Deep Swedish vs Deep Tissue (sports)

[Quan Le]

Ok, I had my massage on Friday and told the MT my concern areas. Shoulders, Hips and a problem in my right foot which was giving me some pain. I was surprised that she didn't have me sign any paperwork for HIPA but shrugged it off. During the massage I asked her if she could do any more stretches like she did with the hip and she said those are typically for sports/deep tissue massage and I was scheduled for a swedish massage. She said she could switch over to a D/T but she continued to talk me out of doing a sports massage since in her words are reserved for people who run/exercise even though stretching was one of my primary reasons for going to the MT.

What is really the difference between the two? I've read a few of the posts on here and can't make the determination for myself. Are D/T massages solely recommend for those who do a lot of training working out? I have no way of knowing since I've never had one so I'll probably schedule a D/T sports massage so I can compare the two techniques but I know I enjoyed the stretches that one of my previous MT's did when I scheduled a swedish massage. It was only a few but it feels awesome to have someone stretch muscles for ya.

Jack Henry Salon and Spa (cedar rapids)
Rating of the massage itself was a 8/10 ( I had lots of knots along my spine which got worked out and she managed to get the pain out of the foot)
Rating of the waiting room was 9/10 (nothing like over looking a view of the cedar river and watching wild life to relax you. Although the room allows for natural bright light to come in it's still a beautiful scenic view)
Rating of the massage room environment (8/10) nice calming colors and
Rating of the acoustics in the massage environment(1/10) I can't stand to hear people in the other spa areas waiting room cause there is no dividing door. I did in fact mention to her that this was my main reason for leaving the last place Granite and marble floors just cause a horrid reverb for voices. Basically their waiting area is where they have the other spa services for pedicure so you can watch the river while getting your service.

 

[letterstoheather]

Ahhhh, I am sorry you did not recieve what you asked for.
U.S. does not standardize massage from state to state. That comes with pros and cons.
You could have either run into a fairly green MT who was unsure of how to incorporate something into a massage she had a "routine" for.
I, and many other MTs do not have tiered rates for Swedish, NMT, DT etc. Many of us use a blend of our techniques tailored to the individual client. I can, for instance, understand foregoing "swedish" massage pre/post event at a sports venue....also treating a client who wanted specific triggerpoints be addressed.
If you book with the spa again mention your concerns.
The differences as you ask I would say are:
Swedish: "relaxation" massage, long flowing strokes comprised of effleurage and petrissage, kneading, hacking, vibration etc.
Deep Tissue/Myofascial: a slower more "deliberate" almost static stroke concentrating on underlying tissue letting go, releasing.
TP/NMT: Still more specific slow work on triggerpoints using fingerpoint pressures and frictioning.
Sports: Pre/rapid energizing kneading and petrissage....less specific work.
post/ "return to homeostasis"..slow swedish like massage with gentle stretching.

ALL of these, in my office, would include stretching to some degree.

I'm thinking you met with a fairly green MT. I just reread your post again.....

Talk to her, or the manager. I would ask if Swedish, DT and stretching could be incorporated into your massage session. If not, I would perhaps look elsewhere.

Robyn

 

[The Lemur]

Yah, she did some slower strokes on the back and put a lot of pressure along the spine where there was some pretty nasty knots. But I agree it sometimes hard for someone who is not an MT to understand what they are supposed to be getting.

In the end, I was happy and I slept AWESOME that night. Unfortunately on Sunday I played a pretty lengthy game of volleyball so pretty sore all over again but that just comes with the territory of diggin the ball out of a hard wood floor and not having any kneepads

 

[Old Hippie]

ouch!
Ever try an epsom salt soak? It's good for strains and sprains...
And hydrate, hydrate, hydrate!
And then... go get another massage! LOL

 

[Lis]

i just thought i'd add that not all therapists will tell you "well, you're scheduled for a swedish so i can't do any other forms of treatment because that costs more." that totally bugs that crap out of me!!!! i can't understand why a therapist wouldn't stretch a client if they wanted to be stretched! who cares what their scheduled for.

where i used to work i asked them not to label the massages different names. people get confused. no one knows what the difference is between them. the best thing to do is talk to the client to get an idea of what it is their looking for. sorry this happened to you. and i'm with you on the sounds from outside the room. i'm surprised that more places don't make it a priority to make the establishment a more quiet enviroment.

next time you schedule a massage (probably somewhere other than this place) ask them if they do a lot of stretching. some therapist do and some don't but if you ask them ahead of time, you'll be more likely to find what it is you're looking to receive.

good luck!

