Massage Modalities

What to Expect at Massage Therapy of Boston
Massage Therapy of Boston focuses on working with people who are experiencing pain or discomfort or who are rehabilitating from an injury. The therapists of Massage Therapy of Boston enjoy listening to their clients in order to get the full picture of their physical health and to understand the nature of the pain or tension they are experiencing.  They use the knowledge gained during the initial intake as well as at the beginning of each subsequent session to craft a massage that is tailored to meet the needs of each individual client.

Your therapist rarely does a full body session in an hour.  Rather, the sessions take a more focused approach, working on the areas experiencing pain or tension as well as on other areas that are most likely contributing to those symptoms. Your therapist understands that you want relief when you get off the table and every massage session is devoted to doing just that.

The therapists of Massage Therapy of Boston are proficient in a variety of massage modalities spanning both Eastern and Western approaches. They choose, however, to specialize in Deep Tissue, Sports Massage, Myofascial Release, Trigger Point Therapy, and Swedish. Generally the sessions at Massage Therapy of Boston incorporate a variety of these modalities in order to best meet the needs of each client.

To learn more about the modalities at Massage Therapy of Boston, please click on the links below.

Deep Tissue
Sports Massage
Myofascial Release
Trigger Point Therapy
Swedish

Deep Tissue Massage
Deep Tissue is an extremely effective means of releasing chronic pain or tension in the body.  The connective tissue of the body whether through direct injury or chronic holding patterns can become damaged.  With that damage, the tissue becomes shortened and thickened, causing pain in all directions and pulling underlying structures out of alignment thereby laying the foundation for chronic pain and tension and for feelings of pain in an area that is distant from the original site of tension.

A Deep Tissue Massage uses slow, firm pressure directed at the deep layers of the muscle where tissue has been damaged.  Deep Tissue massage helps to lengthen shortened muscle fibers, breaking up thickened areas and helping the tissue regain proper elasticity.  Deep Tissue is also effective for breaking down scar tissue and muscle adhesions even on injuries that have occurred many years ago.  Proper blood and oxygen flow is brought back to the tight muscles.  The toxins that have been stored in those muscles are helped release.

It is normal for some soreness to occur after a Deep Tissue massage. Your therapist will show you stretching techniques that will aid in your healing process and you will also be reminded to drink plenty of water. When done properly, soreness from a Deep Tissue session should not last longer than 2 days. Back to Top

Sports Massage
Sports Massage is an important part of training for any athlete, whether the most competitive athlete training for a triathlon or the more casual athlete who exercises more sporadically or even just on the weekend.  Sports Massage helps prevent injury by keeping muscles mobile and elastic.  Your recovery time will be shortened since massage helps oxygen and nutrients flow, flushing out toxins in muscles that have been pushed hard. If you are working through an injury, Sports Massage helps speed up recovery time.  When left untreated, an injury can cause a build up of scar tissue, affecting injured tissue as well as spreading to healthy tissue.  Sports Massage uses techniques to break down that scar tissue to prevent further pain and additional injury.

At Massage Therapy of Boston, your therapist will focus on the muscle groups that are particular to your sport, giving you a session tailored to fit your needs as the athlete.  If you are training for an upcoming event, we will work with you to create a "treatment plan" to make sure you are in optimal state come race day. 

Clients can expect a typical Sports Massage session to consist of deep tissue strokes as well as an incorporation of stretching, active or passive movement of the joints, heat, or ice when needed.  For clients with scar tissue, massage strokes will be applied deeply against the grain of the muscle in order to break up the scarring and flush it back into the lymphatic system. Back to Top

Myofascial Release
Myofascial Release focuses on the fascia, or connective tissue of the muscle.  When connective tissue is tight, underlying structures of the body are pulled, thereby adversely affecting posture and causing pain and tension.  Myofascial Release uses techniques that work with the grain of the fiber to lengthen the connective tissue and help release superficial fascia from the underlying tissue.  Techniques are also applied against the grain of the muscle fibers so that scar tissue and adhesions are broken and fibers are realigned.

Myofascial Release focuses on the muscle belly as well as working specifically on the musculotendinous junction.  Myofascial Release is extremely effective for helping with postural issues, speeding healing, increasing blood circulation, restoring elasticity to muscles, and decreasing pain and tension.  Myofascial Release can also be effective for those clients who might experience great relief after their massage sessions, but find that their tension returns a few days later.  Oftentimes the return of tension indicates a fascial restriction in the outer layers of the muscle that needs to be released through a technique that is more subtle than deep tissue strokes. Back to Top

Trigger Point Therapy
Trigger Points are hyperirritable spots located in skeletal muscle that manifest as nodules or "knots" in the taut muscle fibers.  These small contraction knots form when muscles are chronically tight, due to stress, injury, postural misalignment, holding patterns, or trauma.  When active, trigger points can be extremely painful and can refer pain to other areas of the body outside of where the trigger point is located.

Trigger Point Therapy is an effective means of helping the taut muscle band let go and release the contraction knot it is holding.  When compressed, trigger points can elicit pain and/or spasming in the area being compressed as well as in other seemingly non-related parts of the body.  Direct pressure to the trigger point allows the nodule to release and the muscle fibers to lengthen and realign properly, restoring elasticity and mobility to the muscle fibers and drastically decreasing feelings of pain and tension. Back to Top

Swedish
Swedish Massage is applied to the more superficial layers of the muscle.  Swedish strokes knead and use friction as well as firmly or lightly glide over muscle tissue.  Your therapist may also incorporate the use of active or passive joint movement.  Swedish Massage stimulates both the circulatory system by returning blood flow to the heart as well as the lymphatic system by flushing out wastes and toxic debris.  At Massage Therapy of Boston, Swedish Massage strokes may be incorporated into sessions in order to help flush out tight muscles after deep strokes have been applied. Back to Top