Chucking & Rolling Massage Techniques

Imagine the sensation of floating in wave swept seas of aromatic oils as massage floods the tissue with healing lymph and provides the body with a sense of deep and lasting relaxation. Therapeutic massage kneads the muscles with chucking and rolling techniques that manipulate and soften muscle fibers. These strokes increase blood flow to the tissue and reduce muscle adhesions. The body begins to relax as the tissue softens.

Skin Rolling

The practice of pushing and pulling the skin is an Asian technique called Tui Na.

Skin rolling is a friction technique used to release tissue fibers between the skin and muscle. Grab the tissue between the pads of the fingers, pick up and roll the skin underneath itself and walk along one side of the back, similar to rolling meat into a tortilla. Lift the skin and shake gently before rolling to release it from the underlying tissue. Working slowly across the back from the top of the shoulders down to the sacrum, this stroke warms the skin and prepares it for deeper massage work.

Chucking

Applied to the limbs, chucking loosens tension in the joints and resets muscle spindle cells and golgi tendons in the joints. This technique reduces tension and allows the muscle to lengthen. With the client in a supine position, facing the ceiling, begin rocking the leg at the hip. Cupping the hands, scoop the skin and muscle, lift and drop the tissue in a continuous motion over the sides and tops of limbs. Similar to the hand motions required to keep the body afloat, chuck the muscle by rolling the hands inward and upward along the tissue. Continue chucking the muscle tissue all the way down to the feet, paying specific attention to tension in the hips, knees and ankle joints.

Friction

Rocking the body causes muscle spindles in the tissue to reset and relax.

Chucking and rolling are forms of massage friction techniques. Friction improves the functions of cells in the skin, muscles and organs and aids in their regeneration. Absorbing the fluid around joints, chucking and rolling strokes direct blood and lymph. Washing over loosened muscle fibers, lymph flushes cellular debris trapped in the tissue. Two types of friction-resistance techniques work the muscle and skin. One stroke warms and prepares the skin for deeper work, such as skin rolling and another activates receptors in the muscle and tissue. The latter technique activates receptor switches in the joints and muscles that govern their length, flexibility, tension and resistance.

Kneading

Massage as a system of varied technique has many different names and definitions for its strokes. Some techniques use kneading or chucking, wringing, twisting and rocking in the same way that deeper friction strokes work. Kneading is different from skin rolling because kneading releases individual muscle fibers and skin rolling only releases the superficial layers of the skin.

Similar to kneading bread, lift, grab and squeeze the muscle so that it folds in on itself. This technique can be applied to the torso, legs, arms, shoulders, anywhere that the therapist has access to manipulate tissue, in good taste. Chucking might precede and follow wringing, rocking and rolling techniques.