Doug and Laurie Perry and their children do a lot together as a family.

When they are out and about, Doug, Laurie, daughter Korynne and sons Grant and Mitch have noticed over the years that there aren’t many places to stop for something truly healthy.

There are fast food restaurants that offer healthier options than others, but the Perrys wished they could find a place for relaxation, revitalization and pure nutrition.

They didn’t find that, so they decided to open their own.

Having started business about two weeks ago in Mt. Pleasant, the Perrys own Pure Vitality Juice Bar & Spa at 128 E. Broadway St. downtown.

There, the family gives customers a wide variety of options for relaxing, de-stressing and providing their bodies with fresh, natural juices and smoothies.

Juices from a variety of fruits and vegetables are squeezed fresh in front of customers, and smoothies are made to order as well.

Using fruits and vegetables that are packed with nutrients like kale, spinach, carrots, broccoli, beets, cucumbers, strawberries, pineapple, apples, oranges, lemons, celery, grapefruit, mangoes, goji berries and blueberries.

Some juice combinations contain aloe vera water, ginger, mint, watercress, cayenne and filtered water with no fluoride or chlorine.

Smoothies at Pure Vitality contain a variety of fruits and vegetables, along with coconut milk, and Michigan honey and maple syrup.

None contain processed sugar, Korynne said.

In addition to providing a great boost of energy, the juices have at least three servings of vegetables and two fruits, and the all-fruit juices have at least four servings of fruit, Korynne said.

They also absorb nutrients into the blood stream without the body having to use energy in the digestive process, she said.

Late Wednesday morning, Korynne was making a “Daily Detox,” a juice blend with apple, cucumber, lemon, spinach and kale.

She used a masticating juicer that mimics how human teeth work to chew food, and no nutrients are lost because the juicer does not heat the ingredients.

“It’s really one of the healthiest juices you can drink,” she said.

But the juice bar is just have of what the Perrys offer customers.

There are private rooms with massage tables with jade stones that gently flex and stretch the spine that are approved by the Food and Drug Administration and are a “Type 2 medical device” used in chiropractic offices, Doug said.

There are also infrared saunas that have room for one to four people (who come together, not strangers) that detox the body, de-stress, sooth, sweat out toxins and burn calories, Korynne said.

Probably the most talked about rooms at Pure Vitality are those that contain float pods.

A lot of time and energy was put into the float pod rooms to make them as quiet as possible, and the other completely private rooms at the business, which the family build themselves, using among other materials original ceiling tin that was restored, Doug said.

While the float pods, also known by some as sensory deprivation tanks, can be completely dark, users can turn on a light inside and can listen to music during their hour sessions.

For the true experience, the pod, filled with skin-temperature water containing more than 1,000 pounds of Epsom salt, is unlit, allowing the user float with no gravity pressure, Doug said.

Users can also leave the pod lid open, he said.

Korynne noted that the float pods put the brain in the most relaxed state possible while still awake.

There is also a room at the rear of the spa, formerly Ace of Diamonds, with free wifi for customers to relax while drinking juices or smoothies, as well as tables and seats in the front.

View the full article on The Morning Sun's website at the link below:

http://www.themorningsun.com/article/MS/20170906/NEWS/170909804