Welcome to naturopathic massage! I’ll take you through some basic massage techniques for your feet – click the image above to be taken to the video if you’d like to watch along as well.
Your feet carry you around so it’s important we take very good care of them.
Some helpful tips to remember before we start – do not put anything on your skin that you would not eat! I recommend using some nourishing oils like olive oil, grapeseed oil, shea butter, coconut butter or oil. There are a couple essential oils you can use as well but peppermint and lavender I find are best as they are stimulating for the feet and provide that rejuvenating and relaxed feeling. Here is an easy care guide that anybody can do for a bit of feet TLC!
Preparation:
- Tub for soaking your feet in
- Towel for feet drying
- Comfortable seat and foot stool if needed
- Magnesium salts, hydrating oils/butter/cream and essential oils of your choosing
Techniques:
- Soak your feet in lukewarm water with some magnesium salts for 10 minutes. Magnesium alleviates muscle stiffness and soreness and 10 minutes is enough time for it to really get in there and loosen them up. Take your feet out to dry and massage one at a time.
- Taking a 50c sized squeeze of your cream/oil/butter start by giving your foot an all over smooth rub with both hands, including your ankles. Then start rolling your thumb onto the ball of your foot, they say this part of the foot corresponds to your liver in reflexology so give it a good rub in circular motions.
- Next run the inside knuckle of your thumb along the bottom of the ball of your foot until you reach the edge, underneath your small toe. In rounds of three, run the thumb up toward the top of the toe, pinching with your forefinger on the other side. Do this for all toes.
- Then move to the heel of your foot and using the same finger technique in rounds of three, run your thumb knuckle up the outer edge (that’s the flat bit that actually touches the ground).
- Once you’ve done that, move on to the arch of your foot, give it a smooth circular motion rub three times then a rub running upwards also three times.
- Moving on to the top of your foot, in reflexology the top of your foot is associated with your chest area, so replicate the same rub but running up from the toes, toward the ankle.
- Lastly, don’t forget to run your fingers on either side of your achilles, moving from the heel upwards.
The key is to always rub towards the heart, working with your lymphatic system.
Let me know if you have a request for any other body parts.