50 minute massages

[neil the grey wolf]

50 minute massages

I'm not keen on 50 minute massages, I actually prefer 75. With as much pain and stress as many of my clients are in, I feel I can do a much better job in 75. That being said, I do what I can in the time allowed.

I give 60 minute massages. I feel 50 is too short, and I can't give a full massage in that time, and advise that I cannot (although I once did a full body in 45, but that was a special case LOL)

As for time in between, 10 minutes is NOT enough for me. I can do maybe 2 in a row with 10 minutes in between, but before the 3rd I need a better break. Not that I can't do it, it just exhausts me too much. I've done it in the past, but for me personally, not an option.

I guess that's why I work for myself. ;-)

 

[Zok]

50 minute massages

Also, I didn't know so many schools always taught this way. I was taught a 60 min session in school, and before school always recieved 60 min, and always offered 60 min/ hr session (we also offer 30,45,75,90, 120). I wonder if it is a regionl thing, or just coincidence.

I am not following what you are wondering about to be a "regional thing". Could you elaborate?

...is 10 min in between enough time? On top of what you mentioned, I also need time to clear myself from the prior session. I was also glad I could schedule more time than our usual 15 min in between this summer when I injured my hands. That way I could still make the same money w/out causing further damage. One Mt I know who worked at a spa w/ 50 min sessions said they often had to store dirty sheets under the table because they didn't have enough time to put sheets in the laundry in between.

10 mins. between clients is enough time, but it can be very draining. Let's use a massage example: I can strip out a forearm in 5 mins. It will be fast and dirty, but it can be done. However, it would be a lot nicer to have 20 mins. to do it. And, if I had an hour for just one forearm, well, just think of all that extra time I would have to give it a little love as well.

I've worked in a place where I barely had time to get the sheets changed and ready for the next client - sometimes storing them under the table. Luckily, the table had long, long blankets... We also stored the fresh sheets under the table at this place. It was a very fast paced environment and if you couldn't keep up, you lost your job. You tend to make it work when you need the job. I'd have swollen joints after each and every week which included the weekend of doing 7 back to back, and that was with a lot of forearm work on my end. Of course, had I not given my all, and foo-foo'd around, I probably wouldn't have had so much wear and tear. Knowing then what I know now would have been useful, because I would have picked my massage battles better and conserved some of that energy for myself. But, I hate not to give it my all. I really hate it... so, maybe I would have still done things the same.

If you injure yourself in an environment like that, it is doubtful you will have that job for very much longer after the injury (at least, in my experience in a job like that). They won't be letting you schedule more time between clients usually. And, they really don't care if you injure yourself further or not. One gal I worked with lost her job because she had to go to a funeral on a very busy week-end. She was told in advance, if you don't show up to work on such and such a day (after telling them about the funeral in advance), don't come back. It's terrible when you have to pick between your grandmother's funeral and your job. A business like that is a money making machine, plain and simple. At least in the place I worked. Massage pricing started started at $80/50 min. hour. Nothing wrong with charging a hefty fee, but I am just saying it wasn't a masssage-in-the-box kind of place and they still didn't really care about anything more than keeping up appearances with the in-crowd and making that all-mighty dollar.

 

[Shiloh]

50 minute massages

About the regional thing, I meant maybe in my area 60 min was the norm, while in other areas of the country50 min is the norm, or at least more regular than here. But it was late and I was really just babbeling the other night.

You have to pick your massage battles, that's a good one! I'm gonna use that.

So far it seems no one on here chooses to do 50 min sessions.

 

[teapot91]

50 minute massages

Not an MT, I'm a PT who does MFR. My session length is 50 minutes, has been for years. Allows me just enough time to change the room over, collect fee, rebook, and wash hands between visits. I book on the hour. I get more/longer breaks in periods when my caseload is low. If it is high, I work more. Average 28-34 sessions/week. I'm a low maintenance person. Recover quickly, get sick on weekends, seldom during the week. I have no need to cover the whole body, so it works because I make it work.

Early on, I always felt like I just needed to do just a bit more. Like I owed them more. Pathological co-dependency...that was me! Now, I finish what I needed to do and it usually meets what they needed that day. My clients are scheduled regularly and are aware that this is all a process. We do what we can in the allotted time. Some book double, or even triple session. Doubles cost twice what singles do, no price break because I work harder during a double. Just my opinions.

 

[Laura]

50 minute massages

In my school we are being taught that people are paying for our time.. not just time spent on the table and that if it takes 5-10 minutes to assess what the actual problem is then its fair to only have a 50 minute massage.

However in spa work... where its purely relaxation aimed i could see why someone would be ticked off that they didn't get the full amount of time paid for...for sure.