It’s important to use your body correctly when giving a massage. Massage therapists need to have good body mechanics and posture because it helps them prevent injury, exhaustion, and make the most of their energy.
As a massage therapist, you'll be able to help people relax and unwind
Pressure is applied using the leverage of the body weight: Never push – lean into the technique with your entire body weight from the largest muscles in your body • engage your core while administering massage • warm up and stretch before administering massage therapy • remember to breathe properly when administering massage • movements should be purposeful, smooth, and rythmic while administering massage
When performing massage therapy, there are many reasons for pain
Incorrect method is being used • incorrect table height is being used • poor body mechanics and posture are being used • muscle strength is lacking
Self-Care Advice for Massage Therapists: Body Mechanics and Posture
Height of the table:
When the massage therapist stands beside the table with arms straight, his or her finger tips or first knuckle should touch the table.It is preferable to sit at a lower table rather than a higher table.
Self-Care for Massage Therapists: Posture and Body Mechanics
The massage therapist’s feet must be spaced far enough apart to allow for a proper posture and spine alignment.
During the massage, the weight is moved from foot to foot to provide balance and a swaying motion. The swaying motion allows a momentum force to assist in using your energy for the job, but it should not be overdone to the point of draining your energy or distracting you and the client.
The feet must face the direction of travel.
Self-Care for Massage Therapists: Posture and Body Mechanics
Knees: • Knees are never hyperextended (tightly closed) • Knees are relaxed and not locked
Self-Care for Massage Therapists: Posture and Body Mechanics
Back: • the massage therapist’s navel should still be immediately pointed at the area being operated on; • no bending from the waist; • no twisting; • no reaching The therapist must reposition himself/herself as the work’s direction shifts.
Self-Care for Massage Therapists: Posture and Body Mechanics
Neck: • keep your neck straight • massage is a tactile ability, not a visual one • don’t have a forward head stance, remember to tuck your chin in • breathe properly to avoid hypertonic shoulder and neck muscles
Self-Care for Massage Therapists: Posture and Body Mechanics
Shoulders, wrists, and arms: • Keep your palms, wrists, and shoulders relaxed at all times. Diaphragmatic breathing exercises aren’t just for patients!
Wrist Angle: The wrist angle should be about 120 degrees (wrist is partially flexed – never hyperextended!). This keeps you behind your job rather than above or on top of it. Wrist injuries are the most common injury among massage therapists.
Arms Angle: The arms should be at a 45-degree angle. A lower angle means you’re reaching, while a higher angle means you’re above or on top of your job, not behind it, as you should be.
Your palm provides constant power, while your thumb and fingers provide guidance.
The forearms and ulnar border of the hand can be used at times.
Keep your physical and energetic resources in good shape
I’ve been concerned with body mechanics as it applies to massage therapy for the better part of the last fifteen years. It’s a good obsession, because I’m still searching for new and improved ways to offer massage.
There are two key reasons for pursuing optimal mechanics with zeal. The first can seem self-evident: it aids in the preservation of your physical body and energetic resources. Physical injury is a well-known cause of therapists’ everyday lives being disrupted and forcing them to leave the profession early. The second is maybe less evident but, in my opinion, just as important: it greatly increases the level of contact that a client receives. Because there is less muscle tension in a therapist’s body when they demonstrate optimum body mechanics, they can pick up on the tension in the client’s body rather than their own. When we massage, any stress in our bodies undermines the sensitivity that comes from our fingertips.
The Importance of Maintaining Spinal Alignment
The most difficult aspects of massage are moving from the body’s centre and preserving spinal alignment. We collapse into habitual movement from our shoulders if we don’t maintain constant, conscious consciousness.Every stroke of the session, the practise becomes paying attention to mechanics.
The well-documented consequence of forward-head posture is the best example of this. According to Rene Cailliet, M.D., the load on the spine and its tissue is just 10 pounds if the head weighs ten pounds and the middle of the ear lies directly over the centre of the shoulder. When the head is translated forward, however, the weight of the head rises by 10 pounds with every inch forward. When doing massage, the majority of therapists have a forward head position of 3 to 5 inches, according to my observations. By remembering to return our head to a neutral location, realigning our neck, and relying on our palpation abilities to direct us.
Palpation abilities do not necessitate much assistance from our brains. In reality, looking down at our work on a regular basis not only harms our spine, but it also damages our sensitivity. A great therapist’s sensitivity is what allows them to detect muscle contraction, fascial adhesion, and possible trigger point behaviour. As a result, the goal becomes to focus on being as comfortable as possible across the joints, so that your proprioception picks up on the client’s anxiety rather than your own.
As a result, the concept of perfecting your body mechanics becomes a regular occurrence. Your body can only tell you what isn’t working if you are constantly aware of it, either by pain or reduced sensitivity underneath your fingertips. Paying close attention to spinal alignment and keeping forward head posture in mind will go a long way toward ensuring your career longevity.
