Issue link: https://www.massageandbodyworkdigital.com/i/465652
F r e e m u s i c d o w n l o a d s f o r C e r t i f i e d m e m b e r s : w w w. a b m p . c o m / g o / c e r t i f i e d c e n t r a l 63 Learn to Lean Joe, a massage therapist, was a tall and solidly built man. When I was training him to do on-site massage, I thought he would have no problem delivering deep pressure. But when I was on the table, his work was woefully below the pressure level I knew some clients would want. Prior to Joe, I had trained Karen on how to deliver deep pressure. Karen was thin and petite, but prided herself on making college football players say, "Yeah, OK, that's enough pressure." The difference between Karen and Joe? Karen knew how to lean. It has been my experience that leaning—using your body weight for leverage—to deliver deep pressure will tax your musculoskeletal system less than nonleaning stances. In some cases, it's nearly impossible to generate the required pressure without leaning. Anyone can learn how to lean to generate pressure. The keys for safe and effective leaning are: lean into the table with your whole body; not just from the waist up, keep your joints in a straight line (e.g., shoulder over elbow when using your elbow/forearm); and move your feet when gliding so your joints stay in a straight line. Find Your Max Plain and simple, there is a limit to how many massages you can do before something breaks. The way most massage therapists find their maximum threshold is by going over it and dealing with the ramifications: pain and potential loss of income. If you are just starting your massage career, your maximum tolerance will increase as your body gets used to doing massage on a daily basis. Some signs that indicate you are at your physical max are when your normal body pain is more persistent or intensifying, or when there is new pain. If you have physical pain from doing massage, maybe it's fixable by addressing a perpetuating factor, such as adjusting a massage table that is too low or too high. If the pain goes away after you make the adjustment, you're probably not at your max and you can push your number of massages per week higher if you need to. If the pain doesn't go away after addressing perpetuating factors, you've hit your ceiling. MINIMIZING INJURIES It has been my experience that leaning—using your body weight for leverage— to deliver deep pressure will tax your musculoskeletal system less than nonleaning stances.