While regular massages may feel extravagant and indulgent, they are an excellent tool for maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Here are 6 excellent reasons to justify your next deep tissue appointment.
Counteracts the sitting
If you work sitting down all day, odds are your posture has suffered. Shoulders and neck hold tension when stressed, while prolonged sitting leads to weak gluteals and a weak low back. These muscular imbalances can lead to pain and dysfunction. Getting a massage on the regular can correct these imbalances, encourage proper muscle function, and reduce pain. That means less muscular pain, less exercise-induced injury, and greater range of motion — all from something as simple and pleasant as massage.
Squashes anxiety & depression
Human touch can be therapeutic and relaxing. A study of women with breast cancer showed that those who received regular massages felt less depressed about their condition than those who didn’t receive massages. Massage also increases happy hormones dopamine and serotonin while reducing stress hormones. If you’ve been feeling a little blue, treat yourself to a massage and reap the relaxing hormonal benefits.
Reduces blood pressure
Studies have shown that those who partake in massage not only have lower blood pressure in the hours following a session, but lower blood pressure in the days and weeks following a session. It has also been shown to immediately reduce heart rate by as much as 10 bpm. This is incredible. If you are struggling with high blood pressure, try incorporating massage into your life on a semi-regular basis. It could work wonders.
Helps With Sleep
Massage encourages the release of certain hormones that aid in relaxation, like serotonin. It also helps people spend more time in deep sleep, the most restorative stage of the sleep cycle. A study of insomniac postmenopausal women showed that massage is an extremely effective treatment for increasing sleep and promoting relaxation. If you suffer from sleep disturbances, massage can become a positive force for encouraging sleep in your life.
Improves immunity
Massage actually boosts your white blood cell count, thereby improving your immune function. In fact, the benefits can be measured after only one session. Massage also reduces stress, which has a huge impact on immune function. Stress is the silent killer of a healthy immune system. Luckily, cortisol, the stress hormone which batters immune function, actually decreases with massage therapy.
Beats headaches
If you suffer from tension headaches often, regular massages can be key to thwarting them. It has been shown to decrease headaches in both frequency and severity, with many of the desired effects occurring immediately after the first treatment. And, hey, it’s way more pleasant and enduring than that Advil you were going to pop.
source: Care2.com
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