If you’re a frequent reader or follow me on Twitter, then you may know that I love massages. There is no denying the healing power of touch or the instant calm that over takes my body the minute I touch the warm massage table.

In fact, Melissa has been known to make fun of me for what she deems my massage obsession. I don’t consider it an obsession but much to my wallet’s disappointment, I enjoy a massage an average of once per month. My experiences have ranged over the years, ranging from the University of Georgia health center, 3000 BC Spa in Philadelphia, Glow Spa in Savannah, and a multitude of different spots in New York including Equinox and Exhale.

My worst experience to date was a Groupon gone bad somewhere between Canal Street and my pride. Needless to say, the massage only lasted five minutes before I high tailed it out of there due to fear of catching a disease or seeing a rat.  Since this experience, I’ve realized the importance of checking out Yelp and other reference sites before booking a massage or spa service, regardless the discount.

Luckily, a few weeks ago, Schuyler, the Spa Coordinator at 54th Street Equinox aided my guilty pleasure with a discounted massage session. He is not only their coordinator but also a certified wellness coach, licensed massage therapist, and Energy Rebalancer! I knew I was in for a treat after reading his initial email. They gave me the opportunity to experience their brand new new massage technique, Equissage.

Have you tried Equissage yet? It’s our newest service – combining a postural assessment with multiple massage techniques to create a completely customized treatment. It will be the perfect complement to your personal training work. The Equissage is available in 60 and 90 minute sessions in order to meet your specific needs and time constraints.

The words customized, multiple techniques, and complement alone sold me on the new service. One of my biggest pet peeves is that you have to choose which massage you’re in the mood for weeks in advance when you book a service. What if you arrive and decide you need a relaxing Swedish massage instead of a deep tissue? Often times, you can’t change your mind. But, this service makes all of that possible while also allowing you to experiment with different techniques that you’d most likely never try otherwise.

Since I opted to take advantage of the massage the day of my long run, my massage was focused primarily on the muscles affected by running. My 90 minute session passed far too quickly but I enjoyed every minute, even the deep tissue portion.

Schuyler started the treatment with aromatherapy in order to relax and calm my body. The eucalyptus essential oil is a natural way to enhance deep breathing while the lavender relaxed my entire body. In addition to the essential oils, he also incorporated Bio Freeze into the leg work. A pain relieving gel including menthol and natural botanicals, it left my muscles relaxed and pain free.

During the massage, I asked Schuyler to discuss the different techniques he was using and the reason he incorporated each one. While I’m sure he wished I’d just fall asleep, he humored me and thoroughly explained each and every one!

• Kinesthetic Awareness through Rocking: This technique, which was new to me, was used in the beginning to activate my parasympathetic nervous system. This calmed my body and made my muscles more aware of touch.
• Swedish: These strokes were used to calm the muscles as they were still quite tight from the morning run and retaining toxins.
• Deep tissue: Painful as always, the deep tissue portion was used to target certain areas along my IT band and shoulders where I carry a great deal of tension and therefore had developed multiple adhesions.
• Hydrotherapy: He applied heat packs to loosen my back muscles and improve circulation which helps move lactic acid out of the system.

During the 90 minute session, Schuyler was also able to help me understand why I sleep with my legs spread each night, much to Bo’s chagrin.  When I increased my mileage during last year’s marathon training, my hips grew very tight. Since my internal hip rotators are weak and my external hip rotators are short, it’s most comfortable for me to sleep with my hips splayed open. It is my body’s way of adapting to the tightness. Since this has been identified, my personal trainer has incorporated hip strengtheners into each personal training session!

I still can’t believe how much I learned in 90 minutes!  Not only was this a relaxing session which incorporated multiple techniques, but it also left me craving another session. It also reinforced a few of the things I’ve discussed previously on the blog.

• A massage is like yoga, in order to truly be present and enjoy the moment, you need to stop making to do lists in your head.
• Stretching for two minutes doesn’t stretch, lengthen, or relax your muscles after an hour of spin class or other physical abuse.
• Massage therapy will in time increase my flexibility.
• Ice therapy can be a wonderful at home massage technique to balance foam rolling and stretching. 

If you’re in the New York City area and would like to enjoy your own Equissage session, you can receive a complimentary upgrade through the end of August! Just leave a comment or email me for more information.

*While Equinox provided a discount for my Equissage service, the review and opinions are my own.