How do you do a TFL massage that’s detailed without killing your thumbs and fingers?
1. Pinpoint the exact area in the TFL that you want to work with a massage tool.
2. Guide the massage tool with your non-holding hand as you press, pull, reciprocate and/or vibrate that exact area until you create the desired effect that you’re looking for.
My favorite massage tools for the TFL are simple (and inexpensive), but effective.
They are a T-bar…
…and an L-bar.
1/3 of the Trick
The T-bar is an important tool for neuromuscular massage (NMT), and is waaaay better than thumbs for doing detail work on tough to reach muscles like the multifidi and rotatores deep in the lamina groove.
But when I started practicing NMT, I soon learned that if I gripped the tool too hard, my hand hurt.
Over the years, I’ve developed ways to grip the T-bar that are easy on my hands. You can check them out on this post, Tools Can Save Your Hands.
The T-bar was better than thumbs for precision for sure, but I’m greedy and I wanted something even more precise.
2/3 of the Trick
So I went to my dad and asked him to make some tools for me that would allow me to work muscles super-precisely. Here’s an early model of something that he made that didn’t work out so well.
Not pictured is the massage tool that was about 18 inches long and rested between my shoulder and armpit. This was a removable tip that you could put on the end of it.
Scary looking, huh?
Promise I never made anyone bleed.
However, this one was a winner!
The stem diameter was narrower than the T-Bar which gave me greater precision.
And the stem was offset (the tool sort of looks like an “L”; that’s why I call it an L-Bar).
That allowed me to get into tight spaces like the neck.
The Whole Trick
As my Dad’s health deteriorated over the years, I backed off asking him to help me with new designs. Then one day I was teaching a class on delivering deep pressure without hurting yourself.
I was demonstrating the tools and explained that I use a massage tool as if it were an extension of my hand.
Matt Johnson, who was taking the class, took me up on what I had said—literally. He designed a tool with a longer stem that actually extended beyond my finger tips and thumbs. This modification allowed me to access hard to get to areas, like the TFL, with precision and ease.
By the way, Matt makes customized massage tools. If you want him to make one for you, let me know, and I’ll put you in touch with him.
Now, I had the whole trick: a T-Bar and L-Bar that allowed me to deliver precise pressure with my fingers simply acting as guides (no strain).
Detail work—deep work included—was now a walk in the park.
TFL Massage
So, let’s put these tools into action. In this video I’m using a long stem T-bar to pinpoint tender spots in the TFL.
Wait, Mark, isn’t that supposed to be an L-bar?
It doesn’t matter if it’s a T-bar or L-bar as long as the stem is long enough to provide enough clearance between the handle and the TFL so that the tool can be held effortlessly.
Here we go!
[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-G7QQuM8V4s[/embedyt]
Rotatores and Multifidi Massage
The deep rotatores and multifidi are no are no problem with a T-bar or L-bar.
In this video I tackle traps and rhomboids, too.
[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3yoHT9EM0Lw[/embedyt]
Using a massage tool, like the T-bar or L-bar is not hard, but it does take some practice.
Here’s a recap of what you need to do:
TFL Massage and Rotatores/Multifidi Massage Recap
- Pinpoint the area you want to work with a T-bar, L-bar or massage tool of your choice.
- Use a guide hand to sense pressure and support the massage tool as you press, pull, reciprocate, and/or vibrate the area with the massage tool.
The Massage Tool Era
I believe it’s a new era in massage. We no longer have to accept that pain, injury and burnout are the natural consequences of working hard at massage.
Massage tools like the T-bar and L-bar are go-to tools for me.
But they are not the only tools that save my hands and help me do better work.
In fact, I take no less than 7 tools into a massage with me, like this one:
Okay, so I’m a massage tool addict.
But here’s the advantage that massage tools give me:
- They save my fingers and thumbs.
- I can access difficult areas that require a precise and focused pressure better than I can with fingers.
- I have more tissue contact options than I do with fingers.
How to Use Massage Tools Fearlessly and Effectively (2.5 CEU)
If you want to learn how to use massage tools so that you can do more massages, make more money and save your fingers and upper-body, then check out How to Use Massage Tools (Fearlessly and Effectively).
It’s an online, home-study course that you can take at your own pace. In other words, you can practice what you learn in the class as you go along because you have life-time access to the course.
Yes, it is a NCBTMB-approved 2.5 CEU course, so you can get some of your continuing education credits, but more importantly, it’s a practical course with lots of videos and real massage-life applications. Let me know what you think:-)
