Certainly when one thinks of methods of relaxation and body care, massage rarely comes first. In our country it has been imprinted as a luxury practice aimed at relaxation. But the truth is far from this statement ...

Massage is an ancient practice, the benefits of which were discovered by chance, and later when studied in more depth, the multiple positive effects were found in the body. It refers to a series of specific movements at the appropriate points and pressure points of the body, where they are overloaded and underused. Everyday work and friction in the workplace create muscular knots and overworked muscle groups. But this is not a problem only for those who do manual work, since office work or long standing workouts have the same or worse effects on our bodies.

The average worker who does not have the luxury of daily exercise and spends many hours in the chair, over time, creates muscle imbalances. In most cases, due to bad posture, a phenomenon that is almost impossible to bear in mind. So muscles end up in unfavorable positions and support angles, which over time affect the muscular system as a whole, resulting in stiffness, lack of mobility, slowness of movement and chronic muscle pain. For many, this situation makes us feel natural because we are used to minor pains and discomfort, so we ignore them. After a proper massage, however, one of the most common expressions is "I wish I had done it earlier."

Athletes, on the other hand, may benefit from regular exercise and its benefits to the body, however, are difficult to avoid. Every sport is inevitably characterized by few or many injuries and muscle asymmetries. For example, tennis exercises much more on one side of the body, while cycling puts the upper body in a bent position. The examples are endless but the body is disproportionate in every case. Combined with the difficulties of working, one understands that every type of lifestyle leaves its mark on our body.

In addition to muscle relaxation, muscle ligation, flexibility restoration and general relaxation, massage has many hidden benefits. Indicatively, some of them are:

• Improve blood circulation, thereby blood cells more efficiently.
• the fight against chronic pain, eg arthritis, sciatica, muscle spasms.
• Reduces stress (cortisol), improves mood and boosts serotonin production (joy hormone) since pain affects both of these hormones.

A good frequency for athletes is 1-4 times a month (depending on how many hours they train), while non-athletes can get all the benefits of massage with 1-2 sessions per month.