The term body mechanics does not do justice to what happens when a skilled massage therapist is entirely in sync with a client’s musculature, as well as their own body in motion. The massage flows in a powerful energetic dance where both the client and the therapist are enlivened. Using the right type of oil, lotion, or cream will change your bodywork “dance” for the better.

A Lubricant Epiphany

When you are giving a massage, you think about the type of shoes you wear to give you stability and good support. You think about protecting your hands, your wrists, and your knees. But what about your glide? It may sound a bit like Goldilocks, but your glide needs to be “just right.” The stroke may start by pushing from your feet, but it ends with maintaining the perfect glide for the area you are massaging. 

An unspoken rule of bodywork is that things are often not as they first appear to be. I learned this lesson more than 30 years ago. I was completing my two-year intensive training at Muscular Therapy Institute in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and seeing clients in my budding private practice as well as in the school’s clinic. 

Closing in on 1,200 hours of training and hundreds of hours of hands-on sessions, I realized I had to select my oils, lotions, and creams not only for my hands but also for my own body mechanics when working with each specific client.

In the early days of my practice, I was sure that unscented grape-seed oil was all I would ever want to use, apart from a little lotion for less greasy residue on the neck and soles of the feet. That all changed for the better the day I started working with an amateur bodybuilder, we’ll call him “Sebastian,” who had torn his pectoralis major at the clavicular head. There would be no slipping and sliding through this massage. 

I had training in trigger point massage and cross-fiber friction and incorporated arnica lotion to help ease tenderness post-massage. I instructed Sebastian on specific stretching protocols, how best to ice the area, and how to use ice as a post-workout recovery tool. But in the process of working on him twice a week for over two months, I had let my own body mechanics really slide. I was feeling a lot of strain in my neck, shoulders, and wrists after each session. Once I realized this, I began paying close attention to the level of contact my hands had on his tissue. I realized the slower I worked, the better my body mechanics were, but it was hard to do because grape-seed oil was too slippery. 

I tried using much less oil, but it didn’t make that much of a difference. I tried several lotions and creams. I was not able to easily push each stroke from my feet through my lower body because I was shutting down my pecs and tensing my fingers just to keep controlled contact on him. It was like I was driving with my feet on the gas and the brake at the same time! In turn, I developed a poor habit of using my arm and hand muscles to do all the work. This was particularly straining to my hands because this was a very large, muscular client. 

I started experimenting with different lubricants. Unscented coconut oil worked well if I used only a few drops on my hands, but it was thin and tended to disappear into the tissue too quickly. It was then that I created a sort of laboratory in my kitchen and set about making lotions and creams that would give me enough “grip” but still allowed for “slide” where required by the strokes. 

What I learned was that less is always the way to go—less of the heavy waxes and additives that make massage lotions and creams greasy and sticky. I spent countless hours working with natural oils, natural waxes, vegetable glycerin, and arnica extracts to get lotion and cream that worked with the body’s own sebaceous waxes, so my massage work would start on the surface but be able to move the fascia at a more profound level. 

The super-slippery lotions and creams I purchased at the start were OK for long effleurage strokes, but most commercial massage products are designed to give what I call “hyperglide.” It may seem like a good idea to have no friction for your hands, but in practice, the bodyworker ends up working too hard to control each stroke because the oil, lotion, or cream they are using is too slippery.

The less slick, “drier” lotion I created slowed each stroke and gave me 100 percent contact with Sebastian’s musculature. I call this texture “absolute contact” and I consider it a massage therapist’s superpower! 

In slowing everything down, I had the time in each session to carefully focus on my body mechanics. When I caught myself “leaning in” too much, in turn hiking my shoulders up toward my ears, I could bring my focus back to lowering my center of gravity, fully utilizing my legs and knees as my driving force in each stroke.

Matching the Lubricant to the Client

Most of us are not trained in palpation with all the different textures afforded by massage oils, lotions, and creams. This is an important learning process that can inform and improve hands-on work. 

