There’s a lot you can do for yourself to unknot aching muscles. Always press with the pads of the fingers, not the tips or nails, and use all four fingers together.
Massage is an excellent way to relieve aches, pains and the stress of everyday life – and even better when you can use the basic techniques to help yourself when you really need them.
Head
- Cup your face in your hands, then slide them back into your hair.
- Move them in large circles, pressing firmly enough to move the scalp over the skull rather than pulling the hair.
- Put the heels of your hands on your temples and make the same big circling moves with your fingers in your hair.
- Massage all over the scalp with little circling movements (good when you’re washing your hair too).
- Don’t forget to rub slowly up behind your ears and gently pull them up, down and back.
All these moves are excellent for easing headaches.
Face
- Put all eight fingers on your cheekbones, then, with the pads of your fingers, tap and massage in little circles.
- After working on one spot, lift the fingers and move to another without dragging the skin.
- Continue down the sides of your face, across your chin and upper lip, then up your cheek and temples and across the forehead.
Neck & Shoulders
- Reach as far down your back as you can, then pull your fingers up beside the spine, pressing hard.
- Continue the pressure up to the top of your neck, then massage all over the back of your neck expect on the spine.
- Massage under the ridge at the base of the skull, from beside the spine to the ear. Line up the fingers one above the other on each side of the spine at the top of the neck.
- Press left hand with the right hand, then right with the left, and continue this moving down as far as you can reach.
- Knead the large shoulder muscles with big pinches.
Hands & Arms
- With your left hand facing down, put your right hand on top and grip it firmly, kneading your palm, then your fingers.
- Cup your left hand and knead your palm and joints with your right thumb.
- Hold and pull each finger in turn, then the thumb. Do the same for the other hand.
- Link your fingers and grip your hands together, then try to pull them apart.
- Squeeze and release all the way up one arm with the other hand.
- Run your hand up your arm, pressing with the skin between the thumb and first finger. Do the same for the other arm.
Abdomen
- Starting just below the navel and heading left, press with your fist in a large circle, anticlockwise out towards your side, down to the hip bone across above the pelvis and back up the side.
- Repeat the circular movement a few times.
This helps relieve indigestion, but don’t press if it hurts.
Legs & Feet
- Kneel feet like the hands.
- Squeeze and rub the calf muscles like the arms always going up towards the heart. This can help relieve puffy ankles.
If you don’t have the luxury of time to do it yourself or if you just want the experts to do it for you, visit one of these massage centres in Australia.