How To Get A Great Massage Anytime You Want!

​Who doesn’t love a really great massage?  What if I told you that you can get a massage everyday without spending a dime?  
 
Well, you can!  And, its called Abhyanga.  In Ayurveda, Abhyanga is self-massage.  It’s a massage that you can treat yourself to as often as you want.  I’ve mentioned it briefly in some of my older blogs where I’ve given seasonal tips from Ayurveda.  Today, I want to go deeper to give you a closer look at what its all about!  
 
Why self-massage?
Massaging your body with oil is an act of self-love. That’s what Ayurveda’s all about.  It’s a beautiful system of practices of honoring and loving yourself.  Also, Ayurveda says that when you put oil on our skin and let it get absorbed, it releases toxins from the deep tissues of your body.  Another great benefit, especially in the Fall, is that oil grounds the energy of the season.  Fall has qualities of dry, cold, and rough.  What better way to bring in moisture, warmth, and softness than a warm oil massage?  These qualities of Fall can also affect your mind and emotions.  It can lead to your mind being restless, flighty, spacey.  And so, this massage also helps ground your mental and emotional energy so that you feel stable, supported, and calm.  
 
How to do self-massage
The technique is less important than just getting the oil on your skin.  The main thing is using a lot of oil and keeping it on long enough to get absorbed.  Sesame oil is the best type for the Fall.  It’s helpful to see this as an act of self-love because the thoughts and energy that we have when do anything is reflected in how effective the practice is going to be.  So, I suggest expressing gratitude for each part of your body as you massage it.  See this as a chance to be grateful for your body that works so hard for you day in and day out.    Now, if you wanna get really technical, you can use the Ayurveda massage technique of long strokes across most of your body and circular strokes on your joints. 
 
When’s the best time to do this?
Ayurveda recommends every morning.  I’ll be honest with you though.  I do it about 3x a week.  And, I prefer to do it at night before going to bed.  So, here’s the deal.  Ayurveda recommends self-massage as part of your morning routine.  Vigorous massage strokes can wake up the body and help with circulation, especially of the lympatics.  So, it’s great to do in the morning if that fits your schedule!  For me, I already have a pretty extensive morning routine, so I prefer to do it in the evening.  It helps me go to sleep.  It’s a great way to end my day by giving myself this act of self-love.  So, what I do is I massage my body, leave the oil on while I brush my teeth and floss (to let the oil get absorbed), then I take a warm shower to rinse off the oil. 
 
So, there you have it, dear.  I hope you try this out.  It’s really helped me a lot with things like getting a good night sleep, calming my nervous system, and relieving joint pain.  Let me know if you try it and what benefits you see!  Leave a comment below!
 
*Interested in learning more about Ayurveda?   Subscribe here to be the first to get updates about my brand new Ayurveda online course coming late 2018!!
 
Sending you so much love!

​Keep Reading:
What is Ayurveda?
Transitioning into Fall: Ayurveda Self-Care Practices for the Fall Season
Yoga Poses for the Fall