As I mentioned, we opened the yoga center in the Fall of 2003 and decided to include a room for offering massages. (Side note: Our massage rooms are all since then named by the art in the room, so this room was called the Peacock room for the mural that my husband, Dave, painted on the wall.) We had the vision way back then that a massage program might be a good adjunct service to offer alongside our fitness and yoga classes. If you’ve read my antics in the past, you already know that getting massages at this time was a relatively new thing for me. I really came to understand the value of massage when I was struggling with chronic pain a few years prior. Since then, massage has become an integral part of my personal wellness journey and so I wanted to share it with our students as well. I have no idea how many massage therapists have come and gone from 2003 to present but if I had to guess I would say over 30. (You think it is hard to book a massage now?.. just think about only having 1 massage room from 2003 until 2015 when we added the other rooms…but that story is to come.) I am so thrilled that we added this layer to BL at this time and that you, our students, have seen value in this program as demonstrated by the popularity of our present massage program. Very grateful for the 3 massage therapists we currently have at BL (Sarah, Angela & Erin) and we are presently in the process of hiring more massage therapists so we can meet a growing demand (please note that it is my job to “interview” each applicant…lucky me!!). Stay tuned for more hands onboard to rub those sore muscles and help you relax!!
One other thing I want to add since we’re talking about massages: some of you may not realize that those little massages at the end of yoga were something I came up with during a yoga class one day. In fact, I remember the day…it’s Spring of 2003 and I’m teaching a yoga class still in the fitness room. Students are laying in Savasana (those last 5 minutes of class) and I’m just sitting there with nothing to do. So, I thought I could go around the room and press down on their shoulders or massage their temples. Next class I grabbed some lotion and decided to add some arm, shoulder and neck massages. Of course, the response was amazing. One thing I never hear anyone complain about is too long of a Savasana and pretty much everyone LOVES the mini massages during this time. I added this to my teacher training program, and I also encouraged new teachers applying for a job at BL to do the same. Next thing I knew, I heard about studios all over Metro Detroit following suit. Now more than ever, students are voicing and seeing the value of touch. Our staff love giving and our students love receiving!!
