Discover Andrea’s toolbox

Hello and welcome to my Tools box blog post.
Here I am going to give some information about what I use, how I use it, and why.

Let’s start with my favorite of all the Fire Cupping!

Glass cupping is great, as it is transparent and allows me to prevent leaving cupping marks when requested.
Fire cupping combines the benefit of thermotherapy with the simple suction technique. I love to receive this myself and I often go to other therapists to get it done on my back.
The heat calms the mind and relaxes the muscles. With enough oil, I am able to provide an amazing sliding cupping session that is comparable to a great hot stones massage. Instead of a heavy stone, you get a gentle and warm decompression that, generally, puts to sleep the most stressed of my clients.
Fire cupping is best during wintertime and can be used on any fleshy and muscular area of the body. Contraindications are few, life varicose vein, blood clotting condition, or when the person is on blood thinner medications.

Kinesiology RockTape, is it just a placebo?

The tape is a piece of cotton with glue applied in a precise pattern that has no medication in it.
Anecdotally, since the 70’s so many people have found this product beneficial. Scientifically, it seems to have little to no function.
The way I use it is the following. I work with a client with manual therapy and other tools and after reassessing the person I decide if to use it.
Kinesio tape offers input to the nervous system through the skin, the intensity of the signal change depending on how much we stretch the tape. Thanks to its design this wearable tool can stay in place for three to five days even when the client shower.
The most common contraindications are not to apply this over moulds, or sensitive, or damaged skin. Anyone can take a course on how to use it and how to apply Kinesio tape, but it is my professional opinion that the first application should be performed by a professional, like a massage therapist or physiotherapist.
Wrong applications are not dangerous, but they will likely be uncomfortable for whom is wearing them.
I do find the use of RockTape very beneficial to those who like wearing it. Those who are very sensitive to things on their skin might find this annoying.

RockPods Babies!

RockPods are a latex/silicon based cupping that we use during active therapy. In other words, we apply the pods in an area like the shoulder, or around the knee and the client performs a movement.
Combining the suction and the movement we work the peripheral nervous system through the skin. This is known as a myofascial technique and is great to recover after an injury that involves the inflammation of the joint.
The contraindications are the same as other cuppings. The beauty of the pods is that you can buy them online and use them as a self-care tool.

Let’s RockFloss the pain!

In 2018 I heard of Voo-Doo Floss but it never really became a great sell. In 2019 I started to see sportsmen and women in the CrossFit world using something similar but called RockFloss.
RockFloss is a reusable latex band that applied correctly will deliver compression and create a restriction of the blood flow in the area.
Personally, I did not read any very scientific reason to use it, but it reminded me of blood flow restriction training (bfrt). BFRT helps athletes exuberate metabolic stress to the target muscle group. That allowed them to use lighter loads and improve performance and technique without risking needless injuries.
I start using this product in 2018 myself, especially after multiple 90 minutes massage sessions that would cause my forearms to ache. I just say that so far since I started using this on clients in 2019 I only had a couple of people out of hundreds not loving it.
RockFloss is great for pre-workout as a warm-up as well as a coll-down tool. The benefits of this product are immediate relief feeling from stress-related tightness, and the contraindications are basic.
Do not use it where the skin is damaged, on open wounds, if you are on blood thinner medication, or if you are in danger of blood clotting.

RockBlades

RockBlades can be tough as they can be gentle, what matter is the intention. A therapist’s intention will always be to assist the natural healing process of the body.
Scraping techniques have many names but are best known as Guasha and can help a great deal.
I use this intimidating tool very gently to ease and relax your mind through your nervous system. It can be a bit uncomfortable at first, but this technique is in no way as aggressive as deep tissue, or a sports massage.
RockBlade tools are so simple yet efficient to handle, and I find them easy to use with people who are very sedentary as well as with very active athletes.
The technique taught by RockTape requires the tool to be in contact with the skin. Personally, I got some results even using them over leggings and sportswear.
During winter I like to keep this tool warm as the heath feels pleasurable and relaxing.

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