Keep Yourself Healthy!

July 25, 2013

Massage therapy is demanding, both physically and emotionally. But that doesn’t mean that you can’t enjoy many years of practicing without injury. It just means that you have to take time every day to take care of yourself, understanding what works for your body as well as for your mind.

Here are 10 tips to help you take care of yourself and prevent injuries as a massage therapist:

• Get plenty of rest. Sleep is important and gives your body a chance to restore and regenerate.
• Eat a proper diet. Providing your body with proper nutrition will allow it to heal and remain in healthy physical condition.
• Schedule time in between clients. Allow yourself at least 15 minutes between clients to rest your muscles and joints.
• Stretch between clients. Stretching between clients will you keep you relaxed and help prevent injuries.
• Exercise regularly. Regular exercise is important for health and wellbeing.
• Do not over extend your joints while working. Therapists frequently overuse the joints in their hands and wrists by over extending them while working. Keep your hands and wrists relatively straight and reinforce them by stacking your fingers while working.  
• Be cautious of your stance while working. Avoid bending over the massage table and generate power from your legs by using an archer stance or wide stance.
• Relax your shoulders while working. Tensing your shoulders forces you to use all upper body strength when working. Relax your shoulders and generate power from your core while working.
• Remember to breathe. Breathing allows proper oxygen to flow through all body parts. Don’t hold your breath while working and focus on regular breathing throughout the bodywork session.
• Receive regular bodywork treatments yourself. You stress the benefits of massage to clients all day. It is just as important to receive massages regularly! Try and find another therapist to trade bodywork sessions with.