What Is a Deep Tissue Massage and How Does It Work?

Most people don’t realize what kind of tension and stress they are under. Those who do recognize their tension may not know how to fix it or what to do to relieve themselves. Therefore, we’ll outline what a deep tissue massage is and how it works so that people can go about their daily lives in comfort and with a sense of normalcy.

How Does It Work?

Not entirely unlike a Swedish massage, the deep tissue massage has an advantage on the alternate in that it works to realign tissue fibers and helps the body function properly. The Swedish massage merely focuses on keeping the individual comfortable, easing and relaxing the body and muscles for temporary relief. Paired with a home massage device, deep tissue massage could really save your body a lot of aches and pains in the future.

Deep Tissue Massage Techniques

Deep tissue massage is a massage technique that’s mainly used to treat musculoskeletal issues, such as strains and sports injuries. It involves applying sustained pressure using slow, deep strokes to target the inner layers of your muscles and connective tissues. The method of this massage is a slow, deep stroke that may include hands, fingertips, ball joints, heels of hands, forearms, and elbows. The idea is to navigate and aim to break up muscles and connective tissues that have scar tissue and tension knots. This treatment is great for musculoskeletal problems related to many sports-related activities such as strains and sprains. It may also promote faster healing by increasing blood flow and reducing inflammation.

Read on to learn more about deep tissue massage, including how it stacks up against Swedish massage and what to expect during a session.

What It Provides

After a deep tissue massage, you may find yourself healing faster due to increased blood flow and less inflammation. Studies have shown that the effects are like using non-steroidal inflammatory drugs long-term, but without the harm on your liver.

There are also psychological and physiological effects that occur due to these ancient practices. Alongside the effect of feeling at ease and comfortable, the treatment of deep muscle pain can ease the mind while the body gets to rest from its remedial treatment.

Weighing out the benefits of a deep tissue massage will show that there are more positives than negatives with this classic treatment. Swedish massage, in particular, focuses to alleviate the issue and heal the body instead of just making a temporary fix, unlike the deep tissue that tries to heal it permanently.

Now that you know what a deep tissue massage is and how it works, you can better understand what to look for in different types of massages.

How does it compare to Swedish massage?

Deep tissue massage and Swedish massage are two different types of massage therapy. Both use some of the same strokes, but they have different uses and vary greatly when it comes to the amount of pressure used.

Here are the key differences between deep tissue massage and Swedish massage: