The holiday rush season is a great time to get a relaxing, therapeutic and best massage in Holladay, Utah. Massage has been practiced for thousands of years, and you can choose from many massage therapy styles to relax and re-energize your body. All massages involve pressing, rubbing and manipulating muscles and other soft tissues with hands and fingers or even forearms, elbows or feet.
The American Massage Therapy Association reports that almost 25% of American adults have experienced a massage at least once last year and more people are recognizing the health benefits of massage. The style you choose depends on what injuries you want to heal, health conditions you want to relieve, or maybe you just want to promote overall wellness.
Before deciding on what massage style is best for your condition, ask yourself, do you want a massage for relaxation and stress relief or help with specific health issues? When booking a massage, let the therapist know what you need. Our therapists at the best massage spa in Salt Lake City will be able to customize a massage depending on your age, condition, or special needs.
Swedish Massage
The most popular and common type of massage is Swedish massage therapy. Swedish massage uses long, soft and kneading strokes as well as rhythmic, light and tapping strokes on the topmost layers of your muscles. Swedish massage also combines movement of the joints. Swedish massage therapy is both relaxing and energizing.
Massage therapists who are expert in Swedish massage use strokes that include:
- Effleurage or a smooth, gliding strokes that relaxes soft tissues.
- Petrissage is the squeezing, kneading and rolling that follows effleurage.
- Friction brings on circular and deep movements that cause tissues to rub against each other. This movement breaks down scar tissue and increases blood flow.
- Tapotement employs short, alternating taps using cupped hands, the edge of your hand or even your fingers.
Deep Tissue Massage
The best massage therapists in Utah use deep tissue massage to give particular attention to painful, stiff and troubled spots around your body. Massage therapists use slow and unhurried strokes that focus pressure on your tissues, muscles, or tendons or deep under your skin. Deep tissue massage is not as rhythmic as some types of massage, but it is therapeutic and releases continuing patterns of tension and injuries.
Sports Massage
Sports massage was developed to ease tension within muscle systems in a particular sport. Sports massages use many different approaches to help athletes in training or those weekend “sporties” who need extra flexibility and help to prevent injuries. Sports massage is great to help relieve muscle strains and aid in healing after a sports injury.
Shiatsu Massage
Shiatsu means finger pressure. In shiatsu massage, the therapist uses rhythmic and varied pressures on precise points of the body. These are acupressure points and are believed to be essential to help chi or the flow of the body’s vital energy.
Thai Massage
If you choose a Thai massage, the therapist will use his or her body to move you into a variety of different positions. Thai massage includes compression of muscles, acupressure, and mobilization of joints. If you are not used to Thai massage, it can be a little different, but it is also very relaxing.
Hot Stone Massage
Ask your therapist to use hot stones placed on specific areas of your body. Stones are massage tools or can be left in place on different spots on your body. Hot stone massage can be very soothing and relaxing as it transmits deep heat into your body. Often used with other types of massage, hot stone massage from the best massage spa in Salt Lake City is positively wonderful.