Massage has a long list of health benefits, including improving circulation and relieving tension. While it's always a good idea to chat with your doctor before trying something new, massage is generally considered safe for most people.
According to Johns Hopkins Medicine, foot massages can help improve overall foot health, especially when used in conjunction with physical therapy or over-the-counter medication. Foot pain is often caused by wearing ill-fitting shoes or standing for long periods of time. Massage therapists may be able to relieve some of these aches and pains through massage, but even if you don't visit a professional regularly, you can still do it yourself at home.
Self-massages are just as relaxing as the real thing—and they can be performed any time you need them! It’s also a great way to reduce stress and anxiety while promoting better sleep (which is especially important if your feet hurt).
People deal with persistent pain on a daily basis in their feet or other body parts; massaging those areas helps keep pressure off nerves that cause pain sensations throughout our bodies.
Instep/Foot Arch
To massage the instep, start by stretching out the foot. Wrap the towel around your own instep and hold it from both ends. Gently pull on the towel so you can feel a stretch in your feet.
To find points that need more attention, take your thumb and shift it from side to side to feel for dry spots. Work slowly using circular motions until you find all areas of dryness. You should spend about 30 seconds on each spot in this way, massaging gently with an even pressure throughout each rubdown session. Be careful not to use too much pressure as this could cause pain and discomfort rather than relieving it!
Massaging your feet regularly will help keep them healthy, prevent injuries such as plantar fasciitis or bunions - which are painful conditions where bones deform over time due to rubbing against one another repeatedly - and improve circulation throughout the entire body!
Heel/Plantar Fasciitis
Apply pressure with your thumbs. From the outside, slowly move your thumbs in a circular motion around the sole of the foot, starting with the outer edges and working towards the heel.
Massage from top to bottom. When massaging both sides of the heel at once, make sure to work from top to bottom and vice versa. This will ensure that you hit all of your heel’s Achilles tendon areas so that you don’t miss anything!
Don’t forget about the inside! Yes, even though this is called a “heel massage” it shouldn't be limited solely to one side of each foot—don't forget about those inner heels too!
Next, massage each heel separately. Start by placing one palm against one heel, giving yourself a moment to feel how that feels before you begin with any movement or pressure. Gently squeeze and knead around both sides of your heel with light-to-medium pressure until you feel comfortable moving on to other areas.
After you've finished massaging each heel, move on to massaging along the arches of each foot in turn. Hold one foot in both hands so that one thumb is on top of the sole and one is on bottom. With firm but gentle pressure, press down into your arch from both sides as though you were squeezing orange juice from it—but stop if what you're doing hurts!
Your next step is a simple variation: rather than continuing to use both thumbs for this part, set aside whichever thumb isn't making contact with your arch at any given time; then use just that thumb to make long strokes along either side of it from toe to heel and back again. Alternate using both thumbs in this way until they start feeling tired; then switch over to using only two fingers (index and middle) instead!
After completing all these steps once more on top with medium-light pressure all around each sole except at its very edges—it's important not repeat them until either side has been done twice because otherwise there would be no point!
Metatarsal
The metatarsals are the five small bones that connect the phalanges (toe bones) to your ankle. They are located at the center of each foot, and it's important to take care of them during a massage for your feet. The metatarsals are more likely than other parts of your feet to become injured, especially if you participate in sports that involve running or jumping. Injuries caused by these activities include stress fractures, arthritis and nerve damage.
When massaging the balls of your feet, use short strokes from the top of each toe down in order to target this area.
Toe Massage
First, use your thumb to press along the underside of the toes and continue moving upward. Then work from the top of the toes down. You can press the base of each toe individually before pressing and rotating each tip of the toe in a circular motion. You can then use your knuckles to press between each toe by gently applying pressure across all five toes at once.
