Matrix Sports Massage

I sponsored the 275 mile Buckeye Trail Little Loop Challenge because our trail system is one of the best in the whole United States! Anyone who wants to cover a few miles of the trail to help complete the challenge you can register here: https://www.buckeyetrail.org/LittleLoopChallenge.php/ Hike day is September 27th!

Many thanks to the 2025 sponsors of the Little Loop Challenge! Please visit these businesses and utilize the services of these individuals who have recognized the value of the Buckeye Trail in northeast Ohio and have supported it with their sponsorships.

$250 Sponsors

Arcaro's Car Care
Zappitelli's Piazza, Pasta & Parm
Appalachian Outfitters

$100 Sponsors

Matrix Sports Massage
Walkinman Tim Murphy
Aligned Chiropractic
Painesville Credit Union
Lake Erie College
Western Reserve Racing
Dr. Willem Van Heeckeren
Precision Orthopedic Specialties, Inc.
Dr. Henry Vucetic
Steele Mansion
Citizens Bank

Paying Ohio my February sales taxes, as one does on a Saturday night.🙋‍♀️Cool thing I noticed is that now about 30% of my sales are tax exempt because those clients have gotten a prescription for massage. The state of Ohio doesn't collect sales tax for massage therapy if the client has a prescription = 7.25% savings every session for a year. Do your budget a favor a get yourself a prescription!

A deep tissue recovery massage is the perfect holiday gift for your active family and friends! Customizable e-gift certificates are available online at www.matrixsportsmassage.com. ❤️

Day 1 in the NEW OFFICE complete! Will be finishing up the decor details over the next month, but happy to be seeing clients again!!

Yes, to foam rolling vastus lateralis! But if you are rolling your lateral thigh in the hopes of fixing a tight IT band, well, there are better ways to do that. Here's why:

Stop 🛑 foam rolling your ITBand! It’s meant to be tight. It’s not a muscle. Sharing this again from @instituteofhumananatomy #foamroller #foamrolling #softtissuetherapy #itbandsyndrome #itband #itbandpain #itbandissues

There was a post in a large Facebook group by a therapist asking if it's okay to cup a pregnant client. The amount of therapists that said pregnancy is a contraindication is shocking. 

The idea that cupping is any different than massage therapy in relation to pregnancy is probably wrong. I must say, that there are some real cautions with treating a risky pregnancy. Or a pregnancy that is complicated by other health concerns. And if you are a newer therapist, then It makes sense that you would choose not to treat. But pathologizing pregnancy does no one any good. 

There are no effects to the lymphatic system from cupping or massage that are not present when going through daily life. Last I looked, most pregnant women are allowed to exercise, and exercise - the rhythmic contraction of the skeletal muscles - helps drive lymph capacity. Otherwise, there is no danger, cupping does not increase the amount of metabolites or anything else that is in the tissue already, so there cannot be danger of harm from there. More lymphatic fluid coming to the circulatory system is not a danger to the expectant mother unless there is another pathology happening. The body has a great capacity to filter out waste, I have never read a study that says this is dangerous (unless it is - if there are other health conditions). 

Stagnant blood is a Chinese Medicine technical term, and unless you can define it, don't use it. We do not have the same idea in Western physiology, so please don't make a client believe their blood is not circulating. It is not helpful and makes the profession sound bad. 

It is possible for a pregnant woman to have more blood clots. Absolutely. And she will be under care if that happens. Apply cupping with techniques that don't bruise her and you will be fine. Again, this is no different than exercise. Or just being alive. If a woman who is pregnant hits her shin on a coffee table, do you lobby to remove coffee tables in case she bruises? Of course not, yet that is exactly what this argument is. Let's do better. Let's question our teachers. Let's read some research instead of making wild claims....

We are our #1 vehicles.🏃‍♀️🤸‍♂️💯

Sending a HUGE congratulations to Meg and her hiking partners on completing the Buckeye Trail! For those that don't know how big the Buckeye Trail is, that is over 1400 miles 😲What an amazing accomplishment!! 👏👏👏
The Buckeye Trail Association

🙂

The new Far Infrared Mat is getting rave reviews! From people, not snowmen, of course. :)

Happy weekend, everyone!

The body is SO. COOL.

It's been understood for more than a millennium that the body alternates between predominantly using the left and right nostrils to breathe -- in anywhere from 30 minute to 4 hour cycles. This wasn’t verified experimentally until the late 1800’s. At the time, no one really knew what it was for and offered multiple dubious explanations. What has since been learned is that the body does this to help regulate a number of bodily functions and processes. Air taken through the right nostril stimulates the sympathetic nervous system, increasing circulation, cortisol levels, blood pressure, heart rate, etc. Air taken through the left nostril stimulates the parasympathetic nervous system, lowering blood pressure, heart rate, cooling the body and reducing anxiety. And to answer the obvious question, yes -- selectively breathing through one nostril or the other CAN be used therapeutically.

Client: “It’s a pink camo kind of day.” 😁❤️❤️❤️ RockTape

Kinesiology taping for functional movement is one tool I use to help injuries heal more quickly. It addresses pain and edema, neuromuscular cuing, and postural issues. And it stays on for days so the injury has more time to benefit!