First, start by bringing in samples from all different brands, not just the one you used in school. Massage oil, lotion, cream, arnica lotion, and essential oils are all fantastic tools of the trade. Practice and experiment until you master which textures are best for each client and their particular conditions, as well as what those conditions require from your body. Keep many different options available in your office “toolbox” at all times.

Many bodyworkers could avoid injury or burnout from overworking simply by changing up their massage products for each massage based on the specific techniques they are using and the condition of the client they are working on. Here are a few examples.

Elderly Clients

These clients commonly present with dry, fragile skin in need of moisture, as they often are not moisturizing sufficiently. Use the lightest oil you can find (unscented coconut, golden jojoba, fractionated coconut), and barely coat your fingertips. Lightly work this oil into each area before you begin to massage. The gentle application of this oil helps moisturize more fragile skin and warm up the musculature before working. This light oil allows you to incorporate some simple range of motion to joints without straining to hold on to the client’s arms, hands, or legs.

Once the light oil is absorbed into the client’s skin, work over it with a nongreasy lotion, preferably a formula designed for medical massage (meaning unscented and hypoallergenic). It will help you keep your hands gliding while your hips are in good alignment and the power of every massage stroke is coming from your feet and legs. 

This application of lotion over oil will give you a moderate amount of glide but also lots of control as you navigate arthritic areas and likely some chronic neuromuscular injury sites. Using the lotion layered over the light oil should make it unnecessary to have to reapply lotion throughout the session. 

Early in the session, pay special attention to feet by applying a thicker lotion or cream and working it in completely so there is no chance of slip and fall when the client gets off the table afterward. I often start sessions with the feet for that reason and because it effectively pulls people more into their body and into a state of deep relaxation.

Highly Stressed Clients

Stressed clients commonly present with headaches, neck and postural pain, temporomandibular joint pain, and sciatic, low-back, and foot pain. Center yourself by focusing closely on every single stroke as you start the massage. Integrate essential oils into your massage session if your client is open to it. You can do this easily by using a diffuser in the treatment room. Or you can apply essential oils topically by mixing frankincense (18 drops), cedarwood (6 drops), cypress (24 drops), and lavender (12 drops) into a small glass bottle. Shake well, then mix 5 drops of this synergy into an ounce of massage oil, lotion, or cream and apply it to the soles of the feet. Spend extra time on the feet to help pull the client out of their head and enable them to be more deeply grounded in their body.

For neck and headache work, apply a light, nongreasy lotion to your fingertips and let that be the “applicator” to move this lotion onto the client’s neck, temples, and face. If integrating essential oils, mix the following together first: Roman chamomile (4 drops), lavender (30 drops), lemon (3 drops). Then use 2–3 drops of this synergy mixed into 1 ounce of lotion. Pay close attention to your body mechanics, as the tendency is to lean forward. Work as slowly as possible and hold their tissue until it relaxes into the support of your hands, more than working and pushing into it. 

Do not strain your arms while working from this seated position. Use your feet, which are set squarely on the ground, to initiate all motion and use your core to lean back with the movement to the end of each stroke.  

Athletic Clients 

Athletic clients are usually in excellent health but often present with muscle-specific overexertion and/or minor neuromuscular strains or injuries. Contact is key! Use the lightest oil or lotion you can find. Experiment by using different products with the same client over the course of several massages to find what works best. Use minimal amounts of product so you don't have to overtighten your own muscles to stay on the tissue. Do not be afraid to stop working, take a small towel, and remove some of the oil or lotion if you find yourself moving out of good alignment due to too much “slip.” Aim for grip and slide, not slip and slide, to serve your own body best. Put just enough product on to mitigate friction and slowly palpate. Let their tissue “tell” you what is needed. 

Try a concentrated, natural arnica lotion or oil as a finishing touch for any sore areas. Arnica gels work but they tend to feel sticky and absorb too quickly to be used for massage. Arnica gels are water- and alcohol-based and typically do not have a large amount of arnica in them. Arnica oil or lotion is much more effective as a professional tool.

Conclusion

Finding the right products to suit your bodywork and your individual clients will not just make your healing work more effective—the perfect products will also lengthen your career!