The use of elastic therapeutic tape is increasingly common among massage therapists, especially with clients who are athletes at just about any level—and when applied effectively, tape offers multiple benefits to virtually every type of client.
Taping an area helps support the muscle and ease the congestion of bodily fluids in the area, which can aid in easing pain and improving range of motion. Tape works by gently lifting the skin to create a microscopic layer of space between skin and the tissues underlying it. This lifting effect decompresses the tissues, thus decreasing tension and pain and enhancing fluid flow.
Many athletes are already sold on the idea of taping as an intervention, and many massage therapists offer this option to their non-athlete clients as well. Taping offers therapists the chance to support and enhance massage with a noninvasive add-on that can also increase their bottom line.
MASSAGE Magazine spoke with three massage therapists who have made taping a part of their regular sessions, and have happy clients to show for it.
Allison Anderson
Rocklin, California
What she does: California massage therapist Allison Anderson is an athlete and former physical education teacher who specializes in helping people live more active lifestyles. She is trained in sports massage, deep tissue, trigger-point therapy, reflexology, myofascial release, energy kinesiology and several of RockTape’s tape-related offerings.
“Most of what I do is sports massage,” she said. “My clientele is anywhere from middle school age to an 88-year-old, and I work with a lot of doctors or surgeons, so post-surgery.”
Who she uses tape with, and how: Anderson said she sees a lot of clients with knee issues and often uses tape to help with alignment; she said the tape makes clients more aware of their alignment so that they stay better aligned when squatting, walking or running.
She sees clients post knee surgery, too, in which case tape can also help; she uses it to aid in pain reduction and in “scar treatment and care, to prevent keloid scars from firing and scar tissue from laying down … I always call it a neurological hug,” Anderson noted.
Tape helps with arm issues, too. “If somebody has pain and overhead range of motion, you can do something called a tweak tape or using [tape] in a helical rotational way that you lay it down, just to assist the arm into that range of motion or the overhead motion,” she added.
Sometimes, Anderson says, she adds tape at the end of a session if a client is still having pain, or when they need help with postural awareness.
How she learned to tape: “I am trained in all things RockTape, and I highly recommend that, especially for massage therapy. [In the training] you have access to other practitioners, and so you can learn their perspective of course of treatment and what they see, in terms of body cues or just watching people walk or move. And because a lot of times in massage therapy, we see people on a table, but we don’t really see them moving.”
In addition to taking the course, “ask a lot of questions and talk to a lot of different people, because tape is used across so many different facets of sports medicine that chiropractors are more joint-focused, and so they would understand applications for that. Where an occupational therapist is going to be more functional movements. I think it’s worth picking people’s brains to truly understand.”
How she markets taping: Anderson includes taping in many of her sessions and doesn’t charge clients extra for it, but she does offer rolls of tape for sale as retail items. “Because I label myself as a sports therapist, I don’t like to charge for things that I intuitively think my clients need,” she says. “It’s part of their trust in me and thinking what their body needs or has the best response [to]. I don’t want to have my sales pitch be my limiting factor to help somebody.”
Marcy Bazan
La Mesa, California
Marcy Bazan Massage Therapy
What she does: Marcy Bazan, CMT, offers massage therapy to a wide clientele in La Mesa, California. Her menu includes Swedish massage, deep tissue, trigger-point, light stretching and cupping therapies in addition to taping. She has previously worked in a pain-management clinic.
Who she uses tape with, and how: Bazan sees a lot of clients who have knee pain; some have knee issues due to their athletic activities while others have developed knee problems due to sitting at a computer for long hours. One client, she says, derives enough benefits from taping that they ask to have tape reapplied at each visit, every two weeks.
How she markets taping: She prefers RockTape products because the adhesive holds the longest—10 to 12 days. Happy clients walking around with the tape on can give a practice ample word-of-mouth as clients chat with others about their treatment.
Monique Coleman-Harris
Jacksonville, Florida
MedSports ProMassage
What she does: Monique Coleman-Harris, LMT, CKTP, CMLDT, CMCTP, has a Jacksonville, Florida, practice specializing in clients with sports-related injuries and medical conditions, including post-surgery care, as well as average people in search of stress and tension relief. She is trained in medical and sports massage, prenatal, Swedish, deep tissue, manual lymphatic drainage, modern cupping therapy and taping.
Who she uses tape with, and how: Coleman-Harris says she offers taping to “All of my clients, athletes and non-athletes…anyone that I feel can benefit from it, which is to me, everyone in some way, shape or form.” She uses it mainly to address complaints from clients about swelling, post-operative discomfort, and general pain and support. Taping, she says, helps her clients by reducing pain and inflammation, decreasing bruising, and adding support for muscles and joints when they need it.
Coleman-Harris also works with youth athletes, whom she says are very eager to get taping done, especially once they see friends who have it.
Non-athlete clients can easily start suffering from conditions such as plantar fasciitis, carpal tunnel, or injuries to the knees, shoulders, hands, forearms, elbows or ankles.
Clients who have just had cosmetic surgery can also benefit from the use of tape. “After your mommy makeovers, tummy tucks [taping] is really good for getting the inflammation down, the swelling. It has a lymphatic massage-type effect to keep that fluid moving throughout the body to get it out of there.” It also helps with post-surgical bruising.
How she learned to tape: Coleman-Harris has been certified by Kinesio Tape since 2007.
How she markets taping: Coleman-Harris says she often doesn’t have to sell clients on the idea of taping for their condition because most of them have seen it done, especially if they are athletes, but she still tries to educate each client about how taping works.
“Most anyone that I show it to, they’ve seen it in some shape, fashion or form watching a sporting event,” she says. “But then I do explain to them the benefits of it for their particular condition and even the other things that the tape helps with.”
Coleman-Harris is a big believer in the versatility of tape and its efficacy in multiple areas. “I always say I can tape anything and I’ve used it on literally every part of my body, even my face, after I have dental surgery or anything like that, I’m my best client. I tape everything. Something hurts, I’m pulling out the tape.”
Ready to Tape?
If you’re ready to give tape a try, take the time to pick a product that’s right for you. Several high-quality tapes are currently on the market, with a wide variety of sizes, colors, patterns and stretch varieties. Consider which injuries or conditions you see the most of and choose a tape that will enhance those clients’ results.
Most taping companies also offer their own continuing education and certification programs, which can further enhance your skills and make you more effective using their products.
About the Author
Allison M. Payne is an independent writer and editor based in northeast Florida. She has written many articles for MASSAGE Magazine, most recently “Manual Therapy Research at the NCCIH: An Interview with Director Helene Langevin” and “5 Reasons to Join the International Consortium on Manual Therapies.”