60, 90 or 12-Minute Massage Session?

I get this question often.  So, I’ll answer it from a professional massage therapist’s perspective.  By that I mean, how much time I like to spend working on my client’s concerns.  In the ideal world, I would love to have people come in and I work on them for an unspecified amount of time as doctors do.  Unfortunately, massage therapy doesn’t’ work like that…darn!  Clients have to pick a set duration of time to come in and get worked on.  In my practice, those durations are 60, 90 or 120-minute sessions.

60-Minute Massage Sessions

If everything on your body is in good shape, get a 60-minute full body massage or you are a first timer trying out massage or a new therapist.

BUT, if you have something specific that you want to focus on.  For example, your back has been bothering you for days/weeks/months/years then ONLY have your back worked on.  This allows your massage therapist to spend a good amount of time working on your back appropriately as well as any other areas that may be contributing to the pain.

If you say, focus on my back but do a full body then you’re likely not going to be as thrilled with the results because the massage will seem rushed and not thorough.  In this case, upgrade to a 90-minute massage session.

90-Minute Massage Sessions

90 minutes are ideal for a full body massage.  They allow for me to work on areas appropriately.  I can focus on concerns as well as touch on everything else.  Making this a complete thorough massage session.

And, if you want to focus on a certain area this is a great amount of time to get that done too.  Most likely if an area hurts it’s not just that area being affected but also the surrounding areas.  90 minutes allows for all those other areas to get addressed too.  Making the session much more therapeutic in nature.  This is great for people who are recovering from injuries, surgeries, using massage as an extension of their physical therapy sessions and so forth.

If you get antsy laying still for this long then opt for a shorter session or multiple shorter sessions.  For those of you who want to indulge in massage then look to 120-minute sessions.

120-Minute Massage Sessions

I love getting massages.  When possible I go for 120 minutes.  I beat my body up pretty good because I’m active and the job I do.  Not to mention, my mind works overtime too.  And, getting a 120-minute massage allows me to truly decompress.  In this case, I feel comfortable asking my massage therapist to concentrate on areas, do a full body, and spend more time on areas that just feel good getting massaged.  Get a 120-minute massage when you feel like you need 120 minutes to unwind.  I don’t recommend this for every session but if you can justify why then it’s appropriate.

Final Thoughts

The final decision of the amount of massage time you choose is yours.  When I get a massage, I always strive to make every massage count.  I know why I’m going and that decides how much time I’m signing up for.  As a massage therapist, I like working on people who have specific needs/concerns and know why they are coming for massage.  I like seeing results and helping people achieve their massage goals.  And, I believe choosing the appropriate amount of time really helps in achieving those massage objectives.

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Felicia Hayes

Hi. I’m Felicia. I’ve made a 20+ year career of massage and bodywork. And, I still love it. I also enjoy writing, playing music, photography, cooking, baking and painting. All of which I’m not very good at. I’m also a daily bike commuter.