My friend was suffering from sore thighs from working out so I decided to give some help with my massage, but I didn’t want to set up a massage table or get greasy from a massage lotion so I used one of my favorite massage tools. A rolling pin from a 99-cent store.
Have the person lie on the floor face up and simply massage the front thigh above the knee by rolling the rolling pin. These muscles are called quadriceps or quads. Usually, people’s thighs are very sensitive and especially when they are sore. The rolling pin is hard and since you are pressing the muscles against the thigh bone, I’m barely putting any pressure but the receiver is totally feeling it. I like using rolling pin because it’s so effective and you can easily massage over the clothes. Change the angles to massage the inner thigh and outer thigh.
When you massage it helps know the opposing muscles. These are called agonist and antagonist muscles or antagonistic pair. When one muscle contracts, the other muscle relaxes. For the thigh, the opposing muscles to quadriceps are hamstrings or hammies. When you bend your knee, the quadriceps extend and the hamstrings contract. Sometimes it’s the opposing muscles that become too tight to cause the imbalance and cause a pain in the area.
To balance out the thigh muscles I’m going to flip him over and do the same for the hamstrings. Just roll the rolling pin above the knee. Do not press the back of the knee because it’s a sensitive area. I had to slow down because it was too ticklish on the left side. Move your torso and use your body weight to increase the pressure instead of just using your arms and hands.
On a side note, sometimes clients tell me their quads hurt while pointing to their hamstrings. The quads are in the front and hammies are in the back. Think of ham as a continuation of buttocks and maybe even picture biting into the ham under the buttocks to easily remember.
Massage Monday #372 – Super Easy Leg Massage with Rolling Pin http://bit.ly/mm-121117