1. Relax - The purpose of your massage is for you to relax and for the relief of tension in your muscles.  If you constantly keep your muscles contracted throughout the entire massage, then nothing your massage therapist does will do any good.  It is very important to remember to RELAX.
2. Personal Hygiene - Please remember that during your massage your massage therapist is coming in direct contact with your skin.  Please abide by the general rules of hygiene.  If you’ve been doing a lot of walking, excuse yourself to the restroom and wipe your feet with a towel.  If you’ve been drinking coffee feel free to ask for a mint.  Your massage therapist will not judge you regardless, but they will appreciate any effort on your part that will make their job more comfortable.
3. Full Disclosure – Your massage therapist needs to know your medical history. There are certain medical issues that are contraindicated for massage.  That is, it could be dangerous for you to get a massage with certain medical issues. Don’t let this scare you.  Just be sure that you discuss any issues with your massage therapist so that they can adjust your session as needed.
4. Voice your Concerns - Be sure that you are comfortable. Feel free to discuss any of your concerns with your therapist.  Remember that this is YOUR massage.  It is important for you to let your massage therapist know if you have any questions.  Your session is tailored to meet your needs.  Your therapist needs to know exactly what your needs are.
5. Don’t Underestimate Your Therapist – Becoming massage therapist is not an easy task.  Massage therapists have to go through rigorous training and studies in order to be licensed and certified. It is important to remember that your massage therapist is just that:  licensed and certified.  That means that they have gone through training and have continued their education constantly to be up to date with medical issues and techniques.  This ensures that your session will be the best possible massage for your needs.  However, there is no need to be intimidated.  This is still YOUR massage.
6. Refrain from Sexual Innuendoes - Remember that you are receiving a professional massage from a Licensed Massage Therapist.  The stigma of a “masseuse” and “massage parlors” is something that massage therapists have worked hard to remove.
7. Be Polite – As with anyone you work with it is important to be polite.  Say “please” and “thank you” as well as remember your therapist is a person and they appreciate when you ask general questions about how they are doing.  Remember, there may be a time where you want that extra time on the table or to have a therapist come to you ASAP.  This is one place where good guys/gals won’t finish last.

www.mbs-massage.com

Have a great day: mind, body and soul,

Eva

Brandon here.  Sometimes people will ask me “how hard is it to start your own business”?

After some thought I have summarized them for our readers.  For anyone who is starting their own business here are my 10 brief tips:

1. First – register your business correctly.  Get a fictitious name, get a EIN (Employer ID number), get some insurance and look into an LLC status.
2. LLC Status – if you have a business and you have anything of worth to your name, this is something good to look into.  This will help to protect your assets if your business gets sued.  It is America people!  Literally, we have by far more lawyers then any other country.  Everyone has to eat – don’t be the main course!
3. Have a plan!  Now, I am not saying you have to have the best business plan known to man, but have an idea where you are going.  It is your business – OWN IT, Mind Body and Soul
4. Have some type of brochure.  This is basic, but some people don’t.  It is professional, and it truly does impress people.
5. Have business cards.  Equally as important if not more than a brochure is this.  You want to make sure first that you have business cards made and that you are ready to put them EVERYWHERE!  Well, maybe not everywhere, but put them in the fishbowl for a “free” dinner, on the bulletin board and the ma and pop diner and to any friends you have.  What does it hurt?
6. Web presence.  Yes it is 2009 and web presence is important.  Do the little things.  Build a blog (and actually update it periodically), get a facebook and then actually have your own webpage.  You can learn a lot quickly with your webpage and applying the things you learn will help keep you current – I would go deeper, but this could be a whole other post
7. Join a Chamber.
8. Actually go to Chamber functions.  Yes, these had to be different because they are separately important.  Pay the money, join a chamber but then actually participate.  You never know who knows who – 7 degrees of separation to your first big client.
9. Have a mission statement.  You want to have something that summarizes what you do on the daily basis.  This is basic, and I do presentations on it.  More than happy to elaborate at any time.
10. WORK HARD.  Do the extra, make the deal, attend the meetings, make the partnerships and do it all with integrity.  If it is your business no one should work harder than you.  With hard work and some prayer amazing things can happen.

I hope that this helps someone.  Please add your thoughts or your additional tips.

Have a great day, Mind, Body and Soul,

Brandon

Every once in a while someone will ask what are the pros and cons of a career in massage therapy.  In general, this is how I summarize this to people:

Massage therapy can be a very rewarding career. Also, as with any jobs there are pros and cons.

