Body Mechanics Klutz- Help!

[Matt St.James]

I was so excited this week, as we are finally starting hands on at our school. The first few nights were great, we learned each stroke and their variations, how to start superficial and to slowly increase pressure and work deeper. We learned the different stances but basically just stood still and that was ok. Last night, we added the actual movements to the different stances such as doing an actual lunge while doing efflurage, or using a swaying motion doing pestrisage, and I was terrible! I am very stiff and uncoordinated, and have horrible hand eye coordination, and could not seem to do both my body movement such as a lunge, and keep the stroke going. As long as I can stand still, my strokes are great, but when I have to move my body, such as swaying, I fall apart. The other students in our class, seemed to pull together, and were comfortable, but I tensed up which only made it worse. By the time class was over, I was soaking wet, both from nerves and exertion!

I never really thought about how my lack of hand eye coordination and body coordination might be a problem. I tried dance classes when I was younger, which helped a bit, but well, I still can't dance! LOL I know it takes a lot of practice, but are there any other "coordinationally" challenged out there that have some tips on how to work through this? t100

 

[Mike T]

Oh honey, please don't worry about this! Right now most of your class is feeling this way. It will get smoother. Plus you are just learning a basic tool -- who knows how you yourself will evolve to move with a stroke over time? "The lunge" with "specific school effleurage stroke" is an exercise -- a way to give you a feel for how some of the puzzle pieces might fit together.

After a while you will not be concentrating on the individual pieces so much and will find that they fit together in a way that fits your body and your style.

In the meantime, doing "air massage" helped me a lot. Just practice the body movements next to an empty table, while moving your arms in an approximation of a stroke. Not having a body to "mess up" on will take a lot of the pressure off, and you can repeat and vary the movements as often as you need to to feel more confident. I still do this during continuing ed classes -- I too have to practice quite a bit before feeling smooth in a new technique.

 

[Haruhi-X]

In the meantime, doing "air massage" helped me a lot.

:biglaugh: I practiced my shiatsu on pillows laid out on the dining room table like a little person. I wish I had a video of that... fodder for generations of derision!

 

[Anarchist]

I would suggest taking a Tai Chi class...that was actually an elective in my program and I found it translated into massage very well!

 

[m&m&m]

I was going to post the same thing as Ahimsa.

I'm just like you. In the past whenever I had to learn a new body movement, I practically would panic because I am *such* a klutz. I get left and right mixed up, and I feel like a do-do bird.

Then I started taking Tai Chi, and practicing on my own (where I didn't feel like everyone was watching me). Imagine my surprise my first semester of massage school when my classmates and I critiqued each other and I got great comments like "perfect horse stance" and "excellent movement with strokes." I still didn't *feel* all that graceful, but apparently I looked it .

Kemilyna

 

[kaz716]

Practice, practice, practice and more practice (which is what school is all about.) Eventually they will all become natural movements for you. I literally sweated buckets in the beginning but within a few weeks of school it was so much easier.

Angie

 

[Pompal 09.]

Having been four months ago where you are now, I can safely tell you, you'll get the movements down with time. Don't be too hard on yourself. Your movements will smooth out once your confidence level increases. When I learn new techniques from my instructor, I feel a bit self-conscious. It takes me a few days to smooth out. Give yourself time.

And practice, practice, pratice. :

 

[troubled?]

I understand. I'm in the exact same place as you right now. I feel like a big klutz with almost every move I make.

I'm sure it will come with time. I'va also heard that it help to take a tai chi class.

 

[Celina]

Ditto on the practicing!
When I first started massage school....My ordered massage table took forever to arrive, it felt like, and I was practicing for a while on my little sister ON THE KITCHEN TABLE which of course was too high and she had to keep scootching to the other side for me. I'm clumsy anyway and got rather frustrated in class when I couldn't remember which way to face to make my strokes look like the teachers. I felt so behind the rest of the class who all looked so coordinated.
When my table finally came, I was over at my parents' house constantly. Not only my baby sister was subject to my practice then, I got my mom to suffer through my learning the routine almost daily. And she was always a "good" critic for draping (she was always cold!) and pressure (couldn't take much, even when I couldn't do much comfortably.)
When I at last got the very basics down pat, I told EVERYONE I knew that I needed victims, er, practice clients. While I was initially behind in the number of out-of-class massages, I soon far surpassed the required number. I'd recommend getting just as many people on that table as you can to get familiar with as many bodies as possible. It WILL become second nature, I promise! I'm still very clumsy in every day life, but around my massage table now, I can do it with my eyes closed--and frequently do!

