Onsite massage: The Best 15″ You’ll Ever Have at Work

When employees aren’t healthy, businesses experience lower productivity and high absenteeism or turn-over. The combined symptoms of stress are costing U.S. businesses an average of $200 billion a year in reduced productivity and increased health and medical expenses. Tight muscles caused by stress and sitting behind a desk all day, especially at a workstation that is not ergonomically designed, can impede blood and lymph flow through the body. The result is decreased energy and susceptibility to repetitive stress injuries, like carpal tunnel syndrome. Chair massage counters the circulatory problems inherent with office work and offers an appreciated break for employees.

Even 15 minutes of massage to the neck, back, arms and hands can improve circulation, restoring energy levels and helping keep the body injury free.

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  • Increased productivity. Just fifteen minutes of chair massage a week have been scientifically proven to lower stress, reduce muscle tension and rejuvenate the mind and the body.
  • Reduced absenteeism. Over 50% of lost work days are stress related, reducing work stress using seated massage has shown a reduction in absenteeism.
  • Improved morale. Workers consistently report improved mood and a greater sense of well-being after a session of chair massage.
  • Lowered health-care costs. Regular workplace massage can reduce the need for doctor’s visits for many physical complaints and stress-related issues.
  • Staff Goodwill! Because of the convenience, employees perceive onsite massage as a benefit, even when they pay for the service themselves!

And your staff will enjoy…

  • Reduced stress and anxiety
  • Relief of muscle soreness
  • Increased flexibility and range of motion
  • A boost to the Immune System
  • Treatment of repetitive stress symptoms

Visit our ONSITE MASSAGE INFORMATION and ask questions, or request a  quote today!

 

 

General and Local Contraindications in Massage

no massageDid you know there are times when you should NOT have a massage? Trained and certified massage therapists know a lot about pathologies (diseases) and other conditions where massage isn’t recommended. They also know the difference between two very important types of contraindications. Do you?

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Carpal Tunnel Syndrome 3x More Common in Women

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (CTS) is a “common peripheral entrapment that causes neuralgia in the median nerve distribution of the hand.” Wait, what?

Translated from “medi-speak”.  The carpal tunnel is an archway of bones in your wrists. When your palm is face-up, the bony arch is upside down. Across the open end of the arch, a thick band of connective tissue (flexor retinaculum) crosses to close off the arch and forms a “tunnel”. This tunnel is the way for tendons in your forearm to control muscles in your hand.  There’s also a median nerve that supplies nerve function to some of the muscles at the base of your thumb and first two fingers. Continue reading “Carpal Tunnel Syndrome 3x More Common in Women”

Best Sleep Positions

The average human spends around 1/3 of his or her life sleeping. Sleep is the time when our body regenerates, and in the case of your muscles and bones, realign and rest in preparation for the new day.

That’s where things go wrong. Because of habit, environment, or other physical factors, many of us choose sleeping positions that actually contribute to stress and strain on our muscles, particularly in the upper body.

“Eighty percent of the population will have back problems at some point in [their] lives oftentimes caused or aggravated by the way they sleep,” Dr. Hooman Melamed, an orthopedic spine surgeon at the DISC Sports & Spine Center in Los Angeles, Calif.,

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Massage for High Tech Workers

Most of us proud tech workers in Silicon Valley don’t let a day pass without using some gadget to keep up with a fast-paced world. While our hyper-connectedness can be exciting, it also challenges our body and mind to continue operating at a dizzying pace.

Just like most of our technology, our uber-connected body technology runs 24/7 and occassionally needs a reboot.

Like any computer hardware, occasionally our brain, and our muscles, need to be powered down so that they can reset and function optimally.

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Is Your Massage Therapist Really Qualified?

mblexblogLicensing and certification are important for any profession. They indicate levels of education, knowledge, and experience that the public can trust. We license drivers for safety. Your architect is licensed. So is your doctor. Your contractor is too. These licenses give us a little peace of mind that the practitioner actually knows what they are doing and, at minimum, has demonstrated that knowledge. Many times, that demonstration of knowledge comes in the form of an exam. It’s the same for massage therapy.

