Transcripts
1. Trailer: Hi, guys. My name is Stacey, and I'm a massage therapist with my own practice in Colorado for the last nine years. One of the things I get asked the most from my clients is how they can give a basic massage at home. And in this class, I'm gonna show you how to give a basic chair massage, focusing on the head, neck, shoulders and back. This classes for anyone who is not a massage therapist but wants to learn how to give a good massage at home. I'm going to be walking through some basic massage techniques with easy to follow instructions. By the end of this class, you're gonna learn everything you need to know to give your friends and family a great massage.
2. Disclaimer: before we get started. I just want to make clear that you should use this course as a casual guide for massages for friends and family, and it should not replace any formal schooling or massage therapy education of any kind. It's very important that you know each person that you massage because every person is different and requires different amounts of pressure. And it is always important to keep the lines of communication open and adjust your pressure to their comfort level. And one thing to keep in mind when massaging a pregnant woman, You want to avoid the ankles as that can put them into labor. If you ever have any question, always check with your doctor.
3. Class Project: for the class project. Give a friend a chair massage. Once you're done, answer these three simple questions and post your answers to the project page. How did your friend feel before and after the massage? How did you feel after giving the massage and what was your favorite technique? I look forward to reading your stories and seeing how things went.
4. Effleurage: the first of our massage techniques is called F Lage F. Garage is a French word, meaning to skim or to touch lightly. For this stroke, you're going to use open palms, light pressure and broad strokes, and we use this stroke toe warm up and loosen the muscles. This technique is also used in between the other basic massage techniques. It links everything together, creating a sense of completion.
5. Petrissage: Petra. Sasha is our second basic massage technique, and in French it means to need. It's usually applied with a deeper pressure than F Loor AJ, and consists of muscle needing, ringing and skin rolling. If you've ever given a massage before, Petra, Sarge is probably the technique you've already used. You'll be needing lifting or squeezing the muscle and somewhat of a pinching or grabbing motion. This technique is usually applied with more pressure, so it is very important to know the comfort level of the person you're massaging. This technique will be the one that you will be using the majority of the time.
6. Technique: for a chair massage. It's very important to pay attention to your own body. It's a common misconception that we should rely on the muscles in our hands and forearms to give a massage, but the pressure should really come from our own body weight. Otherwise, it's really easy to burn yourself out. You should pay attention to how you're standing to make sure that you have a wide stance. Your shoulders air down and not up by your ears and you're back of ST Massage is all about balance in cemetery. If you do a certain technique on one side of the body, make sure you do that same technique on the other side of the body. So with all that in mind, let's get started on the massage.
7. Tapotement: department is the last technique that will be using an in French. That means to tap or to drum. You can apply this technique with your hands in a C shape, a fist or a chopping motion. Try to keep a steady beat with your hands. When applying this technique, just make sure that you're not applying too much pressure. You definitely don't want a crowded chop their back again. Always just make sure that you know the comfort level of the person that you are massaging . This is a very stimulating technique and should be applied at the end of your teen after the muscles air warmed up. Now that we've covered the three basic techniques, let's get started.
8. Setting The Mood: some ways you could create a relaxing environment would be dimming the lights, playing some relaxing music, lighting some candles and using pillows or blankets to make the person more comfortable. Make sure your nails aren't too long. So you're not poking your friend in the back while giving a massage. And make sure to wash your hands before and after, because hygiene is very important. So now that you know how to set the mood, we can move on to the basics. Let's get started.
