Anatomy of a Session

I have a table, a bag full of massage tools, and a little bench. I only need about 8x10ft space to get in a full session. Most of my clients set me up in a living room or kitchen, but I can set up absolutely anywhere, provided it meets the size requirement.

Before we start stretching, I assess what your needs are. Some people come in with specific aches and pains, and some have more generalized needs based on their profession or hobbies. There’s so much research on proper ways to handle different circumstances, but if you want a detailed rundown over how I’ll tackle different things, here’s a giant database I helped create while I was a student at Illinois State University.

Once we’re ready to start, I’ll have you lay on the table and warm up your legs and core. My degree was focused on ground-force mechanics, so I tend to place extra emphasis on hips and hamstring chains. Then I move on to the plan for the day.

In a perfect world, the stretching works right away. But sometimes there are impingements and hot spots in a stretch, and that’s where expertise comes into play to keep you safe. We won’t move forward until we get some sort of relief, so we’ll modify movements throughout the body to remain pain-free.

After we’re done, I like to have my clients stand up and move around a bit to see how things feel. Sometimes there can be a bit of a recovery period needed after a session, so I’ll let you know what to expect and how to stretch things out throughout the week to maintain the good feels.