If there's one service that has become very popular in recent years and has been increasingly incorporated into beauty salons, it's Wood Therapy. Unlike other services that are more temporary because they've simply become trendy (social media, influencers, celebrities), wood therapy is here to stay. More and more people are turning to this technique because it achieves great results, has many benefits and is a treatment suited to every budget. In our wood therapy guide we tell you everything you need to know about this highly requested service.
What is wood therapy
To talk about wood therapy, we first need to know what it involves. Wood therapy is a natural, aesthetic massage technique that combines the use of wooden tools to achieve reducing, firming or relaxing treatments.
What is the origin of wood therapy?
This massage technique began to be used in Eastern medicine thousands of years ago as a therapeutic technique to relieve muscle pain. Very rudimentary wooden tools were used to carry it out.
In the late 1990s in Colombia, this technique was developed and refined for aesthetic massage. In fact, it's there that the wooden tools we know today were created, tools that are adapted to the body and to the different functions each one has.
From that point on, wood therapy has focused on aesthetic treatments such as reducing, anti-cellulite, firming, muscle-relaxing treatments, for tired legs, and to reduce fluid retention and localised fat.
Aesthetic massage with wooden tools is suitable for everyone, since it helps with any type of skin issue, such as circulation problems, fluid retention, accumulated fat or muscle aches.
Types of wood
To carry out the wood therapy service we need the wooden tools specific to this technique, which are usually made from Urapán tree wood, originating from Colombia.
To offer the wood therapy service at your beauty salon, you need several of these tools, with which you'll achieve different effects on the body. You can buy them separately or by purchasing specific kits, such as anti-cellulite, lifting, etc., which include the essential wooden tools for each treatment.
Today there's a wide range of wooden tools, increasingly more specific, but the most used in the wood therapy service are the following:
- 4-sphere roller: This tool helps firm, tone and shape the body. It also helps eliminate fat and fluids, and relaxes areas with more muscle tension.
- 4-cube roller: Activates blood circulation and the lymphatic system, helps eliminate hard, compact fat deposits in localised areas.
- Diamond-tip roller: Works more deeply on areas with more fat build-up, such as hips, abdomen and legs.
- Mushroom cup: Can be used for relaxing or anti-cellulite massages. Helps fight cellulite and eliminate the “orange peel” effect, helps activate blood circulation and breaks down accumulated fat.
- Swedish cup: Reduces fat deposits, shapes, tones and also lifts the buttocks. Ideal for lymphatic drainage.
- Shaping board: Helps move fat towards the lymph nodes.
In addition to the wooden tools, when carrying out the service it's essential to use an oil to help the wood glide over the skin.
That oil can also be part of the treatment, as it may contain ingredients that enhance the reducing, draining or anti-cellulite effect. At Seena Owell we recommend these two oils:
- Reducing massage oil from the Imperium Beauty Group brand is a vegetable oil that helps eliminate toxins, has a draining effect and promotes healthy skin.
- Firming massage oil from the Imperium Beauty Group brand, is an oil that combines essential oils while toning, softening and improving the appearance of areas with sagging skin, preventing loss of tissue firmness.
Wood Therapy Service
As you know, wood therapy aims to shape and firm the figure, and one session alone isn't enough to achieve this. To get visible results, a consistent treatment carried out over time is necessary.
Although it's important to first assess each client's situation and needs, to offer a personalised, appropriate treatment, in general terms we can say the treatment should include a minimum of 6 sessions for it to be truly effective and for the results to last over time. At Seena Owell we recommend carrying them out over several weeks, at a rate of 1 or 2 sessions per week. We don't recommend more than 2 sessions a week so as not to overload the body.
It's very common to offer this treatment in packages of 6 or 10 sessions, at a more affordable price, to encourage clients to complete the full treatment and to build loyalty.
Session length can vary from 30, 45 minutes or 1 hour of treatment, all depending on the client's needs and the service we offer at our beauty salon.
Besides the duration, sessions also vary depending on the client and the symptoms they have (cellulite, fat, fluid retention), which is why, as we mentioned, it's important for it to be a personalised treatment.
With this service the client will notice changes from the very first session, noticing firmer skin with less fatty build-up, although the results become most visible from the third session onwards.
However, so the client can see the results between sessions, we recommend always measuring and/or photographing the areas being treated, so they can also see the overall change and progress once the treatment is finished.
As with other aesthetic services, it's important for the client to take care of their diet, and we should recommend physical exercise as a complement to the treatment, although it's not advisable for the client to exercise on the days they come in for the service.
Benefits and Contraindications of the wood therapy service
The benefits of a wood therapy service can vary depending on the area we work on and the areas the client wants to improve.
As we mentioned earlier, the key to success with this treatment is combining the massage with a balanced diet and a physical exercise routine. The most notable benefits are the following:
- Benefits blood circulation
- Regulates lymphatic circulation and reduces fatty tissue
- Tones the skin
- Firms the skin
- Eliminates or improves cellulite
- Helps with fluid retention
As with almost all services, there are always some contraindications we need to bear in mind so the service is successful and doesn't put our client at risk. These are the most important ones to consider before performing the service:
- Dermatitis
- Allergies localised in the area to be treated
- Diabetes
- Circulatory system disorders
- Chronic hypertension
- Cancer
- Kidney disease
We recommend that before performing any service of this type, the client fill in a form stating whether they suffer from any of the conditions mentioned above or anything else that could affect the service, whether they've had this treatment before and what aspects they want to improve. It's also advisable to have them sign an informed consent form detailing the treatment and the area to be treated. With all this we'll have the information needed to carry out a safe, successful service.
Wood Therapy Training
We can't fail to mention the importance of training and qualification for your salon's technical staff before offering this type of service. We can't forget that we're performing a deep facial or body massage, in areas where the lymphatic system is located. That's why it's essential to know each tool very well, as well as how to use them in each area and what should or shouldn't be done in each treatment.
Remember that if you have any questions about the application and protocol of the products available on the Seena Owell website, you can contact us by phone, email, chat and WhatsApp. We'll be happy to help you.
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