Massage Cupping

Cupping therapy has been known and practiced since the time of ancient Egyptians, 1150 B.C. It is a form of alternative medicine, although not as popular as modern medicine, it accounts for many benefits. It works by placing glass, earthenware or bamboo cups on your skin to create suction. Chinese medicine still uses Cupping in hospitals today. For thousands of years the Chinese and Thai practitioners have been using cupping for healing.  As you have probable seen in the olympics, many athletes are using cupping from Olympic swimmers to American football players.

Cupping is divided into two kinds, wet and dry. Dry just uses suction while Wet uses suction and draws blood from your skin in a controlled environment, though it barely hurts. Most people even consider it a relieving and relaxing sensation. Cupping because of this pulling up of the tissues compliments deep tissue massage because it can pull stagnant blood, toxins and cellular debris up to the surface of the skin. This is what you see when you see the "marks" or Bruises left by the cups. These are not painful and are not really bruising of the tissue. Bruising is caused by damaged tissues, broken blood vessels and capillaries. The redness caused by the cupping is a release of cellular debris, old stagnant energy and blood due to overuse, injury and toxins.  

In areas where there is no stagnation, there will not be marks, The cups are only left on for 1-5 minutes maximum, and the practitioner flushes the lymphatic drainage to increase blood and nutrients to the tissues allowing them to heal. When there is stagnation new fresh blood, oxygen and nutrients cannot enter the tissue, causing chronic pain and adhesions. There have been studies to prove the benefits cupping beholds.

 Here are 10 benefits of cupping that you should avail:

1. Reduces Blood Pressure

The suction provided by the cups plays a role in temporarily loosening muscles, which encourages blood flow. This process results in temporarily sedating the nervous system which proves to lower blood pressure. This also plays a part in increased lymphatic drainage as well as the promotion of blood circulation.

2. Back and Neck Pain Relief

Although cupping has many benefits, it is especially popular with relieving back and neck pains. Again, suction plays a role in this, the cups suction out the pain or a similar theory which helps patients become relieved of their pains.

3. Deep Tissue Therapy

Being one of the best deep-tissue therapies out there, cupping is also used to relieve back pains and reduce fatigue and migraines. Cupping can affect tissues which are up to four inches below your external skin — it basically pulls out the pain from deep within your body to the surface for relief.

4. Detoxification

Cupping also plays a role in relieving your body from toxins. The suctions pulls the toxins to your skin’s surface which allows their release. This also helps in clearing blockages in veins and arteries. It detoxifies your body by breaking down metabolic debris found in muscle tissue. Since most areas can be cupped, if you have any problem areas they can be specifically targeted.

5. Relaxation

During the therapy, it is meant to create the aroma of relaxation, hence cupping also helps reach emotional balance. It provides mental clarity and helps you relax. This is achieved because cupping stimulates oxygenation of blood and detoxification, which promotes the sensation of lightness and relief of pressure in the body.

6. Healing Injuries

If you have any prominent or internal injuries, cupping can be the solution you need. Cupping not only increases range of motion, but also helps in the promotion of healing in scar tissue and sites of chronic injury.

7. Good for Your Lungs

This safe and enjoyable treatment, has numerous benefits, one of them being, the treatment of respiratory conditions. It can treat asthma and bronchitis. Although for this to be effective, you have to be consistent with the treatment.

Fun fact: respiratory ailments were among the first recorded incidences for which cupping was said to be beneficial.

9. Energy Flow

Cupping is a traditional Chinese medicine, it’s used to improve the energy flow throughout a person’s body. This therapy does often lead to bruising, however it is said that the bruises are just a representation of the bad energy flowing out of one’s system.

For energy flow, the cups are placed on the energy collection areas, for mental and physical well-being of a person, a healthy energy flow is required.

9. Boosts Skin Health

By now you’ve read the benefits cupping has for pain and weight loss, however, it does not end there. Cupping is often times used to boost skin health. It is used to reduce herpes, acne and even skin inflammation. It tones and firms skin due to the fact that it improves the blood flow and expands capillaries.

It has proven to be popular amongst celebrities due to its results and because of its part in skin-clearing. Studies have shown that cupping is an effective and more natural way of clearing your skin, getting rid of acne and even cellulite, so it appears to show toned skin.

Try cupping today. It’s not as effective as other natural therapies, but it’s safe and non-invasive.

10. Weight Loss

One of the many reasons to try cupping therapy is weight loss. Cupping helps you shed those unwanted pounds without much of a hassle. For weight loss and cellulite reduction, first oil is applied onto the skin and then the cups are moved around the surrounding area.