Kalari massage day 1
So.. I always mean to blog about Kalari massage and never do as much as I wish.
This is my third time scheduling a katcha thrimmu massage - which is the massage for "healthful people" - the fine print is that only healthful people can survive it, and they really mean healthful *crazy* people - because if you were sane, you wouldn't do it. I figure it must work kind of like the part of the movie where the super hero transforms for the first time - usually the process is excrutiating and unnatural - which sums it up nicely.
At this point, though, the startup process is a known quantity:
- don't eat meat or alcohol, try to put as much healthful food in the body as possible - veggies, whole grains, good dairy - buttermilk is a particular win... prep for a week ahead of time
- drink some awful tasting tinctures - when you can get them.. the search process has become easier, but we were so short on advanced notice this time that I haven't gotten them.
- since I will be swapping massages with Barry - I got a callous removing pedicure - not so necessary when receiving massage, but Barry is a whiny baby about calluses. :P
- do a bit of other depilation - toes caught in pubic hair is not fun... just a little trim there. Also, since I'll be showing my armpits, it would be nice if they were not growing a mustache.
- pack a towel, soap, shampoo, bathrobe and spare cotton for a loin cloth
This time, I'm trading off with Barry (the body mechanic), Rajeesh (my guru's asst teacher) and Anil (my guru). That's in escalating expertise. Barry's really a riot - he's absolutely amazing when fixing people with his hands, but the foot thing throws him for a loop. Rajeesh has gotten substantially more confident in the year since last he worked on me. Anil is a constant baseline of utter confidence. It's not too hard to feel whose foot's doing what.
The massage? It's a foot massage. If you're really lucky, you bring your own oil and you promise me some good booze sometime, I just may offer to the "restful" version... I love doing them at Pennsic, it really gets me in the mood of Indian persona.
The whole thing is done lying on the floor, with the masseuse applying foot pressure with the help of a rope suspended between two walls.
This year - wow - intense! It's my third year, I'm 30 lbs lighter, and I've been doing kalari pretty seriously. Apparently this is all indications that they should hit every pressure area on my body. Seriously. Every pressure point that causes mind numbing agony is apparently fair game. I didn't even know I could *be* hurt in so many places! Other years, the first day has had me feeling like "yeah, I can handle this" and it isn't until day 3 that I think ??Is this really a good idea?? They pretty much had me at that point in about 30 minutes. The basic stretchy poses hurt, and the stuff I usually find relaxing hurt. Even my favorite part - the face & head massage - hurt. I really thought they were turning my face inside out.
Weirdly, however, as soon as it stopped, so did my memory of the pain. Im a little sore - like I've been working out really hard. But not sore like someone beat me up... as soon as it was over, I felt light and invigorated -- and STARVING! The no meat diet seems to make me hungrier, and I had a dramatic weight loss last week. I think my body is still fighting back, so I guess I shouldn't be surprised when after 3 hours I started thinking everyone looked like a tasy pork chop!
I'm kind of amazed at having done this 3 years - I've always seized the opportunity - there's not many folks that will do and teach this stuff, and Anil's won awards for his skill at kalari and as a teacher in India... but to have had the opportunity and availability to do it 3 years running is pretty wild.
Crossing fingers for tomorrow - I'll be doing this for 6 more days.
This is my third time scheduling a katcha thrimmu massage - which is the massage for "healthful people" - the fine print is that only healthful people can survive it, and they really mean healthful *crazy* people - because if you were sane, you wouldn't do it. I figure it must work kind of like the part of the movie where the super hero transforms for the first time - usually the process is excrutiating and unnatural - which sums it up nicely.
At this point, though, the startup process is a known quantity:
- don't eat meat or alcohol, try to put as much healthful food in the body as possible - veggies, whole grains, good dairy - buttermilk is a particular win... prep for a week ahead of time
- drink some awful tasting tinctures - when you can get them.. the search process has become easier, but we were so short on advanced notice this time that I haven't gotten them.
- since I will be swapping massages with Barry - I got a callous removing pedicure - not so necessary when receiving massage, but Barry is a whiny baby about calluses. :P
- do a bit of other depilation - toes caught in pubic hair is not fun... just a little trim there. Also, since I'll be showing my armpits, it would be nice if they were not growing a mustache.
- pack a towel, soap, shampoo, bathrobe and spare cotton for a loin cloth
This time, I'm trading off with Barry (the body mechanic), Rajeesh (my guru's asst teacher) and Anil (my guru). That's in escalating expertise. Barry's really a riot - he's absolutely amazing when fixing people with his hands, but the foot thing throws him for a loop. Rajeesh has gotten substantially more confident in the year since last he worked on me. Anil is a constant baseline of utter confidence. It's not too hard to feel whose foot's doing what.
The massage? It's a foot massage. If you're really lucky, you bring your own oil and you promise me some good booze sometime, I just may offer to the "restful" version... I love doing them at Pennsic, it really gets me in the mood of Indian persona.
The whole thing is done lying on the floor, with the masseuse applying foot pressure with the help of a rope suspended between two walls.
This year - wow - intense! It's my third year, I'm 30 lbs lighter, and I've been doing kalari pretty seriously. Apparently this is all indications that they should hit every pressure area on my body. Seriously. Every pressure point that causes mind numbing agony is apparently fair game. I didn't even know I could *be* hurt in so many places! Other years, the first day has had me feeling like "yeah, I can handle this" and it isn't until day 3 that I think ??Is this really a good idea?? They pretty much had me at that point in about 30 minutes. The basic stretchy poses hurt, and the stuff I usually find relaxing hurt. Even my favorite part - the face & head massage - hurt. I really thought they were turning my face inside out.
Weirdly, however, as soon as it stopped, so did my memory of the pain. Im a little sore - like I've been working out really hard. But not sore like someone beat me up... as soon as it was over, I felt light and invigorated -- and STARVING! The no meat diet seems to make me hungrier, and I had a dramatic weight loss last week. I think my body is still fighting back, so I guess I shouldn't be surprised when after 3 hours I started thinking everyone looked like a tasy pork chop!
I'm kind of amazed at having done this 3 years - I've always seized the opportunity - there's not many folks that will do and teach this stuff, and Anil's won awards for his skill at kalari and as a teacher in India... but to have had the opportunity and availability to do it 3 years running is pretty wild.
Crossing fingers for tomorrow - I'll be doing this for 6 more days.