🇺🇸 United States · Modern
Californian Massageカリフォルニアン・マッサージMassage californien
The name used in French-speaking France and Québec for the Esalen lineage shaped by Margaret Elke in the 1970s: long slow strokes enveloping the whole body.
This name is recorded with basic database information. An in-depth article will follow.
Fact sheet
- Origin
- 🇺🇸 United States · 🇫🇷 France · 🇨🇦 Canada
- Era
- Modern
- Classification
- Spa treatment / Modern bodywork
- Techniques
- Oil / Breath
- Practitioner body parts
- Palm / Thumb
- Medium
- Oil
- Clothing
- Skin contact, draped
- Setting
- Table
Related competition categories
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World Massage Encyclopedia
Related forms and lineages
Related reference entry: Esalen Massage
Sources & references
About this article
Edited from published sources. Listing sources does not mean community or specialist review is complete, or that benefits are established. We welcome practitioners’ perspectives on names, descriptions, additions and corrections.
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Esalen Massage
エサレンマッサージEsalen® Massage
Esalen massage is a style of bodywork that emerged in the 1960s and 1970s at the Esalen Institute, founded in 1962 at Big Sur, California. On a foundation of Swedish strokes it emphasises long, slow strokes that treat the body as one whole, rocking, passive joint movement, and the practitioner's presence and synchrony with the receiver's breath. Shaped by the human potential movement, Gestalt therapy and Sensory Awareness, it aims at relaxation and a deepening of self-awareness.
Oil · Breath
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Sports Massage
スポーツマッサージSports massage
An umbrella term for manual work in sport and activity settings. Touch and timing are discussed around training, events and the person’s preferences. The label does not guarantee better performance, injury prevention or faster recovery.
Pressure · Stretch · Fascia
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Deep Tissue Massage
ディープティシューマッサージDeep tissue massage
A name for manual work that attends to muscle and fascia through slow movements and sustained contact. Explanations vary by school and practitioner. Deep does not mean a contest of strength or that enduring pain is desirable.
Pressure · Fascia · Elbow
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