Can Massage help you get in Shape

Memorial Day, the unofficial start of summer, is just around the corner and many of our clients have been asking if massage can help them get back into bathing suit-ready shape.

Yes, it can! When combined with healthy, low-calorie eating and a comprehensive fitness program, massage can definitely add both direct and indirect benefits to your shape-up goals.

Here’s how:

• Massage improves circulation

  That means it maximizes the supply of nutrients and oxygen though increased blood flow, which helps the muscles grow and burn more calories as a result. Improved circulation also helps your body expel pollutants and toxins, which aid weight loss.

• Massage improves your muscles’ range of motion and their flexibility
  
  This allows them to maintain maximum power and performance while active and burn the maximum number of calories in the process. It also reduces the danger of injuring yourself during exercise which can severely limit activity, exercise and weight loss progress.
• Massage improves sleep

  It promotes relaxation and de-stressing. This, in turn, helps us sleep better—and sleep helps us lose weight, because:

1. When we don’t get enough sleep, we often, naturally, turn to comfort foods that often have high fat, high sugar and high sodium. These are energy zappers in themselves, not to mention the havoc they wreak on your diet.
2. Sleep has a direct effect on three hormones that regulate stress, energy balance and appetite, cortisol, ghrelin and leptin. When you don’t get enough sleep, cortisol, the stress hormone, elevates glucose and appetite. By the way, cortisol is frequently blamed for thickening mid-sections. Ghrelin, which increases appetite, becomes elevated; Leptin, which suppresses appetite and moderates energy balance, is decreased.
3. Lack of sleep contributes to more neck and back problems, slouching and other poor postural habits. Consequently, these people tend to miss more days at the gym.
4. Tight Muscles: Not all of us work in perfect ergonomic conditions and our back often pays the price. Remember, the spine is like a stack of boxes; if one thing is out (our back) it will travel up and down, affecting our knees and hamstrings and creating knots in the upper back and shoulders. Being in the same position for hours on end decreases circulation and causes difficulty in maintaining proper posture 100% of the time. If you work in a seated position in front of a computer for the majority of each day, you probably slouch, your shoulders become tight and even the lower legs and ankles may become swollen. A full body massage can increase circulation and relieve musculoskeletal tension.
5. Massage Lessens Anxiety and Depression: Let’s face it: None of us makes the best food choices when we’re anxious, tired, depressed or irritable—so a massage could indirectly affect your eating and cravings.

Finally, never underestimate the importance of self-care! Massage will leave you feeling rejuvenated, beautified, energized and relaxed all at the same time. Aches and pains can cause us to be in a bad mood, but after the massage you just feel on top of the world and ready for your next workout! As a motivation boost, nothing beats a massage.