Have you heard of Gua Sha?
Happy Collect Rocks Day!
I was interested in getting after tight spots in wrists and ankles and elbows, but the foam roller wasn’t doing the trick.
Too big.
I turned to another idea: Gua Sha.
Gua Sha is an Eastern practice whereby you use tools and lotion to massage small areas that might be too little for a big foam roller.
Traditional Gua Sha tools include water buffalo horn and jade. Have some of that at home? 🙂
Maybe you’ve seen jade rollers for Gua Sha style facials…
At any rate, you want something firm and somewhat smooth for your tool of choice.
I think river rocks work great, so I grab one out of my garden.
Western medicine took Gua Sha and re-named it SYSTM and ASTYM, and they use plastic spatulas and other shaped tools to accomplish the same thing.
Further, I saw a YouTube video where a man took a jar of Vick’s VapoRub and used the lid from the rub to do the rubbing.
You get the idea: lots of ordinary items around the house are good choices.
So, if you have a little tight spot in a little area, you just put lotion on it, take your river rock, and dig in towards the heart.
I demonstrated this in the video above for tennis elbow, and hope it helps for those tiny areas that need a little loosening up love!
Happy FriYAY and Rosh Hashanah for those who celebrate!
Here’s to balance, strength, and happiness,
🙂 Laura
