way down to the thighs. What’s more, the Super Novo offers Mediation and Yoga Studio programs to help you achieve a relaxed state of being pre- or post-ride— it’s even (Amazon) Alexa compatible! For more information, visit: humantouch.com/supernovo.
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World Champion Athletes and Health Advocates Join Current Members to Build Awareness for the Latest Therapeutic Innovations from Human Touch
LONG BEACH, CA July 10, 2019—Human Touch®, the U.S. market leader in high-performance massage chairs, Perfect Chair® recliners, and other wellness innovations, announces its new Wellness Council, consisting of equestrian, Elisa Wallace, professional golfer, Stephanie Kono, triathlete and hyperbarics expert, Alexandra Williams, and returning member, Olympian and Ironman 70.3 World Champion, Andy Potts.
The Human Touch Wellness Council was formed with the intention of sourcing valuable insights from leading doctors, professional athletes, wellness practitioners, and natural healers to further advance the design, function, and needs of the Human Touch product line.
Elisa Wallace is an award-winning equestrian representing the U.S.A. in international competition. She is a 5-star three-day event rider, popular YouTuber, and well-known advocate for American Mustang adoption, off the track thoroughbreds, rider safety, and women in sports.
Stephanie Kono is an LPGA professional golfer earning her first full tour status in 2012 and re-earning her full tour status with her performance at the 2018 LPGA Q-Series. The highlight of Stephanie's 2018 season was winning the second annual Donald Ross classic on the LPGA Symetra Tour.
Alex Williams is a triathlete, hyperbarics expert, and the Founder of Holistic Hyperbarics in Berkeley, California. An EMT, birth doula, and post-surgery masseuse, she has a deep passion for promoting healing and chronic pain relief to patients.
Andy Potts is an Ironman World-Champion, U.S. Olympian, and a three-time winning USAT Triathlete of the Year. He has completed over 200 races with more than 57 first place finishes. As one of the most versatile triathletes in the world, Andy makes it a priority to give back to the sport and its community.
“We are thrilled to welcome this outstanding team of professionals to the Human Touch family,” says David Wood, CEO of Human Touch. “Their diverse experiences, along with their personal and professional dedication to total body wellness will serve to guide us as we continue to develop the most innovative, intuitive, and purpose-serving products possible for individuals with chronic pain, athletes, health professionals, and consumers alike.”
To learn more about the Human Touch Wellness Council, please visit www.humantouch.com/wellness-council
About Human Touch
Entering its 40th year, Human Touch® proudly serves as the country’s leading provider and innovator of high-performance massage chairs, Perfect Chair recliners and other wellness solutions. Committed to creating the most immersive and personalized independent wellness experiences, Human Touch introduces patented massage systems that replicate the touch and techniques used by leading massage professionals. Each product is strategically engineered and designed to address the pains and stresses caused by today's hectic lifestyle using the latest technologies and intelligent ergonomics. Products are available at fine furniture stores, back care specialty stores, and mass-market retailers across the U.S., through international retailers and distributors in more than 40 countries, and online at www.humantouch.com.
Media Contact:Emily WongDirect Ph: 562-733-7358ewong@humantouch.comMeet Alexandra Williams, Founder of Holistic Hyperbarics and Human Touch Wellness Council member.
While attending the CES (Consumer Electronic Show) show this year in Las Vegas with Tough Tested and my racecar, I got to meet the wonderful people from Human Touch. They had come to my booth, stopped to say hello and ask some questions about my racecar. I immediately loved their positive energy. We took some great photos and I promised to check out their booth the next day.
If you have never been to the CES show, let me tell you, it makes for some very long days of standing! My feet and back were aching from standing around for three days. As promised, I still wanted to drop by the Human Touch booth. I figured with all my aches and pains this was probably the best time to go check out massage chairs.
Upon arriving at the booth I could see that it was very popular. There was a very long line to test out these chairs. When it became my turn, I quickly hopped in to a really beautiful red chair. A wonderful 5-minute demo message was started. It was one of the best 5 minutes of the show! When I arrived at the booth, my back on down to my feet were aching. After just five minutes I got up feeling energized and refreshed. My feet no longer were screaming!
