About Me

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Lara Rininger, owner of Aspire Holistic Healing Arts, is an Ohio certified and licensed Massage Therapist and also a member of Associated Bodywork & Massage Professionals (ABMP). She is a graduate of Stark State College of Technology’s Massage Therapy Program where she completed 751 hours of massage education. She was on the Dean’s List and is a member of Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society. Lara received additional training in 2009 to practice the Usui System of Reiki in its traditional form. There is no state license for Reiki. A native Californian, she now lives in beautiful north east Ohio where she is still new enough to love the snow and enjoy the changing seasons with her husband, five children and three cats.

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

If Massage Is So Good For Me, Why Do I Feel So Sore Afterwards?

Massage is good for you. We all know this to be true. Yet sometimes clients will experience soreness and achiness immediately after the massage or for a couple of days after the treatment. Keep in mind that massage is passive exercise and it moves lymph, blood, toxins, waste products, etc through your body. This is why your therapist tells you to drink plenty of water after your massage. It is also normal to have increased urine output because your body wants to get all the yucky stuff out. Now sometimes the soreness lasts longer than three days. If this happens your therapist was working too deep on your body and they will need to use lighter pressure next time. It is possible to work deep using lighter pressure. “No pain, no gain” does not need to apply to massage! How can your body relax enough to heal if you are tensed up in pain? Therapeutic massage can be uncomfortable and at times you may feel discomfort but you should not be in so much pain that you jump off the massage table.
Here are my aftercare tips to follow after your massage session:
  •  Drink an extra quart of water within 24 hours of your massage to help your body detoxify.
  •  Take a nice warm Epsom salt bath.* I like to add lavender essential oil to mine. This will help alleviate joint pain.
  •  Rest. Go to bed early if you can to enjoy a sound peaceful night’s sleep. You will wake up so refreshed in the morning.
*If you are diabetic, pregnant, or have high blood pressure please check with your doctor before using this detox bath combination.
Remember, experiencing a little soreness a couple days after you’ve had a massage especially if it was a deep tissue treatment is normal. If the discomfort lasts past three days contact your therapist so they can give you tips to help you feel better and you can alert them to the fact that they may have worked too deeply and need to be gentler next time.

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