Shock absorber shoes with an exposed metal coil in the heel were just one of the products turning heads at the first annual Red Deer Health and Wellness Show held at Westerner Park Saturday and Sunday.
But some people are already familiar with Z-CoiL pain-relief footwear.
“There should be about 400 pairs in town now,” said retailer Judy James who has been selling the orthopedic shoes in Red Deer since November.
Trevor and Judy James, who opened the first Z-CoiL franchise in Canada at 3-1959 Gaetz Ave., were among 93 retail and service providers with booths at the Health and Wellness Show.
“They’re incredible for shock on your body,” said Judy James on Saturday.
Developed in the United States eight years ago, the shoes address body alignment to relieve back, leg and foot pain.
“You do a wheel alignment on your car. Why wouldn’t you do it for your body?” James said.
People are finally realizing they have to look after their bodies, she said.
Many of the products and services featured at the Health and Wellness Show promised to promote better health quickly and easily.
Shannon Constable invited people to try his Whole Body Vibration machine.
The low-impact exercise machine stimulates body reflexes without the strain of voluntary muscle contractions, like lifting weights, said Constable who also sells the machines at Bower Mall Shopping Centre.
“Whether you want to or not, you’re going to work out,” Constable said.
Brandy Rose, operator of Suddenly Slender in Red Deer, said her non-dehydrating mineral wrap helps the body release toxins and slims the figure.
“We basically wrap you up like a mummy for an hour,” said Rose who recently opened her store, at 4813-47th St.
“You feel clean from the inside out,” she said next to a mannequin swathed in bandages to demonstrate the wrap.
Health advocates at the show said it was never too young to develop a healthy lifestyle.
Lisa Freeman, instructor Little Yoga Studio, has children as young as two years old in class.
“The young ones don’t even realize they’re doing yoga. They just think they’re playing,” said Freeman who has been running classes for four years at the Old Court House.
Offering prenatal classes, she likes to joke that they “start before they’re even born.”
szielinski@www.reddeeradvocate.com