Massage creates a relaxing state of mind

Massage and RSD

While surfing the Internet and reading interesting stories recently, I happened upon an article on Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy. They had a story on how alternative therapies were found to have helped bring relief to this painful condition. Here is an excerpt from that article:


“I heard about Dr. Kurt Vreeland, a holistic physician in Norwich, Vermont, who deals with hard-to-treat medical cases from all over the world. He believes in looking at a person’s condition, at the most basic level (the cellular level), and building them up from there. He is technically a chiropractic neurologist (he does not perform chiropractic manipulations in the typical sense), and has extensive knowledge about the nervous system in general and RSD specifically. I was impressed with his understanding of RSD, but perhaps more importantly, inspired by his personal manner, his obvious compassion, and his knowledge of where we would begin based on what I had already done.

After three years I have seen dramatic improvement in my RSD and overall health using Live Blood Cell Analysis, Applied Kinesiology and a host of other approaches. I was initially on a regimen to shore up my immune system, which was in a state of collapse when I first started seeing him. Through numerous holistic supplements (geared to helping my nervous system reprogram itself to normal, balanced settings), homeopathy, specific exercises, diet, lifestyle adjustments, in conjunction with my ongoing physical therapy and regular visits to my RSD specialist and massage therapist, and professional counseling, my improvement has been staggering.”

To read more of this eye-opening article go to:
http://www.rsds.org/4/stories/alternative_therapy.html

For all of my cat loving friends out there....

Here's a wonderful article from: http://lacetoleather.com/catmassage.html


CAT MASSAGE is good therapy for both of you - you and your cat will find it soothing. Touching your cat also brings you both closer together. Touching brings down the blood pressure and increases circulation. Massaging is also a good way to find any skin or hair problems, or even a lump while it is still very small and fixable. And, by the time you are through with the free instructions below, you can make any cat a friend for life!

To give a cat a massage:Scratch behind his ear and you will have his undivided attention. Rub the entire ear - even a little stroking on the inside of the tip. Scratch the top of this head (between his ears). Go on to his other ear. Scratch the side of his face, below his whiskers. Scratch under his chin. Scratch the other side of his face.(Even a cat you just met is now melting under your touch!) Scratch his ears again, just a little. Scratch the top of his head. In a continuous and fluid motion, stroke from the top of his head down his entire back. Stroke down his back only - several times - with your hand wide open to span across his entire back. Stroke down his entire back and down the top of his tail - several times. Stroke his entire tail (with your hand all the way around it) several times. He is butter in your hands! If he lays down, offering himself to you completely, take one leg at a time and stroke it from shoulder to paw. Stroke each leg several times. Stroke anywhere else he will allow except his tummy, as this is usually seen as an invitation to play (undoing the calming effect of the massage). You have made a friend for life!

Massage and weight loss

By Scott Hayward

There is no question that having a massage makes you feel great. Even having a deep-tissue, sports massage makes you feel wonderful afterwards. Massage can relieve stress, help you recover from hard physical activity or injury and even reduce anxiety, but can it help you to achieve your weight loss goals?
Research shows that massage can have a positive effect on your muscle-building capabilities and fitness levels, which in turn increases your capacity to control or loose weight.
Healthy strong muscles burn calories and give you the freedom to participate in all sorts of sports and activities that can help you burn excess calories and improve your overall fitness and wellbeing.
Massage has the following benefits that can directly influence your ability to control or loose weight:
1. Massage has been shown to improve circulation and the supply of nutrition to the muscles. Massage increases the interchange of vital substances between the blood and tissue cells, which increases tissue metabolism. After muscles are exercised, vital nutrients must be supplied to them so that they can recover and rebuild themselves. Massage maximizes the supply of these nutrients and oxygen though increased blood flow, which helps the muscles to grow and burn more calories as a result.
2. 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.
Improved range of motion and flexibility also reduces muscle soreness during periods of recovery and muscle repair.
Having a wide range of motion and maximum muscle flexibility also reduces the danger of experiencing injuries during exercise which can severely limit activity, exercise and weight loss progress.
3. Massage helps to shorten the recovery time needed between your workouts. Waste products such as lactic and carbonic acid build up in muscles during and after exercise. Increased circulation to these muscles helps to eliminate toxic debris buildup caused by these waste products and in doing so shorten recovery time.
Shortened recovery time means you can safely have more workouts over a given period of time, which in turn means that you have the opportunity to burn more total calories in your effort to achieve your individual weight loss goals.
4. Massage can also help reduce the chance of you over-training. Massage has a relaxing effect on the muscles and a sedative effect on the nervous system. By helping you to rest, which is a very important element of any exercise program, massage can reduce the likelihood of you experiencing over-training syndrome, which is known to limit your ability to build strong healthy muscles and therefore loose weight with maximum efficiency.
5. In addition to all of the above, massage may directly aid in fat loss. According to some research studies, massage is thought to be able to burst the fat capsule in subcutaneous tissue so that the fat exudes and becomes absorbed. In this way, combined with proper nutrition and exercise, massage may actually help in weight loss.
6. As we have already touched upon, massage helps prevent and heal injuries. By stretching connective tissue, massage improves circulation to help prevent or break down adhesions and scar tissue that result from muscle tears and other common muscle injuries. Massage also influences the excretion of certain fluids (nitrogen, phosphorous, sulfur) that aid in tissue repair. Fast and effective recovery from injuries means that you can begin exercising sooner after suffering an injury and getting your weight loss progress back on track.
So there you have it. Massage has a lot of benefits that can indirectly and possibly even directly aid you in achieving your weight loss goals.
Regular massage is just as important a component as regular workouts and correct nutrition in any comprehensive fitness and weight loss program, which is great news for those of us who thought that exercising and loosing weight was all hard work! Remember, weight loss is all about leading a balanced lifestyle and massage is an essential part of any balanced lifestyle.
If you haven’t had a massage lately, what are you waiting for? Get on the phone and make yourself a booking. If you haven’t had a massage before, just remember to have your massage done by a qualified massage therapist.
If you are unsure about a massage practitioners qualifications and experience, ask for referrals, professional training information, and make sure they are certified by reputable agency or institution.
And remember, have fun!
Scott Haywood is the editor of Australia's leading weight loss and healthy lifestyle website: . Weightloss.com.au is a free weight loss resource that has healthy recipes, weight loss product reviews, a weight loss business directory and a very popular weight loss forum.