Pros:
-You can set your own times (schedule)
-You can help others achieve wellness and relaxation
-A great opportunity to network within your community
-Can be a wonderful supplement to other jobs

Cons:
-Although money is nice, but you will never be a millionaire unless you invent a new massage technique or a very successful chain of clinics
-A lot of physical exertion
-Income is based on volume of clientele
-Sometimes you may massage people you are uncomfortable with
-Because massage is not entirely mainstream yet people may get the “wrong idea” of what you do

Something I read the other day is also worth mentioning on this blog.   The difference between men and women in the field.  Women tend to fair better than men.  Probably because in general men are not shy to strip down in front of women and women aren’t afraid to strip down in front of women…no one wants to strip in front of men (ok, maybe not no one – but most folks).  That being said here are some tips for the guys:

• Always be professional (this is always number one)
• Show your knowledge (clients love to feel that they are being worked on by a professional)
• Keep in contact with clients (you have to maintain the relationships)
• Do charity work (A great chance to show what you do and show yourself as a good guy)

Have a great day, Mind, Body and Soul,

Eva

So, while having a beer at a local dining establishment, I decided to ask the bartender what physically hurts the most when she gets done with a shift. She shared that primarily it is her entire back and calves that hurt the most from constantly bending over (getting ice and cups) and picking up heavy boxes (such as boxes of liquors or heavy trays of cups from the back).

This is the beginning of this string of blogs. As Evie and I (Brandon) live our lives and visit people doing their jobs we will be trying to figure out what hurts them. We will then try and discuss massages and stretches that will help alleviate this pain.

With all of that being said, let’s get started. First, here are some videos from www.e-how.com (yes, we have been throwing them a lot of business lately – but hey! They are good).

-Calf Stretches
-Hamstring Stretches
-Lower Back Stretches

All of these stretches are great – and more importantly – they don’t take up a ton of time or space. Doing these types of stretches each day are great ways to elongate muscles and prevent tightness, injury and ongoing pain. Diving deeper into our back-burdened bartender, some of the other things that could help her is wearing the proper footwear, making sure she has correct posture, and lifting with her legs.

-For a job like this making sure that you have a shoe with a good arch support is important. A good arch support allows a person to keep weight distributed evenly and ultimately keeps your body aligned.
-Correct posture is one of the byproducts of a good arch support. Good posture is one of the physically easiest ways to relieve pain – but one of the harder things for most people to do. Standing straight, with weight evenly distributed with shoulders back and utilizing the balls of your feet helps. It is a learned process. Keep it up and you will be there soon.
-As many people already know, your legs are more prone to lifting than the lower back. In short, your legs have more muscles and thicker, stronger bones and therefore more sheer ability to lift vs. your vertebrae.

On to the massage portion – if a person were to come in with the issues that our bartending friend described they would always have a selection of what type of massage they wanted. It could be anywhere from deep tissue to thai, but we would most likely be looking at working on the entire back and legs to make sure that we adjust and loosen any of the muscles. With a steady regiment of massage and stretching even our hardest working bartender can end the evening pain free.

http://www.ehow.com/video_4458595_the-benefits-daily-stretching.html

As Terri Lynne explains in this series of videos, stretching is an important, and often forgotten, part of health and wellness. Stretching helps to keep muscles loose, increase blood flow an increase overall flexibility. As how stretching correlates to the massage world it is a great way to keep your body healthy. All too often we find clients who call us after their backs have given out, their carpel tunnel has flared up or calf muscle has tightened up to the point of where we are visiting them in their homes because they can barely walk. These are all ailments that can be addressed with stretching. Please don’t get me wrong, continue to get your massage every 2-3 weeks and consult with us about wellness options…but remember to stretch your horizons as well!

Have a great day – Mind, Body and Soul,
Brandon tion – we want you to learn a lot, over time, that you can add into your daily life. That being said, we had some help with our blog today. Below is an excellent video on daily stretching from a site that we utilize a lot – www.ehow.com.

http://www.ehow.com/video_4458595_the-benefits-daily-stretching.html

As Terri Lynne explains in this series of videos, stretching is an important, and often forgotten, part of health and wellness. Stretching helps to keep muscles loose, increase blood flow an increase overall flexibility. As how stretching correlates to the massage world it is a great way to keep your body healthy. All too often we find clients who call us after their backs have given out, their carpel tunnel has flared up or calf muscle has tightened up to the point of where we are visiting them in their homes because they can barely walk. These are all ailments that can be addressed with stretching. Please don’t get me wrong, continue to get your massage every 2-3 weeks and consult with us about wellness options…but remember to stretch your horizons as well!

Have a great day – Mind, Body and Soul,
Brandon

Have a spectacular weekend – Mind Body and Soul,

Brandon

As a massage therapist serving the Brandon, Valrico, and greater Tampa Bay area I am striving to bring this integral health concept to everyone. I will be introducing to you new techniques and articles explaining the benefits of massage, as they are “discovered” by western medicine.

It is important to state that massage should not be construed as a substitute for medical examination, diagnosis, or treatment.

Take time to nurture yourself through and after treatment, drink enough water, take long hot baths or showers and feed yourself with energy, love and touch. Be well.

Have a great day – Mind, Body and Soul,
Brandon