A local family business is offering a unique experience aimed at promoting wellbeing and healthy living on the banks of the Wye in Ross.

Black Box Sauna is an outdoor wood fired sauna, which gives the community the unique experience which combines the heat of a traditional sauna with the icy chill of cold water therapy.

Oli Marshall, a keen sports fan and one of the founders of Black Box Sauna discovered that for him and many other people, recovery after exercise like rugby was a major issue and one which could be made easier by a combination of heat and ice.

Oli said: “There's been a lot of research around the heat side of it and putting heat but adding the ice plunge in natural wild environments can really make you feel good.”

“The important things is that the ice bath is not just an add It is is a cycle with both parts of the experience going together. Typically they’re done in cycles of three…you have a sauna then plunge into the ice bath…then repeat”

“You get the health benefits from it but I think it's the wild nature of it that’s important in that it’s all done outside.”

The Black Box Sauna experience allows people to appreciate nature and the surroundings.

Oli said: “It's kind of connecting with nature and wellness”

According to Dr Susannah Soeberg scientist, author, and educator specialising in metabolism, cold & heat exposure, and longevity who has pioneered research on cold and heat exposure, just 11 minutes of cold-water immersion and 57 minutes of sauna per week can increase focus, energy and mood.”

“During cold water immersion, noradrenaline and dopamine levels increase two and a half times within minutes and can last for hours.”

“When your body goes from one extreme temperature to another it can give your body a true feeling of stress so when transferring from a sauna into a cold plunge it can release chemicals within your body and can effectively make your stress boundary a bit wider.” Said Oli.

While Oil says he health benefits are the main draw he adds the Black Box experience, also has many community benefits as people often meet new people.

“You might talk to somebody you've not spoken to - there’s no phones in the sauna because it's too hot,” he added.

Most of the Black Box saunas are pop-ups which mean they are able to move to different area, making them idea attractions for beauty spots or places where residents and visitors may be looking for something different to do.

“A lot of people put them on trailers, so they're mobile. It's basically a box on a steel frame so, it’s relatively easy to take it wherever you want.”

Oli’s latest pop-up sauna was sited in Ross-on-Wye, which runs alongside the permanent one in Garway with another pop up in Ross-on-Wye coming soon.

“Just come along, relax, enjoy, switch off, and unplug” said Oli.