Combining Yoga With Massage: What Are the Benefits?
Both yoga and massage therapy are fantastic for your body - whether it be in promoting wellness, increasing relaxation, or providing relief from pain or tension - but combining them together can be an even more powerful way to get the most benefit from each practice.
Massage and yoga have many similarities - as both are designed to help your body relax and heal - but combining the two and creating a full-body holistic approach can be even more beneficial for your wellbeing.
In this blog, we're going to take a look at some of the benefits of combining yoga and massage therapy, and how to blend these two practices for maximum impact. Let's take a look!
What is yoga?
Yoga is an ancient Indian practice that focuses on posture, breath work, and meditation. Yoga is used to promote mental, emotional, and physical wellbeing, and can help to increase flexibility, improve balance and coordination, reduce stress levels, and promote relaxation and wellbeing.
What is massage?
Massage therapy is a practice that uses applied pressure, traction, and stretching to help relieve tension in the muscles and promote relaxation. Massages can be performed to reduce pain, increase circulation, and reduce stress levels.
Whether it be a mobile couples massage in Atlanta or a deep tissue massage, massage therapy has been - like yoga - a trusted practise for thousands of years.
Why combine yoga and massage therapy?
There's no denying that both yoga and massage therapy are great for your body. But why combine them together? It's simple - massage therapy helps to relax and loosen up the muscles, in turn helping to increase your flexibility as well as your range of motion. This means that having a massage before attending a yoga class (or performing a yoga session at home) can massively aid and improve your performance.
So the question remains - should you get a massage before or after a yoga session? The answer to this question is simple - both are effective!
Getting a massage before yoga
While it might seem counterintuitive to have a relaxing massage before yoga rather than afterwards, it actually makes sense; yoga is already designed to be a relaxing form of exercise-meets-meditation, so you won't feel burnt out or exhausted in the same way you might after a run or a sweaty cardio session.
A pre-yoga massage will help to loosen up the muscles while increasing blood flow, which will help lengthen and elongate your muscles as you perform specific stretches and poses during your yoga. Plus, the relaxing and soothing effects of the massage will help you remain mindful and zen during yoga, strengthening your mind-body connection and compounding the effects of the exercises and poses.
Plus, if you carry out your yoga sessions at home, you could opt for a mobile massage in Atlanta - we'll bring the massage table to wherever you are, and you can enjoy a relaxing full body massage before your session.
Getting a massage after yoga
While a pre-yoga massage can be incredibly beneficial for both your wellbeing and your performance, there's no reason that you can't indulge in some massage therapy after your yoga session. Getting a massage treatment after your session will help to reduce lactic acid build-up (lactic acid build-up tends to occur after any form of exercise) while also prolonging the feeling of relaxation that a yoga session typically brings.
Pre-yoga or post-yoga massage: which is best for me?
The only valid answer to this question is this: the one that works best for you. For example, some forms of massage (such as deep tissue massages) require some downtime to let your body recover; this means that heading to a yoga class directly after a massage isn't going to be good for your body, and could even cause or prolong discomfort or injury.
Similarly, if you're looking to work on a particular area of your body during yoga, you may find it beneficial to have a massage beforehand; this can allow your muscles to loose up and get ready for the increased mobility.
Ultimately, the best way to get the most out of combining massage therapy and yoga is to experiment and see what works best for you. Once you've figured out which works better for optimizing your performance in class (or for your general wellbeing), stick with it!
What type of massage should be combined with yoga?
In general, you'll want to steer clear of deep tissue massages before or after a yoga class; these massages are incredibly intensive and require a period of downtime so that your muscles and connective tissues can recover. A traditional Swedish massage is your best option for combining with a yoga session; Swedish massages tend to use gentle, soothing strokes to ease tension and improve circulation, making it the perfect pre or post-yoga treatment.