 

[Clint]

i just thought i'd add that not all therapists will tell you "well, you're scheduled for a swedish so i can't do any other forms of treatment because that costs more." that totally bugs that crap out of me!!!! i can't understand why a therapist wouldn't stretch a client if they wanted to be stretched! who cares what their scheduled for.

Amen! Is this a question of old school vs new school ? I would define myself as old school. I tend to blend modalities ie deep tissue, trigger pt , swedish, sports etc. I tailor the massage to the clients needs/wants and the amount of time scheduled for the massage. Sometimes, I go over 10 minutes but I dont charge extra. If a client needs the focused work ie DTissue, we schedule more time or I let them know you cant get a full body DT in 60mins. In my mind, if it takes longer because the work is more focused in one way or another, it naturally cost more. New school massage, imho, makes statements like "I cant do this and ThAT in an hour" or "If I add an e/o or f/o to your treatment it's $10 more." Or, what of the 55min massage where the Mt takes 10min to complete intake/interview and then deducts it from the time of the massage.
Maybe, this is a topic unto itself? I've been in the biz 14yrs and I do believe things are changing.

 

[Rachel G]

The funny thing is, that it didn't cost any extra for the d/t massage. Maybe she just didn't feel comfortable doing stretches in her routine. But overall the Deep tissue part whether it was swedish or sports was great. I find that I go through phases when I get massages. I started getting them with a lot of pressure then switched to a more relaxing lighter pressure. I think I like the deeper pressure more as it has a greater success of working out the knots.

I'm going to give this place another shot as I mentioned and I've started to rate the places on yahoo so more people do not make the same mistake I do. Little alarm bells were going off in my head when she didn't even have me fill out an intake form asking me the standard questions I received in the past. It was just hi, any particular things you want worked on. Ok, lie on the table under the sheet and I'll be back to start.

It's nice to be able to come on the forum here and ask questions and see what other LMTs say. I wonder if MT's would be offended if I told them about this website

 

[Maru Ramos]

there are plenty of therapists and establishments that charge by the specific service. stretching, afaik, can be included in most of them without altering the price.
the thing is to read the service menu and pay attention to what is decribed and ask questions so you get the service you need.

i suspect this mt was not confident in her stretching skills, or had not trained in this skill.

there are a few heated discussions on this board about deep vs. swedish. i'll refrain from saying any more than that.

please welcome any mt's to our board. i'd like to think that we each offer a diverse opinion and are open to hear how others think as well.

 

[Ot paype]

Deep Swedish vs Deep Tissue (sports)

I too am a blender of everything that I know. I am not much for labels. People asked me all the time "What kind of massage do you do ?". Most days I would like to IDK I just do what needs to be done.

So maybe bc you booked as a Swedish you where given a Therapist the gives a great Swedish? This is a good lesson in knowing what you are looking to achieve from your massage. This is why it it important for clients and the person booking the appointment are very clear about what the client is looking for, that way you get matched with your perfect therapist

I charge the same rate for evrything in my mobile practice. How ever at the clinic I work in there is a difference between Swedish and DT. It is $10 more for a DT. It annoys my boss that I am not charging the clients $10 more for my massages bc it seems everyone that I end up seeing really wants DT, even though it was booked as a Swedish. I am working on getting the boss to charge the same rate for all massages.

 

[David C]

Deep Swedish vs Deep Tissue (sports)

i don't know about IA's laws, but in NC (and CA) i'm required to keep paperwork on ALL of my clients. I would want to just from a liability standpoint if nothing else (might have something to do with starting out in the 'sue-me state' . the lack of intake paperwork is a huge red flag for me as well; definitely something i would query about when/if you return.

it could be that she assumed the front desk had handled it, then realized after leaving you to disrobe that it hadn't occurred that way and figured it was too late and tried to continue with the service. had THAT been the situation it may explain the convos regarding the stretching, etc by her possibly being a bit flustered from the paperwork fiasco--and not having that paperwork may have raised some concerns regarding the viability of utilizing additional modalities with you. some health conditions do contraindicate massage, and/or specific modalities.

just playing a little devil's advocate 'what if'...glad you slept well!

if you're looking for more stretching in your massage you might look for somebody who does thai massage...*shrug* i don't have any real experience with it so consider this brainstorm fodder to add to what has already been stated by others. communication is definitely key, regardless of modality.

