FADS TRENDS AND GIMMICKS
Here are some definitions:
A fad is any form of behavior that develops among a large
population and is collectively followed with enthusiasm for some period,
generally as a result of the behavior's being perceived as novel in some way.[1]
A fad is said to "catch on" when the number of people adopting it
begins to increase rapidly. The behavior will normally fade quickly once the
perception of novelty is gone.[1]
Trends
|
1. tendency: a general tendency, movement, or direction 2. prevailing
style: a current fashion or mode
Gimmick
In marketing language, a gimmick is a unique or quirky
special feature that makes something "stand out" from its
contemporaries. However, the special feature is typically thought to be of
little relevance or use. Thus, a gimmick is a special feature for the sake of
having a special feature
Using these meanings I find myself wondering on this first
day of 2012. Last week I spent time bringing
myself up to date exploring what others in the massage and bodywork field are
targeting. The trend certainly seems to
be that fascia is the explanation for just about every soft tissue issue and
the target for bodywork methods. I
believe there is validity in this trend and am excited about the Fascia
Conference in Vancouver. However, in my
explorations I also noticed that the idea of fascia and massage/ bodywork is
leading to fads and even worse- gimmicks.
Oh no— Please no! Why oh why do we do this? Just when some evidence based on research is
beginning to explain some of the underlying mechanisms that massage may influence
it gets mucked up with gimmicks and feels like a fad. Because many of my massage clients are
athletes I find myself watching ESPN a lot.
There is a segment on one of the shows called “COME ON MAN”. To get the meaning you have to say the phrase
just right but I hope you get the
idea.
The concepts of massage affecting connective tissues is not
new
Taylor described connective tissue methods in his book in
1887. Check it out. http://books.google.ca/books?id=vlqBsuzSOiEC&dq=massage&pg=PP2#v=onepage&q&f=false
Dr.
Oakley Smith, founded the science of Naprapathy in 1907 after developing a
systematic treatment method of evaluating and healing damaged connective
tissues.
In 1920,
James B. Mennell described how manual
methods stretched connective tissue, which affected tendons and scar tissue.
Elizabeth
Dicke in Germany in 1929 described Connective
Tissue Therapy (CTT) or Connective Tissue Massage (CTM), also known as
Bindegewebs massage.
Ida P.
Rolf, Ph.D. formalized structural Integration methods that work on the connective tissue (fascia) to release,
realign and balance the whole body
Dr..
Chaitow has been discussing connective tissue and massage implications with me
for over 20 years. Tom Myers has been
teaching about myofascial based work for years.
It is not
going to do the massage profession to get any more faddy (wonder if that is a
word) or gimmicky. The human body has
not changed very much is thousands of years and massage has been around since
someone rubbed a hurt and it felt better.
Massage helps people feel better and we are just beginning to unravel
some of the reasons that it works.
Massage creates mechanical forces that change the shape and pliability of
soft tissue, squish fluids around and stimulate the nervous system and likely
the endocrine system. You need to really
understand anatomy and physiology to be a good massage therapist and you have
to do a lot of massage sessions learning from each one to be a great massage
therapist. An experienced teacher can
help you learn efficiently and possibility bypass some of the trial and error
learning by sharing what they know. Massage
is not fancy, faddy, trendy or gimmicky . It is like good nutritious food- good selection of simple, minimally processes,
nutritious, clean food with just a
little sweet and a little salt and a little butter to top it off. You spoil it
if you mess with it too much.
“COME ON-
MAN”
Thank you for this post. I get really tired of this "next best thing". I work in the athletic world in part and I see these (bodywork) sponsors at the races, maybe an article (?) if we are lucky, and now it's the next best thing. Some of these athletes are attracted to shiny things, I feel bad for them in some ways that some of them are so easily persuaded. I understand the willingness for the athlete to support the sponsor of a race, however, when you look at the business platform of some of these certifying agencies, it looks like a buy in. I pulled my Yellow Pages ad because it did not pay off. (It was pretty and shiny) At this point I am resisting the urge to buy a new certification to keep up with the newbies in the soft tissue field. On the other hand I do have a line of study in the works, for the information, not the bling.
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