Key Point

• Performing massage while seated—and applying proper body mechanics—can extend your massage career.

One of the gifts of giving massage is being able to freely move your whole body around the massage table in a flowing dance. For many, it is one of the highlights of being a massage professional versus being in a profession that requires sitting all day.

But what happens when you have a packed day of massage appointments and standing for long periods of time is causing stress or fatigue? Or, what if you have sustained an injury that limits your ability to be on your feet without pain and you don’t want this to compromise your ability to practice massage?

Fear not! There is a solution. When you apply the same core principles of body mechanics and movement while seated that you use while standing, you remove limitation and revive freedom to practice healthfully.

Let’s review the core principles of alignment by body region (which is always a good reminder anyway!). For each one, we will consider how you might apply the principle from a seated position while still delivering a massage with exceptional quality and healthy movement.

Feet, Knees, and Hips

Principle 1: Balance weight above and between the legs

Principle 2: Hips face in the direction of your movement

Principle 3: Power comes from the feet and the core

While standing, a practitioner would use a symmetrical stance, such as a horse stance, when the work is directly in front of them. An example might be working the head, neck, and shoulders from the top of the table. When the work is off to the side, such as when working an arm or a leg, the practitioner would use an asymmetrical stance, such as bow stance (also known as lunging).

In both cases, the core of the body is constantly balancing above and between the legs. This leads us to the next principle.

To move forward and backward or side to side, you need power behind the pressure. The choice to use horse stance or bow stance is determined by which direction the stroke is being applied. Therefore, if you are working directly in front of you, use horse stance with hips facing directly forward. In contrast, when your work is offset, you must place your hips in that direction by way of a bow stance, otherwise you’ll be twisting your spine and causing a huge amount of stress on your body.

When seated, the same principles apply. Focus on keeping your feet solidly on the ground and using them to generate power for your stroke, shifting the direction of your hips and your stance depending on the direction of your stroke, and using the positioning of both stances, all while seated on a stool (preferably one that rolls) or a ball. This means you’ll be shifting your hips in the seat. The seat is beneficial for ensuring your weight is centered between your legs since you will have downward pressure of your body on the seat.

All of this comes first from the feet pushing against the ground and is then sustained by the balancing of the core above and between the legs. (Can you see how these principles all go together?) Use your back foot to apply pressure forward and your front foot to pull a stroke back. This keeps the whole body always moving. The tendency with sitting is to keep feet, knees, and hips stagnant, requiring the upper body to do all the movement, which places a significant amount of stress on the low back and shoulders. In addition, practitioners often keep their legs together right in front of them. So, a key point is to keep your legs wide so you can easily switch position from side to side or front to back.

Head, Neck, and Back

Principle 1: Maintain a strong core

Principle 2: Line up the body directly behind the hands

Principle 3: Keep the chest open and the head lifted

The best way to keep a strong core in any scenario is to pull your belly toward your spine. Then, line up your body directly behind your hands by determining whether horse stance or bow stance is most appropriate and adjusting accordingly. Don’t twist at the spine. Use the principle related to the hips to switch positions so your body is directly behind your stroke. Then, if your hips are facing in the direction of your work, your spine should naturally align above them and keep you from twisting in the spine. To keep the chest open and head lifted, pull the scapula back and down. This leads us to the first principle of the next body region.

Shoulders, Arms, Wrists, Fingers, and Thumbs

Principle 1: Pull the scapula back and down

Principle 2: Apply strokes at an angle greater than 90 degrees

Principle 3: Keep the wrists relaxed and in a straight line as often as possible

Principle 1 matches the principle related to keeping the chest open. When you pull your scapula back and down, your chest naturally expands, and slouching is avoided. This also supports keeping your head lifted and elongated with your entire spine, negating unnecessary stress on the neck.

Applying strokes at an angle greater than 90 degrees means to avoid applying strokes directly downward onto the body. When seated, it is nearly impossible to press directly downward from above the body. Being seated supports this principle tremendously.

When keeping the wrists relaxed and in a straight position, the key is to avoid hyperextension, flexion, abduction, and adduction. In other words, keep hands, wrists, and arms in direct alignment with each other. The same principle applies to fingers and thumbs. It helps to brace your thumb with your other hand to provide more support and ensure proper alignment. When seated, as long as you are working at an appropriate distance (working close to the body, but not enough to have elbows strongly bent), you can easily apply this principle and may even find it easier than if you were standing.

Other Tips for Supporting Yourself While Seated

Remember always to connect breath to movement. Inhale as you pull, and exhale as you push.

Purchase a chair with wheels or an exercise ball. Since your body needs to move, your chair should be capable of moving with you smoothly. While this isn’t necessarily a requirement, it does make it easier to maintain the principles of body mechanics and movement.

Consider purchasing an electric lift table. It’s an investment, but it is well worth the money spent to support the longevity of your career. The better your body mechanics, the better you care for your body, and the longer you are able to maintain your practice. Over time, the investment will more than pay off.

When you can adjust the height of your table to meet the level at which you are working, you can be nimbler (in other words, you can be quick to make adjustments that protect your physical well-being). Since you will be lower when seated than when standing, it’s extremely helpful to be able to move the table to a height that supports the angle of your work.

Practice Makes Possible

Just as when you were a student in massage school and trying a new technique, practicing helps you feel more confident and make adjustments outside of the pressure of a paid client–therapist environment. While it is fine to try this on a paid client, it can also be beneficial to practice on a colleague or family member when there are no expectations and you can play with the new approach until you can refine it.

Open your world of freedom and possibility by using a seated position and see if it supports your body when you need it. It doesn’t mean to sit for the entire massage, but it can offer an additional option you might be overlooking.