This is a question I am asked frequently, and it’s a difficult one to answer. It really does have to be experienced to understand. When I first trained and began massaging, I heard a lot of Lomi Lomi practitioners saying that it was, “The Rolls Royce of massage”. I tended to agree, but couldn’t help but wonder if we were all biased. I have since massaged so many people who had never experienced a Lomi Lomi massage prior to the session and left saying words to the effect of, “That was the most amazing massage I have ever experienced, and I’ve had a lot of bodywork.”
Beside the fact that the massage itself is unique, it’s a very versatile technique. It flows and adapts to the needs of the individual on the table, so I’ve never given two massages which looked just the same. I have massaged people who came simply to rejuvenate and recalibrate from stress in their lives; People who were going a million miles an hour who texted me the next day to say that they had had the best sleep of their lives, or that they had napped for two hours after the session. This might not seem a big deal, but it was.
I’ve had people in with whom I have worked in very remedial ways. Just this past weekend I worked with a lady who was experiencing great pain radiating down her legs. She has several small children and often ends up carrying more than one of them. I worked deep tissue and pressure points through her hips and back to provide relief and to realign her body-something which Lomi Lomi is well suited to, as use of the elbows allows me to get right in there!
One thing that unites all the sessions I’ve given is that I begin with a similar set of strokes-Long, fluid, rhythmic strokes encompassing much of the body which allow the body and mind to begin to relax, as well as providing me the opportunity to check in with the body. Where is tight? Where is out of alignment? Is it very specific muscles which are tight, or does it have more to do with the fascial connections between muscles?
This dictates how I flow from here. Perhaps it means using long, strong and slower strokes which begin to open up lines of fascia, perhaps targeting more isolated areas, using elbows and hands to provide releas and realignment. The beauty of this is that if it is deep tissue work that we’re doing, you’re already more relaxed and able to fully receive and release into the work being done.
Lomi Lomi is undoubtedly a remarkable massage that can be tailored to your needs on the day, whether it be deep relaxation, deep tissue work or deep emotional release. (How we store the emotions we experience in our bodies is a topic for another day. Needless to say that you have experienced this if you’ve ever been through a fraught or emotional time and found your body all tied up in knots.) The one thing I can say for certain, and the one point I always come back to is this: If you haven’t experienced a Lomi Lomi, you really must!