Lomi Lomi technique picture

[xxAbbyxxJeffro]

I had lomi lomi at Blue Sky in Wisconsin. I cant remember his last name off hand, but the instructors first name is Daniel.

I found this picture on the net.

http://www.shamanicbodywork.com/images/decoration_images/wayne_patti_massage.jpg

My clients would freak out if I undraped them down to this level AND had my face 6 inches from their butt AND had an arm under them as in this picture. I would be uncomfortable as the client in this situation. That stroke is just too close for comfort!! One little slip and whoops!!

That arm placement... is there no other way to work the upper quad muscles than this??


Christine

 

[Homer]

Ah, the joys of underbody work, where it's amazing where your hands and arms can slide to with no linen on the table. Looks like standard underbody work to me, you put that much of your arm under the body, you get that close.

I refuse to deal with an oily table between clients, way too much cleaning and sanitising for me to be comfortable with it, so I use linen on the table and don't do underbody work.

 

[isabella]

I didnt even realize there was no covering on the table!! We had zero training for this type of under body work. I do shoulder work sort of like this, but not work like this. Toooo close for comfort!!
Christine

 

[Dink]

You learn to be very careful,
That arm position(coming from the inner leg) is actually the way to go. If you slid the arm in from the outside of the leg you would be in real trouble.
Not all forms of lomi lomi use underbody work. The auntie margret style is very different to the Temple style which uses minimal draping and underbody work like this.
This form of underbody work is great for the appropiate client and obviously with trust and informed consent

 

[Ixl]

Yeah!! That is the type of Lomi Lomi I had!! Aunty Margrette style!! With a little sleep, I remember the teachers name to be Daniel Higgins.

I am in Wisconsin, and people can be pretty conservative here. It is nothing like Eugene Oregon!! LOL!!

Christine

 

[Raul Castro M.]

Lomi Lomi Draping and Movements

I took classes in the Auntie Margaret style of Lomi Lomi from Alice Belusko in Ft. Lauderdale. She interned with Aunti for two years. According to her, there are about five styles of Lomi Lomi, although Auntie Margaret was the one that first released it to the general public.

This style uses forearm strokes and a lot of static compressions to really get in and work out muscle problems. I use this when people ask for deep tissue as it is easier on me, and does more for the client.

When in Arizona last year, I found someone that does Temple style of Lomi Lomi. They not only do, they teach at the Arizona School for Integrative Studies. Not ever having seen it, I decided to go have one.

I enjoyed it a lot (although I was a little too focused on stealing moves ). I found it to be a very pleasant style which I would caeforum.xxxorize as a Hawaiian version of Swedish done with the forearms. (The mark of Lomi Lomi is that it uses the forearms instead of the hands.) I got to talk to the therapist (who is also the instructor) at some length and ask questions.

Now, the Auntie Margaret style uses standard draping and does not need to addres the bare glutes. In fact, much of it can be done with the client completely clothed because it is the compressions that do the real work.

The picture shown is an accurate depiction of the Temple Lomi draping. They fold the sheet down from the top, and then in from the sides so that it covers the break between the glutes or the genitals if the client is face up. To properly do Temple Lomi Lomi, the genitals are the only thing covered when the client is face up no matter what sex they are. In my massage, I don't remember any under body work. What was done was rhythmic and flowing, which is what Temp style is supposed to be. It is supposed to let you zone and meditate.

This is something I want to take, not because I intend to do two different Lomi routines, but so I can steal some moves and incorporate them into my routine. At one point, I did get a chance to talk with Tom Cochran who teaches this in various places across the country.

He told me that this style can be done with proper draping, or with the client leaving their underwear on. The time to move the drape does change and interrupt the flow of the massage.

