The Body Projects — Bodywork and massage | thebodyprojects.com
Five ways of working on the body, judged by pressure, time on the table and what each one is for.
Swedish massage is the baseline: light-to-medium pressure, long gliding strokes, and a full-body session that usually runs 60-90 minutes. It is the reference point against which everything else on this page is measured.
Deep tissue keeps the same family of strokes but changes the dose — slower, firmer, and confined to a few chronic problem areas. The trade-off is recovery: soreness that peaks 12-24 hours after the session and fades within 48-72.
Sports massage splits by timing. The pre-event version is 15-20 minutes of light pressure, 1-2 hours before competition; away from event day it borrows deeper techniques for maintenance, spaced every 2-4 weeks.
On narrow screens, swipe or scroll the plate sideways.
Hot stone massage adds heat as an active ingredient. Basalt stones are heated to 50-55 °C, and 30-50 of them are laid along the back, arms and legs, so muscles arrive at the hands-on phase already loosened.
Thai massage leaves the table entirely: the work is done clothed, on a floor mat, and built around assisted stretching and compression rather than gliding strokes. It suits people who find table work too passive.
Once you have a shortlist, the companion pages take over: How to Prepare for a Massage covers the 24 hours before, and the After-Massage Recovery Timeline covers the 72 hours after.
Further reading