 

[Richard N]

And here's a klutz bonus...

I've always been only slightly right hand dominant. I write with my right hand, but switch off other tasks: bowling -right, shooting pool-left, carrying weight -left, underhand throw -left, overhand throw -right... etc.

Since learning massage, I become more and more ambidextrous. Now I can do just about anything (except write), with either hand, with ease.

It's kind of cool. Of course the downside is that, lacking dominant handed-ness, I NEVER can get right and left straight, and my clients have to tell me "right" or "left" by pointing, or saying "window side" or "wall side."

t043

 

[Mirroboy Nick]

... lacking dominant handed-ness, I NEVER can get right and left straight, and my clients have to tell me "right" or "left" by pointing, or saying "window side" or "wall side."

t043

LOL! I have the problem of getting right and left mixed up too. People often tell me, no your OTHER right/left! :

Thanks for the encouragement everyone. I was truly panicked after class. Everyone else seemed to fall right into the movements, I felt like the 800 pound purple gorilla that was trying to do ballet! I went and bought a table yesterday and have started practicing on family and also doing "air" massage. It is getting a bit easier, but man, do I have a long way to go. It is easier to concentrate and relax when I don't have 8 other students watching and trying to encourage me.

Everyone in my class is worried about taking off their clothes, that doesn't bother me. I am worried about losing my balance and falling on top of them! :shock:

 

[Mario M]

I'm still very clumsy in every day life, but around my massage table now, I can do it with my eyes closed--and frequently do!

Everyone in my class is worried about taking off their clothes, that doesn't bother me. I am worried about losing my balance and falling on top of them!

I've also been a lifelong klutz -- one of those people who constantly bumped into things. I'd be covered in bruises & not know where they came from. I'd go for a walk with friends, and end up bumping into them as we walked down the street. I once fell off a treadmill - ouch! This has all changed since I became a massage therapist. The practice of smoothly giving a massage while moving around the table (being careful not to bump into the table, or trip over my massage stool) has ended up making me very body aware. It's a skill that transfers into daily life. I no longer bump into coffee tables (or friends). My body senses its surroundings now. So, even if it's a learning curve, the end result is fantastic. You will become graceful. It's a beautiful thing.

 

[kiwi mum to one and a bun]

One of my biggest problems while learning body mechanics had to do with my extensive ballroom-dancing background. Instead of push/pulling from my hips, I kept swinging them side to side in a chacha movement embarrassing. My teacher kept looking at me funny until he figured out what I was doing - agh, my muscle memory really had to retrain itself on that one.

As for sweating, I don't know if this is going to come off as really encouraging or really discouraging :, but I still sweat profusely when I give massages. It's gotten a little better over time (I get sweat running down my face but at least now it doesn't threaten to drip on clients, lol), but I still have a ways to go. It has more to do with my overthinking than it does with physical exertion... at least I'm pretty sure it does, because I can do tai chi lunges forever and not break a sweat, even though my legs want to fall off..

 

[confused]

Update! I have been practicing every day with my table and family and friends. Although my movements were getting better, I still felt uncomfortable and clumsy. Tonight's class was hands on again and something very interesting happened! After practicing efflurage on the back for a few minutes, my instructor blind folded me and it worked! After making a few clumsy passes, I was able to relax and flow with strokes. My stances became more comfortable and I was not fighting myself. I could actually feel the muscles fibers and my hands just followed the path and my body followed suit. It was great! After practicing for about 5 minutes we removed the blind fold and I fell apart, I could not get back into the flow. I centered myself again and closed my eyes and fell back into the flow. As long as I keep my eyes closed it seems very easy to do.

Do you think clients would freak out if I wore a blindfold during their massage? :shock: : (Joking, I know it will get better!)

 

[jhEnny]

I'm a great dancer, and I still feel like a klutz! LOL.

However, it is getting better and better the more and more I practice. Thanks for the suggestions on Tai Chi. I actually have a video on that from way before I ever thought to attend massage therapy school. Sounds like I need to dust it off!