Home | Health & Fitness | Alternative Medicine

The Different Types Of Massages

The first time you get a massage, you will be shocked at how much better you feel. Life comes at you fast and your body takes a beating. Your neck muscles ball up, your lower back is twisted and so on. To get the best result, you need to pick the right style.

Picture a massage and you, me and everyone else thinks of the version with a faintly Eastern feel to it. While such images are certainly correct, there are actually many styles of massages out there. In fact, the most popular is not Eastern at all.

One of the more common massages is the Swedish massage. This is a good introductory massage for beginners. Therapist use long, smooth strokes and circular motions in combination with lotions to relax surface muscles. A very relaxing massage.

Not all massages are meant to be relaxing. Sometimes, the focus is not on how you feel during the massage, so much as it is on how you feel afterwards. In this case, we are talking about the famous deep tissue massage. Perhaps I should say infamous.

If you don't know what you are getting into, you might not like the deep tissue massage at first. It can be painful, but not excessively so. Once it is completed, however, you will feel like a piece of cooked pasta and much better.

Next up we have the massage from Thailand. This can be a confusing massage the first time. It is done on a padded floor and involves the twisting and stretching of your body. It is designed to align energy points. When done properly, results are tremendous.

The Thai massage is one of the best in the world. The problem, unfortunately, is it is hard to find excellent therapists. You might think you have a good Thai massage therapist, but a trip to Thailand will correct that thinking. In fact, I recommend such a trip.

The Japanese bring us the Shiatsu massage, which is similar to the Thai version and popular. The goal again is to align the energy centers, known as meridians, on the body. This is not done with twisting, but with the use of finger pressure on those spots.

The hot stone massage is becoming more popular by the day it seems. This is a light massage that uses heat to unlock muscle intersections. Stones are heated and then placed on points of muscle tension. The tension then melts away. A very superficial massage.

Being pregnant is both a time of great joy and misery. Pregnancy massages are designed to help with the misery by addressing aches, swelling and pain. These should only be undertaken with a therapist experienced in the practice.

Unless you are a man getting a pregnancy massage, any massage is going to make you feel better. To get the most out of your experience, determine what you need and select the appropriate style of massage available in your area.