From: keg@strathspey.llnl.gov (Keith Grant)
Newsgroups: alt.backrubs
Subject: Re: Friction
Date: 14 Apr 92 20:03:29 GMT
Reply-To: keg@strathspey.llnl.gov (Keith Grant)
Organization: Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory

In article <ALRHBJSB@cc.swarthmore.edu>, dauer1@cc.swarthmore.edu (David
S. Auer) writes:
|> I am an amateur.  All I have learned has been from experience.  I have often
|> worried that my technique is not as therapeutic as it could be.  How would I
|> know how slow and deep the friction I produce is?  Is it mystical, or
do just
|> apply slow, deep pressure?  If the latter, I am probably in good shape.
|> 
|> -Dave Auer


Deep tissue work is partly a matter of pressure and speed and partly a
matter of focus.  The concept of focus can seem mystical, but is really
just a combination of applying a stroke with a particular intent and
having or gaining the experience to sense the response.

Part of the intent is choosing to work on a particular muscle or muscle
group (depending of the size of the muscle relative to the part of your
body being used to apply pressure).  The focus is therefore not on the skin
but through the skin to the underlying tissue. It's generally best to 
choose a particular depth and work there - avoid moving in and out like
a sewing machine. 

Another part of intent is determining what effect you are trying to obtain.
If you are trying to gently stretch and lengthen a muscle, you may be applying
a slow stroke along the muscle belly while the muscle is positioned to be
under tension.  If you are trying to increase range of motion limited by
the effects of prior injury, you might be applying cross-fiber friction
to scarred or shortened tendinous muscle attachments.

The pressure is determined by the feel of the muscle being worked - MORE 
PRESSURE IS NOT BETTER.  The speed used is determined partly by local
muscle response and partly by central nervous system response.  Part of the
goal is to sink or melt into the muscle tissue rather than hammering it into
submission. (An interesting physical analogy is a fairly thick mixture of
cornstarch and water.  If you hit the surface fast, it's solid.  If you move
slowly into it, it's liquid.)  The other limitation is to stay under a
speed/pressure combination that causes the recipient to tense up or sharply
increase their breathing rate.  A rough rule of thumb is that, on a pain
scale of 1 to 10, theraputic work is done at about the 5-7 level.  Theraputic
work isn't alway entirely comfortable, but it should bring with it a sense
of relief, not a feeling of having been abused.


  +-------------------------+-----------------------------------------------+
  I                         I                                               I
  I Keith Eric Grant        I The interesting thing about a waltzing bear   I
  I keg@strathspey.llnl.gov I           is not how well it dances!          I
  I                         I                                               I
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  I                                                                         I
  I For certain it is, that any ideas expressed above are of my own humble  I
  I opinion and bear nary a relation to the policies or positions of LLNL   I
  I or of any agency or contractor of the U.S. Government.                  I
  I                                                                         I
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