In this article, we will explore how this can be a simple and accessible practice.
When you finish, you will have access to understand pain sensitivity, trigger points, individuals techniques and a 10 minutes self massage practice.
Let's get started.
How to learn self massage .
Learning, understanding, and experiencing the benefits of self-massage in daily life are within everyone's reach. It's an adventure that requires some time but not too much: to be mastered, it generally takes less than a month with an adapted pedagogical approach.
There are different ways of learning for each of us. To best live the experience, become autonomous, and feel effective from the beginning, it is fundamental to identify the methods, learning modalities, and memorization techniques that work best for us. Some may respond better to methods based on visual or auditory stimuli, while others may learn through movement or by sensing sensations in their bodies. The key to understand right away is that it's different for everyone and at each stage.
These pedagogical details may seem obvious, but they are fundamental. They make a difference in quickly adopting effective, unique routines that stand the test of time and independence.
Before we talk quickly about trigger points, what do you think are important to know about self massage .
I practice self-massage
A. Never
B. Sometimes, only when I'm in pain
C. Often, as a preventive measure for recovery
Sneak peek into trigger points .
We saw in another the article ________ that self massage can be game changing. In a healthy body, in the absence of major injury or trauma, the muscular areas responsible for pain often appear as sensitive points, called "trigger points." These trigger points in the muscles create pain at a distance from the point itself, often giving the illusion of joint pain below. And not many people are aware of this.
Even if each person is unique, muscle pain often manifests in the same places for similar symptoms.
So how do you relieve these pains? There's no magic formula, but rather an individual exploration of well-being at your own pace and a technique to learn to identify the areas related to our sensations. Self massage.
It's important to keep in mind that this is a personal adventure, tied to your history, habits, emotions and awareness of your own body.
The technique: sensitivity to pressure, localization, the test re-test.
Three things are important.
The sensitivity to pressure
The localization
The test re-test
Sensitivity to pressure :
We said previously that trigger points are tights zones, bands in the body.
You would be right if you consider the first step in learning self-massage would be to find them. It involves developing sensitivity to touch to identify them quickly. Muscles are thick, it could be 2 cm under the skin as 15 cm.
With practicing self massage, we will easily feel under our fingers tights bands and a correspondant growing sensation of discomfort in our bodies.
To take a picture, we can imagine a sponge made of different densities. Pressing or squeezing will lead into finding tense zones, bands or points. The more sensitivity we develop, the less we fail, the more accurate we get.
Localization :
Localisation is then a crucial element. While searching the tight or sensitive band,
we have to be methodical otherwise we could miss a key pain point.
By methodically exploring parts of the body related to our needs, we identify problematic areas to adjust our massage technique and draw conclusions about effectiveness.
Indeed, this is where the re-test comes in: quickly test a movement that you know is awkward or crooked, precisely determine the area you think is related to the problem, apply the massage technique for a few seconds, and re-test the movement under the same conditions. If the movement is significantly improved, you've found a key pain point. Otherwise, continue the search until you find the point that makes a significant difference. This avoids wasting time.
In addition to localization and pressure, other elements such as speed, contact surface, depth, and duration play an essential role. Many beginners tend to be too quick and superficial in their movements or, on the contrary, too deep, causing pain and a very unpleasant experience. One thing is important: throughout the process, the precision of the technique and the sensation of release play a crucial role in the benefits obtained.
Finally, remember that self-massages are generally very effective in the absence of neurological pathologies (brain, spinal cord, or nerve damage) or precarious health conditions (inflammatory diseases, palliative care). In these latter cases, very superficial and gentle pressures are preferred. If you're interested, we discuss this in more detail in the article on the functioning, benefits, and limits of self-massages.
Location and pressure are the basic elements, but to go further, you can add speed, contact surface, depth, and execution time.
10 minute easy practice .
Settle comfortably in a place where you know you can be undisturbed for 10 minutes. If you are surrounded by others, consider informing them to respect your tranquility.
Test your body movements with as much precision and awareness as possible, especially if you already have discomfort somewhere.
Choose the area you want to take care of in relation to what you want to explore today.
Try to link your discomfort or pain to the muscles that seem related to the area (you can use the trigger point book as a guide).
Choose the tool with which it seems most interesting to explore. Remember that hands are the most powerful tools because they can recognize tense areas.
Adapt your pressure, posture, and breathing. I recommend using slow and firm pressure using your body weight to not miss deep points.
You should start feeling sensations in your muscles under pressure and in your fingers, guiding you towards a tense area that is probably worth considering.
Adjust the pressure you apply with your fingers or the chosen tool; it should be between 4 and 7 out of 10 for optimal relaxation.
Re-test the movements you tried in step 2. If your movement is improved, you've found a key point. If it's not improved, your technique (one or more elements) is probably not suitable or precise enough.
Take stock by noting down what you experienced in the session. This will help you adapt in future sessions.
In Summary.
By delving into self-massage, we've embarked on a simple, powerful, and underestimated adventure.
Self-massage, more than just a technique, becomes an individual exploration of well-being. Trigger points, sensitive muscle areas, are often unknown keys that create pain at a distance from the muscle point, often giving the illusion of joint pain.
Based on pressure sensitivity, localization, and re-test, the technique becomes an intuitive routine with our bodies. Mastered, it becomes the key to anticipating pain, speeding up recovery, and living fully.
Even children can master it. Instead of waiting for pain, let's engage in this adventure of personal fulfillment and self-love today, as natural as taking care of our car.
Embark on this adventure today, discover resources at [link].