In massage therapy, a professional exam is now required in many states (but not all) in order to become a “Certified Massage Therapist” (CMT) and to get a license to work or do business. The nationwide professional exam is called the MBLEx, an acronym for Massage and Body Licensing Examination. It’s a challenging, well constructed evaluation tool created with input from many medical and wellness professionals (including experienced massage therapists) and governed by the Federation of State Massage Therapy Boards (FSMTB).

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Massage and Diabetes

Massage continues to grow as a complementary therapy for everything from simple aches and pains to more serious illnesses. Despite stereotypical images of people experiencing a relaxing/spa type massage, nearly 75% of those who seek massage do so for a specific health complaint for which they have already consulted a physician. Diabetes is no exception.

Researchers at the CDC estimate that more than 29.1 million Americans (almost 10% of the population) have diabetes. About 27% of these are undiagnosed. While diabetes is more common in seniors (about 1 in 4 seniors are diagnosed with diabetes), the prevalence in youth is growing as well.

The good news is that diagnosis is getting more accurate and prevention and treatment options growing. So what role does massage play in those with diabetes? Turns out, there are several major benefits.

What massage can do for diabetes

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Massage As Substance Abuse Rehab Helper

While massage has been practiced for thousands of years, medical science and research really woke up to the benefits beginning in the 1990s. As more studies about substance abuse have emerged, it is clear from the findings that massage can have significant and lasting benefits for the body. Those benefits extended well beyond simple relief from aches and pains to dramatic positive effects on mental state and positive attitude. It was only a matter of time before massage became a tool for helping alleviate symptoms arising from depression. Recently, massage has begun to appear as a regular beneficial treatment for those who suffer from addictions.

How addiction works

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What Should You Choose From a Massage Menu?

Screen Shot 2016-01-25 at 7.48.30 AMMassage is gaining popularity fast. More people than ever are making appointments and more are talking about the positive benefits. It is no longer a surprise to see a massage station at an airport or gym or to talk to people who incorporate massage into their monthly wellness routine. With the increase in access to massage, however, many business owners see a need to differentiate the customer experience by offering “unique massage experiences” to grab customer eyeballs and increase sales.

Enter the massage menu

Just about any massage establishment features a menu of services featuring your choice of Swedish, deep tissue, hot/warm stone, Shiatsu or other modalities. The challenge is that the average consumer a) is unfamiliar with the differences, and/or b) is unfamiliar with which service to choose for the particular massage goal they are seeking.  That means people are choosing right sometimes, and wrong sometimes.  The result could be an ineffective, unfulfilling massage session. Luckily, the fix has an easy two-part answer: better client education and trained reception staff.

What to do to get the right kind of massage for you?

Our massage clinic has seen thousands of clients in our nearly five years in business. While we have a menu of services, about 60% of our clients came to us with a specific goal such as relaxation, pain relief, increased flexibility and mobility, or pre- or post-event sports massage. Our guest services team adeptly steers clients toward the therapist that can best meet their needs and we charge the service accordingly.

The remaining 40% came in with a less clear idea of what they want. They got the massage as a gift, or they wanted to treat themselves to some “me time” but don’t know exactly what that looks like, or perhaps they are getting their first massage. With each of these scenarios, the pre-massage conversation skills of the reception desk and therapist really come into play. For most who aren’t used to identifying a goal, the answer is a personalized, multi-modality service performed by a qualified massage therapist who has created a plan for the service based on discussion with the client and information on the client intake form.

To help make our clients more comfortable about the process of selecting a massage, we we introduced the “Signature” massage. This therapeutic massage is essentially a “massage therapists’s choice”. That means the therapist uses their knowledge and experience to custom design a session using whatever massage techniques they believe will most help the client achieve their goals. Our expert therapists are completely free to use any tool or technique at their disposal. They educate the client as they work and identify massage modalities and techniques most effective for the session. And the clients are completely pleased with the results. Our rebooking rates for these “signature” massages are sky high.

