Issue link: https://www.massageandbodyworkdigital.com/i/1191154
Ta k e 5 a n d t r y A B M P F i v e - M i n u t e M u s c l e s a t w w w. a b m p . c o m / f i v e - m i n u t e - m u s c l e s . 85 What happens when the body feels like it is being forced into something? The body's instinctual protective mechanism is triggered. We tense up. We guard against anticipated pain or manipulation. This is the sympathetic nervous system at work. When the therapist works too hard, the client's fight-or-flight response is activated—the result of millions of years of evolutionary instinct to protect against pain and injury. In other words, when we work harder than we need to, the client's body does all the things we don't want it to do during a massage. Using less oil forces you to slow down, to let the stroke manifest itself, and to move as the client needs, rather than just forcing the stroke to go wherever you think it should go. This can feel like a big jump at first. But I promise you, the leap is worth it. No client will ever be upset with you because you only did three effleurage strokes down the spine, rather than nine. None of your clients will be upset if you slow down. All of your clients want meaningful contact, not a race to the end. Use It Differently As you've probably guessed by now, I think a lot about oil. And I vary how much and where I use it. With some clients, I don't use oil at all, and I do a whole session of what might be called myofascial release. With other clients, I do what looks more like a typical Swedish massage, and I apply oil to each body part that I work. With still other clients I do a combination: I use oil on the parts of the body that need more general work, and then I don't use oil on the one or two parts where the client wants extra attention or needs extra help. But within this variety, there is one consistency: every time I use oil, I use it in the same way. Which, chances are, is the opposite of how you use whatever lubricant you use. I apply oil from distal to proximal. What this means is that no matter what part of the body I am working on, I spread the oil starting at the part closest to the center of the body (in other words, the part farthest from where I am standing), and then I spread the oil toward the end of the body part I am working on (the part closest to where I am standing): • On the back, I start spreading the oil first on the superior aspect of the glutes and lower back, and then spread up the back, ending at the shoulders and neck. • On the legs (both in prone and supine), I start spreading the oil at the hips and then come down to the ankles and feet. • On the arms, I start spreading the oil on the pectoral musculature and the shoulder, and then spread down the arm to the hands. • In addition, each time I spread the oil, it is with a very light touch. I am just spreading the oil, rather than actually doing any kind of effleurage stroke. Why do I do this? Two reasons. First, applying lubricant from distal to proximal allows me to spread the oil evenly; second, it allows me to customize my session based on the specific needs of the client's body. Here's Why Therapists typically spread the oil in their first effleurage stroke. For example, you make your initial contact and slide down the back (from shoulders to hips) or up the leg (from ankle to hip). In my experience, this often means there is too much oil at the beginning of that stroke (the place farthest from the center of the body). That's where the therapist, cupping a palmful of oil, started the stroke. The corollary is also true. By the end of that effleurage stroke—the part closest to the center of the body—there is not enough oil, because too much of it is left waiting at the beginning. In other words, the application of oil is uneven. This means the strokes, thereafter, will be uneven. The second reason, however, is even more important. By taking a few seconds to just apply oil, without the client thinking that I am already doing a stroke, I can be as discriminating as I want about exactly where the oil goes. If the client has identified their lower back as a place that needs particular work, as I apply oil, I am going to skirt around those areas and either apply no oil or a minimal amount of oil. That smaller amount of oil is essential. It lets me prioritize that specific area. Because with less (or no) oil in a specific area, my strokes will automatically slow down because the area is less lubricated. As a result, I can sink more slowly—and more deeply—into that area. Slowing down allows me to do more specific, focused work in the areas that need it most. The opposite is also true. For the parts that don't need detailed work, I spread the oil evenly, and thus can do long continuous strokes—strokes that still feel good, and still are as light or as deep as the client wants, but that are comparatively quick. It is that very specific control—over how much (and how little) oil I apply—that allows me to do a full-body massage in an hour that feels flowing and complete, while still being able to do focused, detailed work on a client's areas of complaint. How would your sessions change if you challenged your lubricant habits? Experiment with using less and with using it differently. I think you'll find, with a bit of practice, that applying lubricant with intention and specificity affords you a wonderful flexibility in your sessions— both an increased ease and an increased effectiveness. Using lubricant differently, I believe, is nothing less than a great way to lubricate your whole massage career. Note 1. Lexico, s.v. "Lubricate," Oxford Dictionary, accessed November 2019, www.lexico. com/en/definition/lubricate. David M. Lobenstine has been a massage therapist, teacher, and writer for more than a decade. He is a graduate of the Swedish Institute and Vassar College. He has worked in a variety of settings—from luxury spas to the US Open Tennis Tournament to a hospice to now, exclusively, his own private practice. He teaches in person and online. His aim, with his clients and in his teaching and writing, is to enhance self- awareness, so we can do the things we love with efficiency and ease. Find him at davidlobenstine@ gmail.com and www.bodybrainbreath.com.