Now let's be real. There are a lot more people in this country that are conservative when it come to nudity than not. For most of them, this method of draping would be very scary. So, as therapists, we work within the client's comfort zone. If we are so strict that we can not make changes in what we do, then we have no business doing this as a profession. So, we modify what we are doing, and change the draping to work with each individual we see (and the key word there is individual). (I talked to a lady that had a Temple session in Hawaii. She was extremely surprised when they undraped her to this level. At the same time, in my first night of massage class, we were shown a video of the 'school massage' as done on the school's owner by her teacher. During the massage, the therapist undraped her to the waist while she was supine, and then did effleurage from neck to navel. And this was Swedish massage. Uhh, no, we did not do this for our massages.) The point is that people have different comfort levels based on area of the country, and we work with them. (We also abide by the laws of the state or region.)

As far as the move being shown, I don't remember this being done to me in my session. Looking at it, and trying it on my partner, it seems very clunky. I would think that the area being massaged could be done differently, and that doesn't mean changing the position of the subject. I know that Temple Lomi puts the subject in a specific position and then does the entire side from that point. I could see getting the inner leg with a forearm, and then the front from the other side.

Again, it is all comfort. Comfort for the client and the therapist.

But that's only my opinion. I could be wrong.

 

[StuJag]

i've learned alot from this discussion.

my comment is that when taught to do a 4-handed massage, we used the same draping~ essentially a hand towel for a diaper drape and another hand towel for the breast drape for females. over the top is a sheet, which is removed for when the massage starts, and is returned at the end.

we made a point to explain to the client what draping would be used for this service, and assure them that their privacy would be maintained at all times. it seemed to take any surpirse out of the equation, and made for a more relaxed environment.

 

[??????????????]

Lomi Lomi Draping and Movements

As far as the move being shown, I don't remember this being done to me in my session. Looking at it, and trying it on my partner, it seems very clunky.

it is not at all clunky when done properly. As jeffh says it's more of an issue placing your hand from the outside of the leg towards the inside of the leg in underbody work, that can feel really intrusive. The move as shown can be very effective, particularly on larger individuals, where the weight of their own leg is contributing to the work, do it on someone skinny like in the photo and it's good, but the leg just moves around. Temple style does not "(put) the subject in a specific position and then does the entire side from that point" The subject can be moved around a lot, over the table, over the edge of the table, lifted up, turned over by the therapist (that usually needs to be done with NO draping otherwise draping just gets terribly knotted) which is why there is no linen on the table, you can't slide the client around with a sheet under them. If it was just put the subject in one position and work from that point, you could have linen underneath them. You don't get much of that type of work in a 1hr booking. If you want to experience that type of thing it's the 2 or 3 hr bookings.

 

[my sign]

I'd be more concerned if my therapist was not wearing a shirt...as far as having his nose that close to my butt...that is the risk he is willing to take. LOL

 

[moxy]

I'd be more concerned if my therapist was not wearing a shirt...as far as having his nose that close to my butt...that is the risk he is willing to take. LOL

t005 lets just hope he has pants on, right??

Christine

 

[bob1]

as far as having his nose that close to my butt...that is the risk he is willing to take. LOL

:biglaugh: t081 t082 t044

 

[manoj d]

:biglaugh:

 

[Moonlights]

Yeah, this definitely could be something from Eugene, Oregon!!! Where shirts are optional!!! See where that thread is going... good laugh anyway...

I would definitely be too conservative to give or receive this type of massage. Too much nutidy for me, no shirts, who knows about shorts, and what is the person doing in the background???

That much oil, and no linens, either you slip and slide all over the table or you wait for the suction to release so you can be peeled off the table...

As for the diaper drape, we would still cover the client with a sheet just tuck it under a little better so that the whole torso is covered.

With reading this thread, I have definitely realized that lomi lomi is not for me!!!

 

[Katie B]

and what is the person doing in the background???

Four hand massage, 2 therapists, one body on the table. I can cope with 6 hands, more than 3 therapists I feel like I'm being dragged all over the table a bit too much to relax.

Be happy the other person in the photo has a top on! I had a few encounters on courses with female course participants working with no top, and these were women where gravity definately had a firm hold on them. It was extremely distracting suddenly being hit by this cold thing every now and then while lying on the table. I just kept thinking "men pay to be hit by these cold things?"

