Alyssa Grassi, LMT

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Articles and Information

AMTA: 10 Tips for a Better Massage

Ten Tips to Get the Most from Your Massage Be as receptive and open to the massage process as possible. Don’t eat just before a massage session.  Let your body digest your meal first. Be on time. If you arrive in a frenzied, rushed state, it may take longer to relax. Take off only as much clothing as you are comfortable removing.  If you don’t want to remove your clothing, wear clothing that will be comfortable during the massage and will allow the massage therapist to touch and move the areas of your body you expect will need to be massaged.Privacy - The therapist will either leave the room or…
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John Barnes, PT, LMT, NCTMB & Myofascial Release

Massage Magazine Publication: The Extracellular Matrix by John Barnes John has been teaching now for close to 40 years and that there is not one nerve that touches the over 50 trillion cells in our body. It is the environment of every cell that the ground substance, the fascia’s fluid component, which should be different viscosities of gel through which all of the oxygen, nutrition, supplements, biochemistry, hormones, energy and information that every cell needs to thrive must pass through the ground substance of the fascial system to get to the cell.   For more information about Myofascial Release, you can now access two separate excerpts from the Fireside Chat with John…
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Changes in Gene Expression & Reducing Inflammation

Discover Magazine: [icon name="external-link" class="" unprefixed_class=""] Massage Doesn’t Just Feel Good—It Changes Gene Expression and Reduces Inflammation If you’ve ever been told been that a massage is good for “releasing toxins”—or to sound more scientific, “lactic acid”—from your muscles, then you’ve been told wrong. Turns out muscle cells do like a good massage, but it has nothing to do with lactic acid. In the first study on the cellular effects of massage post-exercise, researchers found that massage bolsters chemical signals reducing inflammation and promoting repair of muscle cells.  
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Jack Dempsey / Associated Press

How Massage Aids in Muscle Healing

CBS News: [icon name="external-link" class="" unprefixed_class=""] Works like anti-inflammatory pills When the researchers analyzed the muscle tissue samples for tears and signs of damage in the cells, they found massage seemed to blunt muscle pain using the same route that anti-inflammatory pain relievers do. What's more, Tarnopolsky said, the anti-inflammatory signals released by massage also improved the ability of muscle cells to make new mitochondria — the furnaces that convert food into energy.  
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AMTA Research Links

Massage Therapy for Specific Health Conditions AMTA Position Statements on Massage Other Healthcare and Wellness Links Glossary of Research Terminology Complementary and Alternative Medicine Massage Therapy Body of Knowledge (MTBOK)
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