Swedish Foot Massage

We don't care about our feet and that's true. They usually are essential for keeping us upright and moving us around, and as important as they are, they are usually neglected and forced into painful footwear. But experts say that this vital part of our body also needs to be pampered a bit too and what better for relaxation than our very own Swedish foot massage. You can get it done by someone but it can also be done by yourself as it's not very difficult at all. Pregnant women should however do this with a lot of caution as it has been known to trigger early contractions and induce labor.

It's a very interesting thing to do a Swedish foot massage and of course if you are doing it for someone else, you can make it particularly enjoyable if you just so want. A basin of warm water, some good essential oils, Epsom salt (magnesium sulfate), comfortable socks, towels, massage oil or lotion, relaxing music and some scented candles would be an added luxury of course. Now how to go about a swedish foot massage. Just follow these steps.

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Your client should be lying down on a massage table with their face down at the beginning. Now you will begin by lifting their foot smoothly while sitting at the end of your table so that the top of your foot can rest gently on your upper thigh.

Now you have to protect your own body by using your entire torso to work the feet, and not just your arms as they can put a negative pressure on your arms. Employ the muscles of your abdomen and push through your arms, which will protect your low back and preserve your upper body strength to a great extent.

It's always best to warm up the feet before working deep by cupping the top of the foot with your hand that is a bit non-dormant and cupping the sole of the foot with the hand that is relatively more dominant. The heel of your dominant hand should be used to rub up and down the sole with moderate yet firm pressure, preparing the muscles to be worked upon.

You will have to work a little deeper into the foot with time as the muscles begin to warm. But all this time you should continue to cup the top of the foot, keeping the foot flexed, as this will keep the tendons relaxed and will cause the feet to open up at the bottom as well. Now you should use your thumbs, knuckles or even elbows to work this and this should be done both up and down as well as crosswise.

This ultra luxurious foot massage is finished by allowing the foot to rest on your thigh. After that just cup the heel between your hands and make long sweeping strokes toward the toes. The stroke is finished by gently grasping a toe and pulling very gently.

A Swedish foot massage is especially great if you want to show someone how much you care after a long day that they've had. It's a beautiful way to feel luxurious and it's always appreciated by people. So go on!