Trend 03: Healthy Bathroom - Tomorrow’s bathroom: gym and wellness centre in one

When it comes to taking care of body and soul, the bathroom is taking on new meaning: as a private gym with hydrotherapy treatments in an individual feel-good atmosphere. Modern technology is used to integrate traditional techniques and create a personalised oasis.

Health tops the wishlist for a happy life.And as prosperous societies around the globe become increasingly health-conscious, the bathroom will gradually evolve into an in-home health promotion centre.As a result, it won’t just become cosier: in modern interiors, the bathroom will also become a multifunctional space for grooming and fitness, where water plays an important role in prevention. A space for stretching and running, for revitalising and relaxing, for checking health and giving it a boost with water.

At the same time, the Healthy Bathroom stands for the concept of a bathroom for promoting health, individually equipped to suit the requirements, preferences and ages of its users. Where enough space is available, it will be designed to accommodate an ergometer, treadmill or yoga mat, wall bar, sauna and lounger so that owners can slot fitness exercises into their everyday routine and create a relaxing haven of calm that can even be used for family bonding sessions. And at a pinch, there’s always room for a balance board under the vanity unit if space is in short supply.

Water will play an even bigger part in health promotion – and not just in the hammam. The positive effects of traditional hydrotherapy treatments like alternating hot and cold baths will also experience new-found popularity. Nor will the tap primarily serve as a washplace, as is currently the case. Instead, it will be viewed as a dispenser of precious water: drinking water that refreshes the cells and fasciae from the inside after a workout and aids digestion. What’s more, the bathroom is the ideal place for medical measures like monitoring blood pressure and glucose, which will become routine for many of us in future. Displays for workout instructions and checklists will also find their way into the bathroom.Personal hygiene will evolve into personal health promotion – and the bathroom will turn it into a pleasure.

Shades of Kneipp: the Healthy Bathroom provides modern solutions for traditional hydrotherapy treatments

The private bathroom’s new-found role as a Healthy Bathroom opens up all kinds of possibilities for both challenging and pampering the body in one and the same room. For most people, the shower plays a vital part in this. Equipped with various sprays and programmable extras, it now enjoys the status of No. 1 feel-good oasis – probably because it takes up less space than a bath, added to which showering is quicker and conveys a sense of being active. Even so, it would be wrong to write the good old bathtub off. Experts point out that the health-promoting effect of taking a bath doesn’t only stem from the fact that it calls for peace and quiet and plenty of time. Because contrary to popular belief, soaking in the tub doesn’t just relax the muscles and joints, it also stabilises the heart and lungs, improves circulation, stimulates the kidneys and strengthens connective tissue.In addition, it has a soothing effect on the entire organism via the autonomic nervous system. The bathtub is therefore an ideal complement to the usual fitness techniques and turns the workout into a holistic health experience.

Designer Patricia Urquiola has even proposed putting two tubs next to one another so as to turn bathing culture into a communicative ritual again, even if the two individuals involved don’t want to share the same tub. Health specialists also recommend two tubs if space allows – not only for cultivating closeness between couples or family harmony, but for professional Kneipp treatments as well, whichcall for two different water temperatures to be available simultaneously. The same effect can be achieved with two foot baths placed in a big walk-in shower. And the addition of a comfortable seat – like a fold-up bench, for instance – provides a great way to warm up on cold days.

But the tub isn’t the only fountain of health in the bathroom: other “stations” also lend themselves to healthy everyday routines that can lower our susceptibility to illness.Modern saunas and steam showers stimulate the circulation and metabolism, relieve the airways and relax the muscles.Infrared cabins can also be factored in to a holistic approach.In the shower, all sorts of different rainfall and waterfall effects can be combined with hand showers with multiple spray modes to create highly enjoyable encounters with water. Innovative fittings can also help create sensuous wellness and water experiences in the private spa. Alternating hot and cold showers, either for the entire body or just the legs, likewise play a key role in recommended hydrotherapy treatments. And if a Kneipp pool and Kneipp hose are installed with ergonomic considerations in mind, the Healthy Bathroom can provide a professional-standard experience.

Pop up my Bathroom shows private gym for fit bathroom users

A “normal” but carefully thought through bathroom design is quite sufficient to meet the basic prerequisites for a perfect Healthy Bathroom. Plenty of space – in terms of both square metres and furniture – is definitely a help,because neatness is good for mental equilibrium. Only a neat and tidy Healthy Bathroom allows users to incorporate health-promoting activities into their daily routine hassle-free.Sufficient storage space and an uncluttered look are therefore essential. As a rule, too many accessories and personal odds and ends are distracting when you’re working out.Even so, there’s no reason why the bathroom can’t be given character and equipped to suit individual tastes.

Alape has maximised the potential inherent in the production of glazed steel washbasins to develop a new, innovative washplace by the name of Folio.Its precise geometry, minimal curvature and flat surfaces are the result of meticulous workmanship. A perfectly-fitting cover made of 3mm-thick glazed steel wraps around the washplace, encasing it in a wafer-thin sheet,while the on-trend Grey Fossil front underscores the modern look. The svelte design language of the matching Lissé mixer from Dornbracht is accentuated by a special operating mechanism with a smooth, fluid lever movement designed for maximum ease of use. And the little Fusion.S washplace from Alape ensures there is always enough drinking water on hand in the Healthy Bathroom.The glazed steel basin is equipped with a towel rail and storage compartment and available with the bowl on the left or right.

Dornbracht’s Water Tube – a Kneipp wall elbow with a hose holder and single rosette from the firm’s Water Modules range – can be used for cold arm and leg affusions. A cold leg affusion has a relaxing effect and firms the skin and isapplied all the way from the feet to the groin. A simple glazed steel foot bath from Alape puts the finishing touches to the Kneipp centre in the Healthy Bathroom.

Styling tip

The Healthy Bathroom created for Pop up my Bathroom is designed in the style of a good old-fashioned gym so as to trigger spontaneous associations with activity and agility. Even so, that’s not to say it can’t incorporate the very latest in modern fitness products and sanitaryware. But the parquet flooring really is vintage: it was salvaged from an old gym to add a historical touch.The rings and wall bars help create the look we’ve learned to expect, whilethe Kneipp hose holder and fitting are mounted on a decommissioned vaulting box that accentuates the recycling chic of the gym setting. The MyRun treadmill from Technogym and the up-to-the-minute vanity ensemble stand for the modern and innovative developments that are taking place in the bathroom right now.