A Quick Guide To Self-Massage

Self-Love

May 9

Written By Caitlin

While getting a professional treatment is preferred when it comes to massage, it’s not always practical and sometimes you need quick relief. That’s why we’ve highlighted four common pain points and matched them to simple massage routines that you can do yourself to get some relief.

Hip pain relief

This technique uses a foam roller, a great tool which can be used to self-massage for many areas of your body. If your hips are giving you trouble, start on all-fours over the roller, lengthen one leg out behind you to rest the hip on the roller, allowing the other knee to bend out to the side. Use your arms and bent leg to move your hip over the roller, breathing deeply in order to relax your muscles. This will stretch out your hips and loosen any tightness you might be feeling.

Soothe sore calves

Gently at first, stroke upwards along the entire leg in the direction of the heart. Begin to apply slightly more pressure with every up-stroke. and as the muscles loosen, introduce some kneading using your thumbs, fingers, knuckles, along with more pressure. Take the time to locate any knots that might require more attention and when you’ve found them apply deeper, prolonged pressure with your thumbs to release them. Ensure you don’t overdo it, but apply pressure until you feel the muscles start to release.

Relief for tired feet

Hold the top of your foot with both hands and using small circular motions with your thumbs on each toe, work down to the base of your foot and up to the ankle. Then work from the top of the toes, moving down towards the heel. You may also wish to loosen the joints by twisting and rotating the feet and toes. Remember to repeat everything on the other foot.

Reducing swelling in hands

Relax your hand by rubbing your thumb in wide movements over your palm, working out from the center to the edges. Then, gently rub down in long, straight motions from the knuckles to the wrist. Be careful not to press too hard! Wrap your hand round each finger one by one and gently rotate at the joint, as if using a joystick on an arcade machine. Then starting at the base of each finger, rub in small counter-clockwise circles until you reach the tip. Apply gentle pressure in small circles all over the palms, pads, and backs of the hand, working down to the wrist.

Getting rid of headaches

Place your thumbs or fingers firmly behind your head, at the base of the skull and on either side of the spine. Pressing down slightly, slowly move your head, neck, and hands around until you find the point of tension. Be sure to avoid the spine completely as expert knowledge is needed for proper technique to avoid injury. You can also target pressure points on your face to help with various types of headaches. You can try placing pressure with your pointer finger on the third eye, the sinus (on either side of nose), and right below your eyes on your temporomandibular joint (where the jaw connects to the skull). You can also rub your temples in gentle circles. A final pressure point technique is to use a fingertip to apply gentle pressure at the base of the skull on either side of the spine, making sure pressure is applied at the very base of your skull and not on your spinal processes.