There is something you need to know about my history. At about the age of 8, I was diagnosed with Scoliosis. I began with a 15% left Thoracic curve. I had to wear a hard shell preventative brace that covered my entire torso from my hips to my neck for 20 hours a day. After wearing numerous braces, that failed to prevent the curve from progressing, I had progressed to a 40% Left Thoracic curve with a rib hump. My left shoulder was 4 inches higher than my right. The curve caused my chest to begin to impede on my heart and lungs. When I was 15 years old, it was determined that I needed to have corrective Scoliosis surgery. I entered the hospital in Phoenix and came out not only straighter, but with two 12-inch titanium rods in my back.
Since I was very young, all I have ever wanted to do was race. I would race the kids on my street on my bicycle. I was the little kid that loved watching NASCAR on the television. When I was ten years old I began to race Quarter Midgets. Since then I have worked my way up to Bandoleros, Legends, Late Models, Super Late Models and have even had a shot in ARCA and the NASCAR Camping World Trucks. It was when I was racing Legends that I had to take a year off to recover from Scoliosis surgery. I listened to everything my doctor told me to do, worked extra hard in physical therapy and ate extremely healthy. My doctors were amazed when I was fully healed in nine months and wanted to get back in my racecar seat. My Thoracic area is now the strongest part of my back. The only thing I will never be able to do is a back bend, and I don’t think I will ever miss doing that.
It was after learning about my history of Scoliosis and the fact that I am involved in a high impact sport that I was asked to be a part of the Human Touch Wellness Council. I was so honored when asked. I am excited that Human Touch not only meticulously designs their massage chairs, but they truly care about well-being, fitness, wholeness, strength and recovery.
So far I am really enjoying my NOVO XT chair. Delivery was a breeze. I have found my stress level reduced and I am sleeping much better. I am excited to try the chair after a race in my NASCAR Super Late Model. The placement of my rods always causes deep bruising in my lower thoracic area after long periods in my racing seat, and I hope that the NOVO XT will help with this. I am looking forward to sharing with you how well my chair helps me to recover from back pain and accelerates my recovery.
How does Olympian and World Champion Triathlete, Andy Potts, keep his competitive edge? A strict training regimen that just won’t quit.
Learn just what it takes to become a champion from the Ironman legend himself. It certainly isn’t easy, but his training and recovery schedule has helped him to achieve over 28 Ironman 70.3 first place titles since he took home his first Ironman 70.3 World Champion title in 2007.
Learn more about Andy Potts, and how Human Touch products help him to bring his best each and every day, in this press release.
One of the questions that I get asked pretty constantly is how I am able to keep surfing most everyday at my semi mature station in life. In other words, “How does a geezer like you stay out there all the time?” I should preface this to say that it is normally other geezers who are asking this question. When you are young you don’t even think about it, you just do it and there are little or no physical consequences. Geeze, I remember being able to surf all day, like 10 hours, and then woof down a half gallon of ice cream before heading to the dance. Hahaha, ok I just realized that sounded just like the “and I walked ten miles through the snow to get to school and didn’t even have a pair of shoes to wear,” kinda thing. But, you get the idea. When you are 20 your body just keeps going and you don’t think about it. When you get a bit older you start to get sore, your body aches, you get tired and you start feeling like it might be a good idea to “take a recovery break today.” I see guys missing really good days because they are sore and their body just hurts too much to give it another go. This is something I try to avoid as I hate missing good days. At my age you don’t want to miss anything, I mean ya just never know.
So, here is my little guide on how to keep an older surfing body in tune so that you can surf as much as possible without pain. First off, don’t let yourself get fat like I am because it makes it that much harder on yourself. I must like it to be hard because I stay fat, but I really do not recommend it. One key to staying in the water is to pace yourself time wise in the water within what you feel good with. Sometimes it is not so much how long you surf but more how hard you surf while you are out there. If you go out and sit there for 2 hours and only ride a few waves, socializing and trying to pick up babes, it’s not as much of a workout as if you surf hard for one hour, riding a ton of waves and going for it. Know your threshold as far as endurance. It is when you push past it that your body really gets angry and you pay the price afterwards. When you start getting noodle armed it’s time to go in.
