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What is cupping and why should I do it for cellulite?
Cupping has been used in TCM for thousands of years for aches, muscle pain, and stagnation. Cupping is unique because it pulls up instead of pushing down. When you can apply a small amount of suction to an area of tissue, it will pull fresh blood into the tissues, bringing needed nourishment to the tissues and allowing for toxins to be removed. For our purposes we are working more on the fascia with the Qi Body Cup, so the amount of suction we need is very gentle, not like working with the muscles where more suction is needed. Fascia can adhere to the muscle and cause pain but it can also adhere to the skin and cause visible dimples, aka: cellulite. Thus the Qi Body Gua sha board can help to relax and improve the appearance of cellulite.
Cupping is a great way to encourage the smoothing of the fascia and the nourishment of the surrounding tissues to support a smoother, toner and more energized area.
Should body cupping hurt or leave marks?
No! It should never hurt or leave any marks. When gliding the cups over the skin, it should be really easy and effortless. If the cup doesn’t want to move once you have done the initial squeeze of the bulb, break the suction, redo the squeeze with less pressure before you try again to move the cup. It should glide painlessly over the skin.
How hard to I squeeze the bulb for cupping?
Usually about a half squeeze does the trick, but try a few different squeezes and see what works for you. You want just enough suction to have the cup stay on the skin and move freely, but not enough to be painful in anyway when you try to move the cup. If the cup doesn’t want to move once you have done the initial squeeze of the bulb, break the suction and redo the squeeze with less pressure before trying to move the cup again. It should easily glide on the skin.
Why move the cups on the body?
For relaxing the fascia and cellulite reduction, moving cupping is best. The goal is to soften the adhesions in the fascia connecting to the skin, move stagnant fluids and bring more blood flow to the areas, and reduce the appearance of cellulite, so we need to facilitate that movement with moving the cups. Stationary cupping can be good in some instances, such as a deep dimple but generally ONLY moving cupping is done for our purposes. A nice body oil must be applied prior to any moving cupping to ensure the cup glides easily over the skin without any pain.