It is said that nothing is really new…….this certainly applies to cupping therapy…..heard of it? Andy Murray is a fan, all the Chinese Olympic swimmers and marathons are regular users…..even Gwyneth Paltrow has jumped on the cupping bandwagon……
what’s it all about?
Cupping has been around for thousands of years used mainly in Traditional Chinese Medicine for musculoskeletal issues (but of late has re-emerged with new and fancy names such as Myofascial decompression or Myofascial cupping) used therapeutically for musculoskeletal issues or just as an alternative to traditional massage. In many ways it is the ‘opposite’ of massage, although the benefits are the same. Massage is a compressive technique, whereas cupping uses negative pressure in special cups to pull, lift and expand tight tissues. If muscles are chronically tight then adhesions form and contract between the folds of fascia. Cupping is excellent for breaking down adhesions, releasing tight fascia and relaxing overtight muscles.
Acupuncturists use cupping for musculoskeletal treatment and research shows that cupping stimulates acupuncture points in a similar way to needles, except it does not break the skin. It can be used to help reduce acute and chronic pain, improve mobility, increase fascial and muscular flexibility as after cupping fascia and muscle sheaths are no longer contracted.
It can be used for any soft tissue issue, from plantar fasciitis, hamstring strains, tight necks, back and shoulders or it can just be used as a lovely relaxing way to spend 45minutes…….
Cupping now on offer at Fix.
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