1. The correct body position to use massage
Massage gun is suitable for massaging large muscle groups of the human body, such as thigh muscle group, arm muscle group, and so on. It is not suitable for parts with thin human muscles or close to organs, otherwise, it is very easy to cause accidental injury. In addition, the massage gun cannot be used to improve joint pain. Incorrect use may damage the fascia. It is also not recommended to use the massage gun to massage the body parts such as the carotid or femoral artery, chest and abdomen, and armpits.
2. How big force to massage?
Using the massage gun too hard or for a long time can also cause injuries. Under high-frequency vibration, the force first passes through the skin, fat layer, and fascia layer, and then enters the muscle layer; the force passes through each layer of tissue, and the intensity decreases gradually. The skin, fat layer, and fascia layer are the first to be stressed. If the force is too strong, it is easy to bruise the surface tissues and even slightly tear the muscles.
The massage gun is only suitable for muscles, and joints, bones, and ligaments receive high-frequency force from the massage gun, and they may eventually be injured due to excessive load. A man had ankle pain after running, so he relaxed with a massage gun, and the ankle swelled the next day. The ankle muscles are thin, and the massage gun is like a hammer that keeps hitting the ankle, finally hurting the fascia.
3. Common wrong using way of massage gun to avoid:
- Press directly on the pain point.
- Pressing the same pain point for too long may cause damage to soft tissues and nerves, and it will take more time to recover later.
- Stretch before relaxing the pain point.
- Failure to pay attention to the position of the spine during massage, especially when using a foam roller, twisting the spine may cause injury. You can’t deliberately use the roller to lower your back, because there are no extra bones to protect the spine.
- The massage gun should not move too fast, which will make the brain not have enough time to receive information and relax the muscles. You should massage slowly to allow the superficial fascia and muscles to adapt.