Frequently Asked Questions
That's normal. Traditional massage works by adding pressure to a specific muscle or group of muscles. The pressure acts as "stretch" by lengthening the muscle when you press on it. And depending upon the device, vibration, light or other modalities may be combined to relax the nerves around a muscle, add heat, etc.
Myofascial release is totally different, because it's a whole-body approach that's designed to release connective tissue, rather than muscle tissue.
Traditional massage is stretch, in another form. It works by stretching one or many muscles at once through placing pressure on the muscle, which creates a bowing effect and leads to increased stretch. Instead of only stretching the beginning to the end of a muscle, many people experience relief through massage because each individual area of a muscle experiences added stretch.
Now, contrast this with 'myofascial release', which does not work on 'one' muscle. Instead, it works on a connective web of tissue that runs through your entire body, holds your organs in place, and gives you shape or form. In your entire body you are born with 2.5cm of slack, which means that if you don't experience any form of trauma in your life, you will keep all of this slack.
However, most of us do experience trauma, albeit through injuries, harsh words, or uncontrolled feelings. And once trauma takes place, the body 'holds on' through this fascia. Since the back is a centerpoint for the body, many of the restrictions take place here and lead to low back pain, neck pain, shoulder pain, and many other ailments like tight hips, painful knees or ankles, plantar fasciitis, or even carpal tunnel syndrome.
By strategically releasing fascia -- and emphasizing the back -- many patients experience whole-body relief and a newness that feels as though they just became much younger than they remember a few minutes earlier...
This is the type of relief we are intending for you to experience with the Nubby. Get un-stuck, and get un-stuck for good.
Osteoporosis (hollow bones) means that you'll need a doctor's approval before using any massage device. Nubby wouldn't cause more pain/discomfort than any other massage devices or an in-person massage, although depending upon the severity of osteoporosis, you may or may not be a candidate for using Nubby. If you have osteopenia (weakened bones), please use caution with your Nubby or be sure to check with your physician first for extra safety and to avoid any unnecessary fractures.
Yes and no.
In theory, you could heat the Nubby and place it directly on your skin right after it was boiling and burn yourself. That's why we recommend that you let it cool until it's easy to hold in your hands without a towel, tongs or an oven mit.
Or, if you press directly on a new injury right where it just happened -- especially if it's bleeding -- we would expect this to increase pain or make the injury worse.
This being said, so long as you're using some common sense and you keep the idea of 'release' front of mind, we have yet to see a single injury from the Nubby.