 

[The Chika Rita]

Deep Swedish vs Deep Tissue (sports)

Hmm.. After reading this post I also wonder about the therapy session!

I'm so disappointed for you, but I guess I don't understand why your MT wouldn't stretch you? Who cares what kind of session you booked, especially if a deep tissue or sports massage is the same price?

Personally I hate the moniker "deep tissue massage". When clients ask for deep tissue I ask why. I have found that many clients think "deep tissue" is more effective than swedish massage. I explain that deep tissue is just applying deep PRESSURE, but the basis of the session is generally Swedish style. I also let them know I can incorporate trigger point therapy if they actually have knots or issues in the deeper muscles.

I prefer to give massages that are a blend of several styles. I did a session yesterday and after wards the client asked me "what kind of massage was that?!?!" I had to kinda think about it! I told her I liked to blend Swedish, NMT, TRP, and I throw in some stretching, some lomi-lomi style strokes, I do modified reflexology on the feet, and I love to do shiastsu/marma points during the face and scalp massage. LOL! I just freaking LOVE massage so much!!! I love to learn and incorporate new techniques in every session. I hope to always surprise clients with something new and wonderful!

 

[Dani Gurl]

Deep Swedish vs Deep Tissue (sports)

If an MT isn't very confident in their stretching skills, they should be cautious about stretching clients. On the other hand, even MTs that think they are great at stretching should be cautious about applying those skills with new clients.

One example: a friend who has been receiving massage for over 30 years got a massage from an MT that was quite proud of her stretching expertise -> result: a near-separation of the client's shoulder :shocked: . The MT went right into some aggressive shoulder stretches without first inquiring about the client's injury history. When the client stopped the work and said, "Don't you EVER do that to me again!" t013 , the MT lost her focus and the remainder of the session was a disaster t012 .

I love the way stretching can feel and have experienced therapeutic benefits from skillful stretching. However, I have also had significant injuries (torn iliopsoas, anyone?) from stretching poorly. These days I am pretty familiar with 7 styles of stretching, of which I most frequently use 3. Many times I do no stretching whatsoever, other times I do only stretching. I am very specific about applying any kind of stretching, and choose different methods based on what I perceive the client's tissues will tolerate best.

It is my understanding that many massage schools attempt to teach some type of stretching techniques to their students. This is fine, but my impression from interviewing many job applicants over the last 20 months is that their schools' curriculums seemed to treat stretching as an afterthought. Consequently, few applicants have shown any real confidence in their knowledge of stretching, and of those only 1 was able to demonstrate any real skill in applying it.

Serious expertise in stretching is, in my area, an uncommon trait among bodyworkers. Therefore it is a major competitive advaneforum.xxxe for us to have several MTs with advanced expertise in stretching. :grin: We have a number of repeat clients who came to us because they needed help with stubborn flexibility issues that were interfering with their activities. Now those clients are sending friends and family members to us. If an MT wants to grow their clientele, I think becoming expert in at least one form of stretching would be a great way to spend some $ on CE Hours.

 

[Strokin meh Pen0rz]

Deep Swedish vs Deep Tissue (sports)

from http://www.deeptissue.com

Does deep tissue massage always have to be alot of pressure?

Not really- although it is different than swedish because it does focus on releasing the muscles, which sometimes requires deep pressure. The real question is "should that deep pressure hurt, or be painful?" and the answer to that is "NO!"
If compared to swedish massage, a deep tissue session will be much more firm, and probably include more static pressure work than continuous work (as compaired to swedish massage). But many areas take fairly light pressure, and will release completely with gentle, light pressure- the front of the neck is a good example of an area that doesn't require deep pressure. It's all about the appropriate level of pressure, and being able to give that to a client. Some one trained in Deep Tissue massage should be able to give a variety of appropriate pressures, responding to what the client needs! On the other hand, if you are only trained in Swedish Massage, the practitioner may not have the training to know how to apply pressure easily, or know exactly where to do the work specifically.

 

[Ajierene]

Deep Swedish vs Deep Tissue (sports)

more from http://www.deeptissue.com

Deep Tissue massage differs from Swedish in that Deep Tissue Massage is specific, anatomically accurate, addresses trigger points, Myofascial restrictions and muscle restrictions, while swedish massage primarily works by increasing blood flow and retraining the nervous system, and is more general in nature (and doesn't take as much training).