Secondly, it is super important to stay hydrated. Make sure you drink some water before you surf and have some on hand after you get out. Even though you are in the water your body needs fluids. This is especially true when surfing in the tropics or warm climates. Coffee, cokes, beer and all that stuff does not hydrate you, just the opposite. Drink a lot of water or some sort of hydrating drink like Gatorade etc. This is very important to muscle recovery. If you get a lot of cramps it never hurts to take a pinch of salt here and there too.
I am a firm believer in massage and I think the older you get the more important it is to help your body come back from strenuous activity, like surfing. It also helps get your body ready for it, much like stretching and yoga. A massage a day can work wonders on keeping you surfing. Of course for most people getting a massage everyday is impossible, either for the expense or just the time it takes out of your day or night. Years ago I got one of those great massage chairs that you sometimes see in stores and like to sit in and wish you had one at home. It is a HUMAN TOUCH massage chair that is made by a company called; you guessed it, Human Touch, out of Long Beach. It feels like a real person and it is fabulous. A few minutes in the morning just before I paddle out to loosen me up a bit, a short sesson after surfing and 15 or 20 minutes in the evening is a perfect massage chair daily regime. I can’t even come close to telling you how great this is for my old geezer body and I strongly recommend one.
If you want to stay in the water as much as possible and you are middle aged or older you might want to consider my little suggestions here. If you feel good you keep the stoke. And if you have the stoke then you paddle out. Simple deal.
Human Touch®, the U.S. market leader of innovative massage chairs, Perfect Chair® recliners, and other wellness solutions, is pleased to announce that it has formed a partnership with three-time U.S. Olympic Gold Medalist beach volleyball player, Misty May-Treanor.
Misty May-Treanor is considered to be the one of the greatest beach volleyball players in the history of the sport, with Olympic Gold Medals in the 2004 Athens games, 2008 Beijing games, and the 2012 London games, and a total of 109 career tournament victories.
Above and beyond Misty’s achievements in her sport, she takes great personal pride in being an outstanding role model. She spreads goodwill through her work with Special Olympics, Make-A-Wish Foundation, and her own educational/clinic curriculum, as well as many other causes and initiatives important to her.
“I’m excited to bring the knowledge I’ve gained throughout my career to the Human Touch Wellness Council,” said Misty May-Treanor. “I have always been passionate about physical fitness, and my extensive training – in addition to my formal education in Kinesiology, Coaching, and Athletic Administration – have given me with a lot of information on improving physical health. The Wellness Council serves as a great platform for me to be able to share that information with people who are seeking to feel and perform their best.”
Misty May-Treanor has long demonstrated the importance of recovery for athletic performance. After a serious injury from her appearance on TV’s Dancing with the Stars in late 2008, many feared that her professional career was over. However, she pushed herself through to recovery, and her performance in the 2012 Olympics in London captured the hearts of the fans from all around the world. It is this same resolve, work ethic, and commitment that Misty brings to the Human Touch Wellness Council, where she will provide insight into the importance of recovery and self-care using massage and relaxation techniques.
“We’re thrilled to have Misty May-Treanor join our Wellness Council,” said Peter Theran, Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Human Touch. “Our wellness solutions provide a means of recovery for active people, including professional and amateur athletes, and Misty’s training and education will assist us in providing the best solutions for them. We’re excited to have her to join our team, and eager to share her wisdom with anyone who is looking to use massage and wellness to improve their game both on and off the court.”
About Human Touch
Human Touch is the leading provider of high-quality, innovative lifestyle products, massage chairs, and experiences that have been delivering indispensable, life-changing benefits to an ever-growing number of consumers for more than 35 years. Human Touch has been making people feel better by developing state-of-the-art massage products containing patented massage systems that replicate the hands and techniques used by massage professionals, thereby helping to reduce pain and stress caused by today’s hectic lifestyle. Products are available at fine furniture stores, back care specialty stores, and mass-market retailers across the U.S., through international retailers and distributors in more than 40 countries, and online at www.humantouch.com.
Media Contact:
Megan Harvey
Direct Ph: 562-733-7317
Direct Fax: 562-424-7846
Corp. Ph: 562-426-8700
mharvey@humantouch.com
www.humantouch.com
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