 

Balance and Empathy: A Conversation with Jules

It takes a special person to work with mothers-to-be. It’s about balance and empathy and an informed touch. Expectant mothers are under tremendous stress and their hormones are almost as unbalanced as their changing bodies. For a massage therapist who works with prenatal clients, it’s about listening. It’s about knowing what’s going on anatomically, energetically, and emotionally. It’s about having special knowledge and skills to give some of those who most need it a time where they can completely relax and know that they are in competent hands. Say hello to a wonderfully caring massage therapist – Jules.

Jules does all kinds of bodywork, not just pre-natal. She’s also a doula (birth companion and post-birth supporter). She is very well trained in many types of massage including sports massage, chair massage, Swedish, deep tissue and more. A graduate of National Holistic Institute, Jules continues to attend professional development classes to keep her knowledge up to date.

What do you like most about being a massage therapist?

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Achieving Homeostasis

homeostasisHuman homeostasis is the process that maintains the stability of the human body’s internal environment in response to changes in external conditions. Your body has built-in sensors that constantly monitor body activities and attempt to correct imbalances when they occur. Getting out of balance can lead to serious consequences, including disease and a shorter lifespan. Your lifestyle and attitude has a great deal to do with maintaining balance in your body.

Here’s a short list of some of the main homeostatic processes in humans:

Calm Confidence: A Conversation with Alex

image1When you first meet Alex, you are struck by his calm confidence. He smiles easily and radiates with positive energy. As you get to know him more, you find a bright, thoughtful man who takes his role as massage therapist very seriously.

Alex works hard to understand the “whole client” – their complaints, their daily activity, their environment, and elements in their life that can manifest in aches and pains. He uses his knowledge and skills to design a massage session to maximize relief from pain and spends time educating clients about the interconnected body, mind and spirit. He’s an intuitive teacher.

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Nurturing Touch: A Conversation with Tiffani

As a certified massage therapist and owner of a thriving therapeutic massage practice, I’m always on the lookout for talented practitioners. Our business chooses to set the bar very high, tapping only the top talent and bringing in new team members who are genuine, highly skilled, caring individuals who share our mission to create positive change in the body, mind and spirit of each client.

 

After more than four years of hiring talented professionals, I usually know right away when a therapist is a good fit. They present themselves professionally, are good communicators, and smile – a lot. Every once in a while, though, I stumble on someone who is truly extraordinary. All the professionalism, great communication skills, lots of smiles, but also someone who right away projects  a positive energy and sense of calm. Someone whose very nature, from the first contact, represents a calm and nurturing presence. I’m talking about Tiffani.

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Ten Resolutions You Can Actually Keep

About one in three Americans make a New Year’s resolution. Resolutions are a great tradition, offering us an opportunity to kick bad habits, create new opportunities, soften the rough edges of our behavior, and polish up relationships. The trick, of course, is sticking with it.

Just in case you were sitting around wondering which one of the zillions of promises you’d like to make to yourself, we’ve collected 10 resolutions that are relatively easy to keep and will certainly go a long way toward a healthier and happier 2016.

1. More FTF and less TXT. It’s easy to think that a random text now and then can substitute for a real conversation if you’re working on keeping relationships with friends and relatives strong. It doesn’t. Try talking to your friends and relatives more IN PERSON, or at least hear their voices. Use tech like FaceTime and Skype more. Put DOWN the phone while you eat or talk with others. You will find the quality of your relationships improve, your fingers aren’t as sore from texting, and you’ll avoid that $300 texting-while-driving traffic ticket, too.

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Fight Holiday Depression

Believe it or not, sometimes the “holiday season of joy” brings on a surprising sidekick. Stress and depression. It kind of makes sense… there are things to prepare for, shopping (and worries about money), entertaining, travel and many more behaviors that are confined to a very short time period once a year. Holiday depression is more common than you might think. It’s also something that, with a little forethought, you can eliminate or at least control holiday depression.

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