Is Deep Tissue Massage Supposed to Hurt or Leave Bruises?
With some exceptions, the answer is No. Deep Tissue Massage is designed to address the deeper layers of muscle and connective tissue (fascia) in the body. The most important aspect in this work is specificity: working the full length of the specific muscle, including the origin and insertion points. Bruising is often an indication that too much pressure was used, or was applied in the wrong place (softer tissue, vs. denser muscles). However, some people are inclined to bruise easily, so it may be unreasonable to say no one should ever get a bruise from a deep massage. Also, some advanced practitioners may do deep release techniques over bony areas of the body (such as the sternum or sacrum), which may be more prone to bruising than fleshier areas.
