Take time to replenish your own energy reserves with these simple moments of restoration that can happen right in your massage room in between sessions.
November 1, 2026
As autumn starts to transition into winter, the days grow shorter and the world outside begins to slow down. For you, however, this time of year can bring a very different rhythm. Your clients might be using up their flexible spending account dollars before they expire, applying gift certificates or seeking refuge from holiday stress—and your schedule can quickly fill up.
During the season of giving, when you already give so much of yourself, it’s essential you take time to replenish your own energy reserves. Simple moments of restoration can happen right in your massage room in between sessions.
Time needed: 1 minute
What to do: Stand comfortably in your space, letting your weight settle evenly into both feet. Rub your palms together rapidly for 15 to 20 seconds, focusing on the sound and the growing warmth between your hands. Once your hands feel warm, wrap one gently around your opposite wrist. Using light friction strokes, sweep from your wrist up to your elbow. Repeat this warming sweep on your other arm.
Why it helps: As late fall temperatures drop, peripheral blood flow naturally decreases. This can leave your hands, wrists and forearms feeling stiff before you even begin a session. Generating surface heat encourages circulation and warms the tissue around your finger and wrist joints so your hands are ready to work before your client is on the table.
Related CE: Healthy Hands: How to Properly Take Care of Forearms, Wrists and Hands
Time needed: 30 seconds
What to do: In the transition right after a client leaves your room, stand tall near your table. Breathe in through your nose, then follow it immediately with a second, quick inhalation to fill your lungs completely. Hold that fullness for a beat. Then, release a long, audible sigh through your mouth, letting your shoulders drop away from your ears. Repeat this cycle three times.
Why it helps: Holding space for clients who carry physical and emotional tension can lead you to shallow breathing or mirroring their stress without noticing. The double inhale reinflates the small air sacs in your lungs, and the extended exhale slows your breathing rate. A few rounds between clients clears your mental state so you don’t carry a client’s energy into your next session.
Time needed: 2 minutes
What to do: Stand facing a wall, about an arm’s length away, and place your hands flat against it for gentle support. Step your right foot back into a shallow lunge, keeping your back heel lifted. Gently tuck your tailbone under, pulling your hip slightly upward, and slowly press your hips forward until you feel the stretch across the front of your right hip. Take five slow breaths into your lower belly. Then step forward and switch sides.
Why it helps: Standing, lunging and driving leverage through your lower body all day can leave your psoas and deep hip flexors shortened, pulling your pelvis out of alignment—which can fatigue your lower back. This stretch can help restore pelvic balance and relax your lower back.
A comforting evening tonic for winding down after a long day at the table.
Ingredients:
To make: Combine the tart cherry juice, water and ginger in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring it to a gentle simmer for about five minutes, allowing the ginger to infuse into the juice. Pour into your favorite mug, stir in your sweetener if you’d like and sip slowly.
Why it’s great: Tart cherry juice contains naturally occurring melatonin along with anthocyanins, and small studies have linked it to less muscle soreness after physically demanding days and modest improvements in sleep. Combined with the warmth of fresh ginger, it can boost circulation to your hands and feet as the autumn nights grow colder. It’s a small ritual, but a good signal to your body that the workday is done.
Self-Care for Massage Therapists: Injury Prevention
Get an overview of self-care best practices and how you can incorporate them into your massages to help keep you healthy now and for years to come.
Self-Care For Sustaining A Career
Your well-being is important, so nurture yourself for a more balanced work life.