Choose a massage therapist who respects your time with a quiet atmosphere for bodywork!
Monthly Archives: April 2014
Body Mechanics? What is that?
People who work on the outer shells of cars and trucks, right? Actually, body mechanics is the way one uses the body to complete a task. Your body mechanics (we all have them!) either serve your intentions well or not so much. The young mother with several children, dinner on the stove, carrying a baby in a sling, talking on the phone, watching a TV show and playing kickball with the toddler all at the same time may or may not be using good body mechanics. Is she using a headset or speaker with the phone? Are the stove, TV and toddler all lined up in one direction? Is the baby sling balanced in her center of gravity? If so, then she may have her body aligned in good poise. Now imagine that phone wedged between a shoulder and an ear. The baby sling adjusted over the leg she likes to stand on. The TV is off to one side, the toddler to the other side. Can you see her body torqued to accommodate these activities? She is young and able to do this for days on end. Then one day the timer goes off on the stove and the timer in her body goes off too! As she reaches to turn the burner off from an odd angle an over used muscle goes into spasm. Or an over stressed vertebra goes out of alignment. Her body mechanics have not served her intentions. 
I am not telling anyone to avoid multi-tasking. It is recommended but not always possible. What I am saying is to please be mindful of how you are using your body to do the things you do everyday. How can you make life easier for your physical self so the tasks you want to complete do not wipe you out before your timer goes off? Ask your massage therapist to help you connect the dots between your activities of daily living and the aches and pains in your body. Massage can relieve the physical stresses and then you can make simple changes to stop perpetuating or exacerbating your discomforts. Life happens! Let’s work with it for the best possible outcome.
Good Relaxation, or Bad Client Feedback?
A few years ago a client announced that she had just consumed a couple beers to help her relax during her massage. Sound good? Not really! Alcohol, even one drink, can interfere with a client’s ability to correctly perceive how their body is responding to massage treatments. They may not realize that pressure is too much or that pain sensations are changing or even occurring! In addition, alcohol causes the body to pull hydration out of tissue cells to increase available fluid for the kidneys to flush out the “toxin.” Combined with the metabolites that massage releases from muscles and fascia this can make the client want to throw up. Alcohol is NOT good to mix with massage! Sadly, we had to reschedule.
Hot and Cold Contrast Packs
Contrasting hot and cold packs works better than using just one or the other.
(Avoid using hot packs on swelling or inflammation!)
Timing:
20 minutes cold
10 minutes hot
20 minutes cold
Tips for effective treatment:
Use a timer to make it easier
Switch fast so the contrast is working
Use moist heat packs to avoid pulling hydration out of the body
Wrap packs in fresh, thin towels for comfort and cleanliness when reusing or sharing packs
Tie packs on with scarves or straps to go on with daily activities
One of my go-to treatments for stiff and/or sore muscles! I used this to beat a case of tennis elbow…the leading cause of massage therapist burn out. Ask for details!
hibbardann 