You're not thrown into doing things like this on the first day of the course, you usually are pretty comfortable with the other people on the course by the time moves like this are introduced. I never did get comfortable with all the oil, all too slimey for me (so much oil used! they were using a cheap oil that I would call a nasty cheap oil, yuck!)

If you think this style of lomi lomi is not for you, (and as mentioned before, there are other more draped styles of lomi lomi, they're not all like this) some forms of Ayurvedic massage are VERY similar when done in the traditional manner - lots of oil, no linen on the table, minimal draping, underbody work, very similar moves, but their oil is usually more theraputic, rather than just oil. Those styles may not be for you either.

 

[ratatouillewoo]

I use a LOT less oil than some for my TS Lomi lomi, including for underbody work.

Lomi is a minority of what I do, It would not appeal to or be acceptable to all my clients. For some conditions like shoulder and upper back problems the lomi work including supine underbody is fantastic and I will incorporate it into remedial massage sessions.

I don't like giving clients any surprises when It comes to draping so I am very explicit with describing the draping and giving the client the genuine option of more coverage unsing words like "It is very important to me that you are comfortable with the areas to be worked on..........".

I would not categorize it as " a hawaiian form of Swedish" as it can involve deep tissue work and emotional and energetic release.

Shirts are often optional during TRAINING(which is what this photo depicts). It gets hot with a room kept warm for the receiver and you are carrying out a strenuous activity equivalent to doing an aerobics class at the gym. There is also a level of familiarity and trust which makes this a non issue
I keep my shirt on in the clinic.

 

[When.There.Isnt.Enough.]

Melb -

There is another person in the photo behind the woman...

 

[Pompal 09.]

Shirts are often optional during TRAINING(which is what this photo depicts).

I wish that were true of some of the male practitioners I've had professional treatments from and a singlet with armholes cut down to waist level does not count as a shirt.

I've also had sooooooooooooooooooo many men booking in for a this style of massage and them being disappointed I was wearing a t-shirt! They've even requested I put on a bikini top, or at least a singlet! And they've brought out the old line "my previous therapist never used to wear a t-shirt". I never had that type of request with any other form of massage I do, which is one of the reasons why I hardly promote lomi lomi anymore, that plus they are also likely to come out with the old lines "my previous therapist used to massage everywhere" and/or "my previous therapist didn't use draping" - I've had those lines for other styles of massage too, but the majority were for lomi lomi. I know a lot of female lomi lomi therapists DO work in bikini tops, I know a quite a few of them are very casual about draping, I was never sure about the everywhere comment.

I loved the training, I love doing it, I love receving lomi lomi (when a decent oil is used), I don't like the amount of oil often used (my first massage training was aromatherapy, just over one tablespoon is used for a full body treatment, that's what I use for most massages still), I don't like the clean up with no linen, and I don't like the clientele it attracted when I was promoting it. I wasn't attracting that type of clientele for other forms of massage, at the time, so I put it down to that particular modality, stopped promoting, dubious clients dropped down to practically none almost immediately, or at least they would only get as far as the initial phone call where they'd ask about draping and if I massaged everywhere, rather than automatically assuming booking in for lomi lomi meant no draping and everywhere was massaged.

 

[KNGWiFi]

There is another person in the photo behind the woman...

oh, so there is!! I hadn't even noticed them! Stray person in background, photo probably taken during training, they've probably never even noticed the person in the background either I'm impressed person in the background has a shirt on

 

[G Love]

oh mel,

No one wants me to wear a bikini top, I feel so rejected.

I keep my eyes closed during a massage, I could care less what anyone is wearing.
That would really P..s me off too if a client wanted to dictate what I wore

 

[Pows]

yet another example of discirmination towards males in this profession - you don't get requests to wear bikini tops. I understand it is very unfair, but the problem is the client's, its not yours. Please don't take it to heart. I'm sure you're much more likely to be asked to wear speedos than female therapists