Massage 按摩， 推拿 etc

[Silent]

I'ld like to know what kind of chinese massages there are and the differences and purposes of these massages.

 

I know several people with TCM knowledge are hanging around these forums so maybe someone can give a short lecture about the different chinese massages? A link to a good explanation will do too of course but I was unable to find it. Search results were cluttered with all kinds of (dubious) massage parlours (so at least I know where to try them out:))

[abcdefg]

I wrote a couple of posts addressing massage vocabulary a while back. They might still be of help as a starting point.

 

http://www.chinese-forums.com/index.php?/topic/36691-massage-vocab/

 

Also, I found a link to some Chinese-Pod lessons that was first posted by another member. Might be useful if you have a membership there.

 

http://www.chinese-forums.com/index.php?/topic/36691-massage-vocab/page-2

[abcdefg]

Quote

I'd like to know what kind of chinese massages there are and the differences and purposes of these massages.

 

Looks like I wrote that last bit, cited above, about 2 years ago. I've continued getting regular massages both here in Kunming and as I travel around China. Sometimes they are "preventive maintenance" 保健 and sometimes they are to treat this or that acute or chronic problem.

 

I don't have TCM training, so I can't write a good academic essay on the subject. But I usually talk with the masseur and ask questions, so I've learned a little over the years. By now the people I visit regularly know that I'm interested in the subject, so they explain more than they would ordinarily.

 

One thing I've learned is that medical massage, done by a qualified TCM practitioner, can be more comprehensive and include modalities you are unlikely to find in a typical neighborhood massage shop with a tattered meridian chart on the wall.

 

Medical massage can also include myofascial release techniques and mobilizations/manipulations that are similar to what an osteopathic or chiropractic physician in the West might do. Furthermore, it's often coupled with the application of other physical modalities.

 

Rates have also gone up. Even in Kunming, I usually pay 50 RMB per hour now for basic 推拿 at unassuming neighborhood places. Of course any kind of service will cost more in a high-class "salon" or someplace aimed at a foreign clientele such as the massage service of an international hotel.

[rezaf]

Tuina which is also called anmo is one of the branches of TCM and therefore uses the same principles that acupuncture and herbal medicine use for diagnosis and treatment. It is used for a wide range of muscular skeletal and internal illnesses therefore a tuina practitioner needs to be familiar with both anatomy and TCM theories as well as the meridians and their points. Tuina can be a stand alone treatment or it can be a used along acupuncture/muxibustion and herbal medicine. Also some practitioners use a variety of topical ointments and oils based on their knowledge of herbal medicine to treat specific conditions（膏摩）. Tuina uses a wide range of techniques that can be similar to other types of massage, pressure points or joint adjustments as well as Qigong(neigong) based techniques that require internal training similar to how internal martial artists train.

Different schools of Tuina usually favor certain techniques for example yizhichan but the principles are similar.

[Silent]

@abcdefg: The thread as I remember it is mainly about getting a massage. I'm more interested in the content of the massage. A bit of background info to the question. In China I once had a 盲人按摩. When getting it I expected a relaxing massage, it turned out quite rough, but the after effects were quite good. In Amsterdam and The Hague I always see a lot of Chinese massage parlours but my experience is that the massage tends to be quite unremarkable and they're more aimed at a happy end and sometimes plain for illegal prostitution. Recently I see more and more 推拿 advertised mostly in a more or less medical setting/TCM center. Yesterday I noticed that during my vacation one has opened up only a couple of streets away only advertising 推拿 with quite low prices and at first site without any medical setting so that triggered my question.

 

@rezaf: Do I understand correctly that from a TCM point of view 推拿 and 按摩 are interchangeable? They are not considered specific treatments but contain a range of treatments from a preventive (relaxing) treatment to highly medical treatments for specific complaints?

[rezaf]

推，拿，按，摩，... Are all names of specific techniques and tuina or anmo are umbrella names for a big system. Anmo is older and because of some historical reasons it was changed to tuina. Nowadays I think tuina is more common if you want to specifically refer to traditional Chinese massage.

As for pain there is always going to be some if you work on deeper levels of muscles and especially on the pressure points but in both tuina and acupuncture I don't think it should cause too much discomfort if the practitioner prepares the body layer by layer with patience. Personally by using herbal ointments that I prepare myself and heat as well as working gradually with rest periods in between I get much better results in treatments without causing too much pain. The problem is that nowadays many hospital tuina practitioners in China don't use ointments and only work through a lot of sheet or clothing and then start fighting with the body mainly because of budget and time limitations for changing and washing the sheets for each patient. On the other hand in spas where you pay more you can get some oil and skin touch but the practitioners usually don't have enough training in TCM and anatomy. Also people go to them mainly for relaxation not for treatment so the whole concept is different.

Another important thing for real tuina practitioners is martial arts training and I believe most of the good tuina doctors were also martial artists. For a tuina guy maybe it is not necessary to train the fighting part but certainly he needs some martial arts or qigong conditioning exercises for developing proper posture, power, penetration, hand sensitivity and smooth techniques.

I think at the end you get what you pay for but from my experience in China I think many tuina practitioners can get away with 敷衍了事 and since the prices are low you can't really complain. However here in Canada more people are willing to pay for a proper treatment which gives us a chance to do things the way they were supposed to be and on the other hand tcm competes with chiropracters, massage therapists, ... So you can't afford to neglect anything unless you charge very low prices which has also has its customers.

[Silent]

Rezaf, Thanks for the extensive answer. It's clearly a lot more complex then I thought.

[abcdefg]

Yesterday I noticed that during my vacation one has opened up only a couple of streets away only advertising 推拿 with quite low prices and at first site without any medical setting so that triggered my question.

 

What I've found (in China) is that you just about have to go in and look around or actually have a try before you can tell what sort of treatment will be on offer. Cannot tell from the outside. A sign saying 推拿 instead  of 按摩 doesn't signal a different level of proficiency or a more medical orientation, as I once mistakenly thought.

 

Skill can also differ a lot from one therapist to another, even inside the same shop.

 

As to it being complex and requiring training and knowledge, I agree with @Rezaf 100%. Here's a short video that illustrates the top 21 moves or strokes. If you want more about technique, the same practitioner has fairly detailed videos on treatment of the neck, lower back and so on. (Links on the page.)

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XBu_OaP9uSA

 

[rezaf]

YW. Personally I am beginning to like Tuina more than the other branches of TCM because I get to sense and treat the problems in a patient's body more accurately. Also using more Tuina enables me to use fewer needles. However some other practitioners don't prefer it because it takes too much time and effort whereas they can treat 3 or 4 patients at the same time if they just use acupuncture (although proper acupuncture also needs to be done step by step and needs spending more time on one patient).

[arreke]

Could you recommended some good massage in Beijing?