THE FUNDAMENTALS OF MASSAGE

20 Mar
2014

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As massage continues to increase in popularity both as a profession and as a valued part of the health care treatment strategy, massage education is becoming more standardised and organised.

Why is massage continuing to be so popular? The reasons are many and varied and with the continuation of an underlying health crisis within the health care system, massage will continue to play an increasingly supportive role in health care maintenance and rehabilitation.

Originally provided informally by individual practitioners wanting to service people with an interest in massage, massage has since blossomed into a formal training qualification provided by predominantly private massage schools along with a small number of TAFE Colleges, Universities and Community Colleges.

Being at the forefront of massage training for 20 years, Australian College of Massage has witnessed the development of a wide range of skills and techniques beyond the traditional relaxation and therapeutic massage. However, regardless of the expansion in skills and techniques, the fundamentals will never change.

At a foundational level, any massage program will always depend on solid core curriculum materials augmented with ancillary products. The course structure developed by Australian College of Massage ensures the practice of massage and its ancillary products fit such a program perfectly. At ACM both instructors and students are provided with easily accessible materials that contain the fundamental knowledge and skill base needed to become a successful Massage Therapist.

Many schools are including additional streams of learning in specialty techniques. However, care must always be taken to not lose sight of the fundamental concepts and instruction in a haste to deliver more.

A Massage Therapist will only be as good as the foundational principles upon which their knowledge and skill was built. The aim is therefore to always provide this understanding through consistent professional delivery. Having a sound base of proficiency then enables the student to enhance their learning without eroding their core abilities and professional approach.

The value of a massage program that provides a good foundation for a student to begin their journey as a massage professional should never be underestimated.

Graduating from a massage school is the first and most important step in becoming a successful massage professional. The journey continues as the new professional therapist gains experience by performing massages and exchanging with other therapists while building and enhancing a knowledge base through continuing education and personal study.

As indicated earlier, there are many paths and a wide variety of techniques within the massage profession. The strong foundation that a student requires before entering the massage field provides the platform for entry into specialised techniques as a graduate. Areas such as spa massage, lymphatic massage, clinical massage, athletic massage, corporate chair massage, Asian bodywork, reflexology, chakra balancing and massage in medicine are all examples of branches of massage that a graduate can choose to undertake.

A good idea is to complete an introductory course in the technique which should provide the graduate with enough of an overview of the modality to get a sense of whether he or she might want to pursue further study.

There is a lifetime of learning available in massage therapy because of its relationship to the human body. For many students, the excitement of graduating is seen as just the beginning of that journey.