9. The Massage: for a chair massage. Have your friend sit on a chair backwards. Straddling it. They can use a pillow to make themselves more comfortable and allow them to rest the chin on the back of the chair. Once they're comfortable, you can place your palms on their head to connect with them and start the massage. So let's start this chair massage by warming up the muscles in the scalp. Using circular motions, you can work from the hairline towards the crown of the head with your thumbs. This is an example of Petros Osh, which, if you remember, is a kneading technique. Your fingertips can also be massaging the temples in a circular motion. Then you can continue this movement around the ears. Also, be cautious of your friends hair, and you can continue to move it throughout the massage so you don't pull it. You can also continue to move your fingertips in a circular motion at the base of the skull . At this point, you can work your way back up from the neck to the crown and pay particular attention to any places that maybe tender, are sensitive to your friend and continue to work. Those with comfortable pressure. Now you can go down into the neck and work in circular motions all the muscles of the neck again, using Petros Osh again. Pay attention to their hair and move it as needed. - Once you're done with the neck, we can move on to back, Remember, Eh? Floor. AJ is our warm up, and in between technique, you can link the neck in the back using this technique. Another thing to keep in mind When doing a chair massage, the shirt will bunch up, and it is important to constantly be straightening that and pulling it back down. You want a smooth surface when you're giving a massage, then you can transition into a Petra Sasha technique. Here you can lift the muscles of the upper back and roll it up and towards yourself, always remembering to stay symmetrical. You can focus both hands on one shoulder or have one hand on each shoulder. Just remember, if you put both hands on one shoulder, you need to do the same technique on the other shoulder. - Once you're done with the shoulders, you could move around to the other side of the chair and start warming up the entire back. Pay attention to how you're standing here. Your legs should be widespread. You should have a bending your knee, and you should have your back straight. Here. We're just warming up the whole back, going back and forth from broad F LaRock strokes with open palms to more Petros Osh strokes . Like needing and ringing. Moving from F Lodge to Petra Sasha, It's really important to remember to never apply pressure directly on the spine, but you can place your hands on either side of the spine and work up and down it. Once you work your way down to the hips, you can use your thumbs to place pressure around the tailbone and hips again using circular motions. So now let's have fun and get creative. Using the basic techniques you've already learned. Communicate with your friend and find out what's bothering them. Focus on those places and go back and forth from F Law Raj to Petra Sasha and work those tender spots. Another place that can be really tender is the scapula or shoulder. Blaine's Using your thumbs. You can apply pressure away from the spine under the shoulder blades. The shoulder muscles are where a lot of people hold their attention, really focus on that area using Petros Osh techniques such as needing, lifting and rolling. It also feels really good to place your thumbs on either side of the spine and apply pressure all the way down the back one point at a time. Remember, the strength should be coming from your hips and your core, not your hands in your forearms. Pay attention how your hips and your feet are aligned and lean into your thumbs. You can do this all the way down to your hips, then spread your thumbs out and do it a little wider all the way back up. - If it's comfortable for the person you're massaging, you could gently place their hand to their lower back. This opens up the muscles of their shoulder blades so you can get in between sometimes feel really good again, pressing the thumbs away from the spying under the shoulder blade. - Once you feel like you're ready to wrap up the massage, you can transition back into F LOOR, AJ and into our last technique department. You can start at the shoulders and move all the way to the hips just remember to stay off the spine. You know, once you're done with that, we can ease out of the stimulating stroke of two moment and into more of relaxing after a stroke. At this point, you can go over everything again with more relaxing strokes to bring a sense of completion to the routine Bringing all the strokes together. - You could even come back up the neck and end where you started at the scalp. Remember? No to massager. Teens are the same. So be creative and have fun. Focus on the needs of the person you're massaging. Tailor your routine to them. Yeah.
10. Wrap Up: massages release toxins stored in the muscles, so encouraged the person that you just massaged to get up slowly and to drink plenty of water. Drinking water will help flush any toxins that were released during the massage. Make sure you check in with yourself as well. Working on someone else's muscles is also a workout for yours, so it's important to take care of your own self is well. Stretching is always a good idea, and don't forget to wash your hands.
11. Thanks!: That's it, guys. I hope you enjoyed my class. Thanks for taking it. If you have any questions, feel free to ask me on the ask me anything. Page. Thanks again. And I'll see you next time.
Stacy Raymer, Massage Therapist
