When you think of getting a massage, you probably imagine a quiet, spa-like environment and a pampering treatment that will soothe your tension and make your worries float away.
While this idea of massage as a way of relaxing is true, many people are now understanding the physical benefits of massage. 43% of Americans who receive a massage do so to help manage painful symptoms of their various health conditions. Today, massage is a viable way to ease your mind while also easing your body aches.
If you are considering getting a massage and are wondering about the many benefits, this guide is for you.
Encourages Relaxation
Perhaps the most common benefit of massage is that it encourages and promotes relaxation. Your massage therapist can help loosen tight muscles, stimulate blood flow, and warm body tissue. All of this results in a strong feeling of relaxation, both mentally and physically.
Reduces Tension Headaches
If you suffer from tension headaches, getting a massage can help ease your pain. Tension headaches come from stress-related symptoms, such as grinding your teeth or clenching your jaw.
While seeing your chiropractor is a great way to find relief, a massage is also effective. Your massage therapist will help you release the build-up of pressure in your head, neck, and shoulders. Releasing the tension will relieve the pain from a tension headache.
Promotes Better Sleep
A massage can help you sleep better and for a longer period. This is a huge benefit for those dealing with the health issues that come with not getting enough sleep. Massage therapy helps by reducing pain, reducing anxiety, and promoting a deep sense of relaxation.
Improves Cardiovascular Health
One of the scientific benefits of massage is that it can help improve your cardiovascular health. A massage helps dilate your blood vessels, which results in improved circulation. Overall, getting a massage can help reduce your risk of a heart attack or stroke.
Increases Overall Happiness
With all the benefits of massage therapy, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that massage can increase your happiness. When your stress and anxiety is reduced, you are feeling less pain, and you are feeling well physically, you will generally feel happier overall. If you need an immediate mood boost, consider getting a massage.
Improves Balance in Seniors
One of the little-known benefits of massage is that it can improve balance in seniors. Just 60 minutes of massage can help seniors with their dynamic and static balance. This is an important benefit because seniors are more susceptible to falling, which can eventually lead to their death.
Reduces Stress
If you are feeling overwhelmed, you can ease your stress with a stress relief massage. Getting a massage helps release serotonin and dopamine, your body’s feel-good hormones. While these hormones have many functions, they also make you feel positive and happy, which results in reduced stress.
Increases Flexibility
If your body is not flexible, your muscles will fatigue faster, which makes the opposing muscles have to work harder. This fatigue and overuse of the muscles causes injuries and prevents your muscles from protecting your joints. Eventually, you will experience body aches, joint problems, and torn and pulled muscles from inflexibility.
Getting a massage is a great way to counteract your inflexibility and increase your range of motion. A massage targets your muscles, tendons, ligaments, and connective tissue to loosen your muscles and encourage joint fluidity.
Encourages Deeper Breathing
Many people are breathing wrong, that is, they are breathing from their chest instead of from their belly. Shallow breathing causes poor sleep, high blood pressure, and impaired thinking.
Massaging the muscles that help you breathe reduces built-up tension so you can breathe deeply. Your massage therapist may also teach you breathing techniques that will deepen your breathing.
Promotes Energy
If you are feeling tired and lethargic, consider a massage to help you feel alert and energized. Massage helps to remove toxins, bacteria, and waste through your lymphatic system, resulting in increased energy. You’ll also get an energy boost from the oxygen that is delivered to your cells due to the increased circulation.
Massage is so powerful, it has even been used to treat Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and all the symptoms that go along with the condition.
Reduces Hypertension
Hypertension, or high blood pressure, is a dangerous condition that increases your risks of stroke and heart disease. While there are a variety of ways to reduce your blood pressure, massage is a gentle, natural way to safely lower your blood pressure.
Regular massage can decrease both your systolic and diastolic blood pressure. It also reduces headaches, irregular heartbeat, difficulty breathing, and fatigue. Overall, a massage can lower your blood pressure and reduce the symptoms of hypertension.
Reduces Depression
Massage therapy can help reduce the symptoms of depression. This includes physical symptoms, such as sleeping problems, fatigue, muscle aches, and joint paint. As for the emotional symptoms of depression, massage can help you feel relaxed and calm.
While massage cannot replace your prescribed treatment for depression, it can be a helpful addition to your treatment plan.
Eases Chronic Constipation
A little-known benefit of massage therapy is easing the symptoms of chronic constipation. An abdominal massage can help you release waste and gas and even increase your bowel movements. Massage also provides relief from the pain of constipation by causing muscle contractions that make it easier to pass waste.
Surprisingly, you can also ease your constipation by getting a foot or back massage. In foot reflexology, you can relieve constipation by stimulating the areas that connect to the stomach and intestine. Back massages ease muscle tension and help with digestion, which treats constipation.
Promotes Faster Post-Workout Recovery
If you are athletic or just love hitting the gym, you probably know that getting a massage can ease your pain after a workout. Massage therapy is essential for post-workout recovery for several reasons. It flushes toxins from your muscles, releases stress from your muscles, and increases your range of motion.
All of these benefits help you recover better and easier so you can get stronger and reach your fitness goals faster.
Strengthens the Mind-Body Connection
Your thoughts, feelings, attitudes, and beliefs can directly affect your physical health. If you are feeling stressed, you will experience the physical symptoms of stress. This is your mind-body connection and it is important to maintain a mindset that does not result in health problems in your body.
Massage therapy can help strengthen your mind-body connection by promoting mental alertness and calm thinking.
Enhances Athletic Performance
One of the physical benefits of massage is enhanced athletic performance. Amature to elite athletes have been using massage for decades to perform more efficiently and at a higher level. Massage is beneficial for preventing and treating injuries, reducing inflammation, and reducing delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS).
Massage for athletes also relaxes nerves, decreases muscle spasms, and promotes a better range of motion.
Reduces Anxiety
A great benefit of getting a massage is reduced anxiety. While a massage increases your feel-good hormones, it also decreases cortisol, which is your body’s stress hormone, after just one session. Regular massages will significantly decrease your cortisol, an effect that can last for up to a week after your massage.
The stress-relieving and relaxation benefits of a massage are also ideal for reducing your anxiety.
Promotes a Feeling of Well-Being
Overall, massage therapy promotes a strong sense of well-being. When your body is functioning properly, you are breathing easier, and experiencing more feel-good hormones, you will have a stronger sense of well-being. Getting a massage is a great way to manage your mental health and make it easier to deal with life’s many challenges.
Promotes Relaxation in Babies
Did you know massage has many benefits for babies as well as adults? Infant massage reduces crying and controls stress. Your baby will relax, sleep, and have a stronger bond with you.
Massage also helps with teething problems, stomach issues, and to encourage muscle development.
Massage Can Ease Your Body and Ease Your Mind
It’s true, massage can ease your body as well as ease your mind.
Massage promotes relaxation by reducing stress, depression, and anxiety. You can treat your pain with massage therapy. You can even manage hypertension, cardiovascular problems, and tension headaches with massage therapy.
Or, you can use massage to speed up your recovery and enhance your athletic performance. Overall, getting a massage will make you feel a strong sense of well-being, more connected to your body, and happier.
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