I’ve been scheduling a massage regularly for a few months, so I feel like it’s truly a habit now. The tricks to keeping up with massage appointments are:

  • Go to a hospital instead of a spa. Most hospitals have PT/rehab offices that accept any patients (check with your hospital or one that’s close to you). You don’t have to worry about their licensing, and the bigger plus: You don’t have to tip! :) It’s really affordable to get a monthly massage when you don’t have to calculate a 20% tip onto the service.
  • Try 30 min appointments instead of a full hour. Quite often you know where your trouble areas are (they like to say “where you hold your stress”), so go for a shorter time, get most of the benefit, and save some time and money.
  • Schedule your next appointment while you’re there. Scheduling is the easiest way to fall off the massage-bandwagon. Go a few minutes early and book your next appointment, or do it before you leave. When you think, “Oh, I’ll look at my other calendar and call in later,” this how you suddenly stop making appointments!
  • Budget for it! People like to complaining about the extra expense of “self pampering.” These are the same people who use the snack machine everyday. Almost everyone can afford an extra $25 each month. $1 for the snack machine X 30 days = $30. $4 coffee drink X 4 weeks = $16. Start tracking the little expenses, and cash in for a massage.

OK, I’ll stop preaching the wonder of massages.