The thought of getting a massage already sounds soothing and relaxing. However, the cost, especially if you need to have it done often can be costly. Don’t give up on massage just yet because you can relieve your bodily aches through self-massage. There are even inexpensive and easy-to-use tools out there that will allow you to massage hard-to-reach areas. You can also opt to invest in one of those plush massage chairs such as Inada Dreamwave, for instance, instead of paying exorbitant amounts of money for a couple of professional massages when you just don’t have the energy to give your entire body a self-massage. That being said, when doing self-massage at home, consider the following massage devices to get some much-needed pain relief:
- Foam Rollers – You simply place the foam roller on the ground and roll your achy muscles over it so that you can give those hard-to-reach muscles a deep massage. Foam rolling helps stretch out tight muscles, ligaments, and tendons to help improve your posture and balance.
- Massage Balls – Massage balls these days usually come with bumpy or dimpled surfaces that you simply roll over your muscles. You simply press and roll the ball against your sore muscles to alleviate any pain, tension, or tightness. They’re great for hard-to-reach areas as well. You just place the ball between a hard surface like a wall, floor, or chair and the area you want to massage. If you need more pressure in some areas, you can opt for a tennis ball or a golf ball.
- Massage Sticks – These are perfect for massaging larger areas, especially for taller people and those that are bigger. When using a massage stick for self-massage, you simply roll it across the target area for 10 up to 20 times, gradually increasing the pressure with each pass to help soothe, stretch, and lengthen sore muscles. The best thing about sticks is that they can be used for all muscle groups such your shoulders, arms, neck, lower and upper back, glutes, hamstrings, quads, feet, and calves.
- Massage Knobs – These knobs are usually made of wood or plastic and have knobby or raised sections that enable you to put pressure on your trigger points or over knotted muscles to release them.
Now that you’re aware of the various devices that you can use for your self-massage, it’s extremely vital to practice some caution. While self-massage is perfectly safe, there might be instances where it may do more harm than good. For instance, it’s not a good idea to do self-massage if you have a bleeding disorder, vein infection of phlebitis, soft tissue infection or cellulitis, osteoporosis, contagious skin disease, or rheumatoid arthritis flare. With this in mind, if you are uncertain about any chronic pain or injuries that a massage could worsen, discuss your plans with your doctor first just to be on the safe side. Once your doctor has cleared you for self-massage, you need to do it on a regular basis to prevent sore and tight muscles from coming back.
