Want to lose weight?
Updated: Dec 4, 2020
Getting regular massage can help with achieving weight loss. What is regular massage therapy? The recommendation is weekly preferably and/or monthly. Massage therapy allows the body to relax thereby
decreasing cortisol levels. Combined with diet and exercise your weight problems will start to disappear.
"Of all the weight-loss techniques out there, the idea that regular massages could help you shed pounds is definitely among the most appealing. It seems too good to be true—all you have to do is lie there and the weight starts to fall off? Well, that’s not exactlyhow it works.
“In my 15 years as a massage therapist, I've helped a lot of people lose some serious weight,” says Wil Lewis, massage program director at New York City’s Chillhouse. But he’s quick to add that massages alone aren’t what helped clients lose weight. Rather, his methods set clients up for success by putting them in the proper mental and physical space to effectively diet and exercise.
Weight loss can often be seen as a tough and miserable pursuit that hinges on pain and suffering, says Lewis. But when massage is incorporated into that weight-loss plan, there’s suddenly an element of self-love and care. In his experience, Lewis says that massage therapy can make the process of weight loss more positive, which encourages people to stick with it. Plus, a massage is an excellent non-food reward for when you reach your goals.
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A more tangible way massage can help you lose weight is it can make exercise much easier. If you’re physically uncomfortable moving, weight loss isn’t going to come easily. “Nothing can be more de-motivating than being bedridden for six to eight weeks while you heal an Achilles tear or a torn labrum,” says Lewis. “Massage therapy keeps muscles tuned up, eliminates the tension before it turns into an injury, and reduces delayed onset muscle soreness. When it feels good to be in your body, it makes it easier and more fun to sculpt your body.”
Reshmi Srinath, M.D. and Assistant Professor of Medicine, Endocrinology, Diabetes and Bone Disease at Mt. Sinai agrees that for those with chronic pain, massage can alleviate that pain and a generally improve lifestyle. Improved quality of life can lead to people making better choices in regard to food and activities, she says. While there aren’t controlled, randomized studies showing a direct link between massage therapy and weight loss, there is data showing that pain alleviation lowers stress levels, she says. And as we know, stress can be a major contributing factor to weight gain. Another positive effect of massage therapy is that it can help people wean off pain medication, another factor that can lead to weight gain, she says.