If you’re spending up to $150 per hour to get your massage, you will want your therapist to be a great one. Surprisingly though, some of the best tips to help you get your moneys worth apply to you, the client. Here are some starters:

Communicate with confidence. It is hard for most of us to demand what we want from a stranger, but this is the only sure way to get top value out of our treatments. How many people love their feet being massaged, but fail to ask for it? Why not ask a therapist to repeat that amazing technique that they finished too soon? There is no logical reason why this should not be done all the time, yet almost everyone keeps quiet. Remember that your massage therapist will most likely have a standard routine that they use on new clients. It is up to you to mould that routine to match your needs.

Breathe deeper. The health benefits of deeper breathing are too numerous to mention here. Suffice to say that the quickest way to massage bliss requires deep breathing, and no one else can do that for you.

Be prepared to meditate. One of the most effective methods of reaching a meditative state is to lie flat, and focus your attention on different areas of the body. In most massages, it is unavoidable to lie flat, and to focus on the area of your body that is being worked on. As a result, most people find the activity of the brain slows down during a massage. When this happens, you get that lovely feeling of relaxation, of floating (or sinking), your imagination flows easier, your subconscious mind is closer to the surface. This makes conversation hard, and some people feel rude if they are not making “good conversation”. The secret is – don’t try. Planning is also difficult in this state, and some people feel out of their depth when they are not making lists, or planning their next move. Again, don’t try. The cliché “live in the moment” is very relevant, but because most of us are so good at organising (which helps us work, play, shop, etc.) we can find it a bit of a challenge to still the mind. None the less, it is a challenge that most of us will be thankful we took up. Of course, there will always be a minority (you’ll know if this is you) who have to work too hard to relax in this way, and will enjoy relaxing by talking more, not less.

Pain is rarely gain. While there are some techniques that must elicit a certain level of sensation(such as trigger point therapy), most massages should be comfortable from start to finish. If you have a sore spot, it is common to put up with pain when it is being worked on, the common thinking being: ‘no pain no gain’. In actual fact, your therapist probably has a range of alternate techniques that they can use that will be more comfortable, and just as effective. It is more common for a therapist to misjudge the correct pressure than it is for pain to result in gain. So speak up, help your therapist adapt to your sore spots, rather than gritting your teeth.

Common sense. Sunburn and massage do not mix. If you’re hungry now, you’ll be hungrier in an hour. If you feel the call of nature now, it’ll be shouting in an hour. Wear underpants. Don’t wear your Tiffany’s diamond necklace. Simple things make pleasure simple.