American Massage Therapy Association^®

Glossary of Massage Terms

Massage therapy - a profession in which the practitioner applies manual techniques, and may apply adjunctive therapies, with the intention of positively affecting the health and well-being of the client.

Massage - a manual soft tissue manipulation, and includes holding, causing movement, and/or applying pressure to the body.

Acupressure (also called Shiatsu) – traditional Chinese technique of applying finger pressure to special points that lie along acupuncture meridians.

Chair Massage – see “On-site Massage.”

Cranio-Sacral^® – a gentle touch method of evaluating and enhancing the functioning of the central nervous systems

Deep Tissue – a technique that releases chronic patterns of tension in the body through slow strokes and deep finger pressure on contracted areas, either following or going across the grains of muscles, tendons and fascia.

Effleurage – a smooth, gliding stroke, generally used in a Swedish massage, using both hands to relax soft tissue.

Friction – the deepest of Swedish massage strokes, it encompasses deep, circular movements applied to soft tissue causing the underlying layers of tissue to rub against each other. This causes an increase in blood flow to the massaged area and can breakdown scar tissue.

Hot Stone – a massage technique, used in conjunction with other modalities, in which warmed stones are placed on points, such as acupuncture points, and sometimes used as massage tools. 

Massage Modality or Technique – a kind of massage, such as Swedish, deep tissue or myofascial release.

Meridians- the invisible channels of energy flow in the body according to Asian medical systems.

Myofascial Release – a form of bodywork using long stretching strokes that seeks to rebalance the body by releasing tension in the fascia/connective tissue.

On-site Massage (often called chair massage) – a type of massage administered while the client is clothed and seated in a specially-designed chair. It allows the massage therapist to massage the muscles of the back, neck, shoulders, arms and hands.

Petrissage (also called kneading) – the squeezing, rolling and kneading of the muscles that usually follows effleurage during Swedish massage.

Reflexology – a technique that uses pressure to points on the feet, hands and ears thought to correspond, or "reflex," to all areas of the body.

Shiatsu (also called acupressure) – a Japanese system of applying finger pressure to specific points that lie along specific meridians.

Sports Massage – a kind of massage therapy that focuses on muscle systems relevant to a particular sport. It involves different massage approaches while an athlete is in training, during sports activity and after a sport event. 

Swedish Massage – a system of long strokes, kneading and friction techniques on the more superficial layers of the muscles, combined with active and passive movements of the joints. The four strokes of Swedish massage are effleurage, petrissage, friction and tapotement.

Tandem – a massage in which two therapists work on one client at the same time, sometimes called four hands massage.

Tapotement – a Swedish massage technique executed with cupped hands, fingers or the edge of the hand with short, alternating taps to the client.

Thai Massage – a technique in which the therapist uses his or her body to move the massage recipient into a series of poses, and includes muscle compression, joint mobilization and acupressure.

Trigger Point – irritated area in muscle fibers that when compressed may elicit pain or a twitching response.   

Trigger Point Therapy (also known as Myotherapy or Neuromuscular Therapy) – a method that applies concentrated finger pressure to trigger points to break cycles of spasm and pain.