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Bodywork, Essential Oils, Sun Care

Tom Saulnier — Mon, 25 Jun 2018 22:40:10 +0000

Bodywork Sampler

Ten Types of Somatic Methods, All Awaiting You

Nora Brunner

A rich garden of bodywork exists, to benefit you at the different ages and stages of your life. Getting the advice of your massage therapist, doing some research on www.massagetherapy.com, and seeking methods to which you are intuitively drawn are your best guides to finding what works for your body and spirit. No need to wait for a medical problem or a new high on the stress-o-meter to get on the table and into the hands of your massage and bodywork therapist.

1. Swedish Massage

This technique is typically the starting point for most massage training and client receiving. It involves five kinds of touching and is delivered to soft tissues by the therapist’s hands, which are moisturized with massage oil or lotion. The kneading, rolling, vibrational, tapping, and percussive movements all work inward toward your heart and will stimulate your circulation. Among many benefits, Swedish massage will hasten healing of injuries, reduce swelling, and help dissolve scar tissue adhesions.

2. Deep Tissue

Often integrated with other massage methods, deep-tissue work is exactly what it sounds like. Once the outer muscles have been relaxed, the work goes deeper into the fascia, the deep, dense, connective tissue that helps join your body parts together. Deep-tissue work is an excellent remedy for chronic muscular pain, injury rehabilitation, and reduction of inflammation-related pain caused by arthritis and tendinitis.

3. Sports Massage

Whether for professional athletes, active kids, or weekend warriors, sports massage has benefits for participants in the active life. For most people, sports massage is handy after muscle exertion…(want to read more?…please click here Summer 2018

Winter, Skin Protection, Say "No" to Hybernation

Tom Saulnier — Fri, 01 Jan 2016 20:33:11 +0000

The Face of Winter
How to Protect Your Skin in the Dry, Cold Months
Barbara Hey
Winter can be tough on skin, but there’s much you can do to defend against the assaults of the season. The skin’s primary role — to protect the body — is ever more important in extreme weather, and in most locations, that means extreme cold outside and dry, over-heated air inside during the winter. Your epidermis must “weather” these drastic fluctuations in temperature, and often the result is chapped, scaly, flaky skin.

Facing the Frost
The biggest wintertime concern is dehydration. In colder climates, you definitely need to increase the protection quotient. “You must over-treat skin to keep it hydrated,” says Barbara Schumann-Ortega, vice president of Wilma Schumann Skin Care in Coral Gables, Florida. That means a shift from lighter skin care products used during warmer months to winter-weight products, such as thicker, cream-based cleansers and moisturizers. These will provide stronger barriers against the harsh environment of winter months. And this is especially important for the face. And if much time is spent outdoors skiing, snowboarding, or walking, for example, your complexion needs heavy-duty protection from brisk wind and winter sun as well.

“People often forget about sunscreen in the winter,” says Schumann-Ortega. For regular outdoor time — a few hours a day — a sunscreen with an SPF of 20 should be sufficient. But if a winter trip on the slopes or shore is part of the plan, sunscreen with a higher protective factor is needed, even if your time is spent beneath an umbrella. “Both snow and sand reflect the sun,” she says, so don’t be caught unprepared. Double your efforts to protect the parts of the face particularly prone to display the effects of dryness: The lips and the area around the eyes need a continual shield against the elements. Ask your skin care professional which products are appropriate for your skin type and effective, seasonal moisturizers and sunscreens. To continue reading this article or to view the entire Newsletter, Click Here Win16Newsletter

Safe Fun in the Sun, Cancer, Vitamin D

Tom Saulnier — Wed, 28 Dec 2011 23:37:42 +0000

Safe Fun in the Sun

Nutrition Offers UV Shield

Sharron Leonard

Because sunlight activates the synthesis of vitamin D, a nutrient that works with vitamin A to build strong bones and good eyesight it is essential for health. Furthermore, bright light, specifically sunshine, can improve your mood and help ward off depression. But all things in moderation. Overexposure to UV rays can cause potentially extensive damage to the skin, an all-too-common occurrence. “Skin cancer is now considered epidemic throughout the nation”, according to The Centers for Disease Control Prevention. “Over one million residents in the United States are expected to get skin cancer this year more people than the collective total of all who will get cancers of the breast, prostate, lung and colon. Exposure to ultraviolet (UV) rays in sunlight causes 90 percent of the skin cancer cases.” And this overexposure may double the risk of melanoma, a type of skin cancer that causes more than 80 percent of skin cancer deaths.

UV rays cause oxidative damage and can actually change the skin’s DNA cellular structure, creating highly unstable and toxic molecules. These are known as free radicals and can lead to malignancies. Sunscreen, adequate coverage and sunglasses have long been recommended to avoid this damage, but diverse studies now suggest some promising supplemental strategies for UV protection from the inside out. Certain nutrients and a low-fat diet have shown specific anti-cancer properties.

…Click here for complete newsletter: Summer 2011-mU

Massage Workout, Massage for Teens, Sun

Tom Saulnier — Wed, 28 Dec 2011 23:05:31 +0000

Massage as the Body’s Workout

Can Bodywork Sometimes Make You Sore?

Shirley Vanderbilt

You’ve just had a wonderful massage, and you go home feeling both relaxed and rejuvenated. But later that night you feel like you’re coming down with something. Or perhaps the next morning, you wake up with twinges of muscle soreness, maybe some fatigue, and you just don’t feel yourself. What happened? Chances are it’s the massage, and it’s perfectly OK.

Keith Grant, head of the Sports and Deep Tissue Massage Department at McKinnon Institute in Oakland, Calif., says, “It’s very much like doing a workout. If the muscles aren’t used to it, they often respond with some soreness.” Grant notes this should last for no more than a day or two. If it lasts longer, the

therapist can find all the kinks that have built up from daily stress and too little or too much exercise. The whole point of a therapeutic massage is to release that tension, work out the kinks, and help your body relax so it can function at an optimal level. All of this work stretches muscles, pushes blood into them, and gets things working again.

A Closer Look

There are several theories, in addition to muscle function, as to why people sometimes experience after-effects from massage.

Massage can stimulate the lymph system, which is comprised of several organs

Can Bodywork Sometimes Make You Sore? You’ve just had a wonderful massage and you go home feeling both relaxed and rejuvenated. But later that night…Click here for complete newsletter: Summer 2009