Ontario, Canada is home of an array of massage therapy practice and technique options. These options are available to practitioners and clients alike. And when I say a wide amount I'm talking about hundreds of different techniques. For the purpose of this article lets say that you are in the massage therapy profession and that you've recently graduated. With these hundreds of options available, which should you choose to practice? That's what I'm here to answer. Let's narrow the list down to the five most popular massage therapy techniques to administer in the province of Ontario.

Relaxation and Stress Reduction Massage

Relaxation and Stress Reduction would have to be considered the number one type of massage in terms of popularity. Professionals can administer Relaxation massages at spas, client's homes, resorts and business workplace settings, amongst others. If for some reason you're into text book lingo, this style of massage falls into the wellness massage category.

Pamper Massage

Pamper massages are related to relaxation and stress reduction massages. The goal is very similar, which is to reduce the stress of the client. The locations do differ slightly. Beauty salon's are now in play, as many pamper massages are administered at this location. We also have the old standby locations, such as spas and a clients private residence. The biggest difference between a pamper and a relax/stress massage is in the tools used and the perception given. Pamper massages are usually sold as “new age” style healing. To help enforce this idea new age music is sometimes played, exotic oils are used and sometimes we may even see some oddities, such as pieces of wood! Whether or not all of these additions are helpful or merely marketing is usually a fierce debate with the massage therapy community.

Chiropractic Adjunct Massage

This is one of the more difficult positions to obtain in massage therapy. A chiropractic adjunct is a therapist that has teamed up with a chiropractic office in providing care for clients. Massages given at this location are usually focussed upon specific body parts, as outlined by the chiropractor (by written outline for insurance purposes). The outline will also include a time outline, and acceptable pressure levels. The reason that this position is so difficult to obtain and is highly sought after is due to the high level of pay. Most massage therapy do give a high percentage of their per massage pay to the chiropractor but the constant flow of work and the very high rates (typically $150 - $200 a session) help to offset some of the expenses.

Sports Massage

This has type of massage has one of the fastest growth rates in the industry within Ontario. Sports Massage aims its focus on training & recovering athletes. Sports Massage isn't limited to the pro's exclusively. Many athletes from random walks of life use this, to treat tennis elbow, hockey injuries or even to aid recreational golfers.

Medical Massage

The fifth and final massage on our list, Medical, is a style that works with easing pain and pathologies, along with aiding in injury recovery. Many of the techniques can also be adopted and used with non-medical clients for prevention. Medical massage techniques are often outlined by prescription and are administered in physiotherapy offices, hospitals and retirement & long-term care homes.

There you have it, the five most popular massage therapy techniques in Ontario. Now that your interest is peaked, are you ready to learn, administer or receive any of these five massages?