October 28, 2024 • 28 mins
Veterans and anyone seeking relief from physical pain, join us for an enlightening discussion with Holly Crocker, the visionary owner of Balanced Arch Massage in Haymarket, VA. Holly's personal transformation from debilitating pain to a skilled massage therapist offers hope and inspiration. Her expertise in Western and Eastern techniques, including Chinese meridian therapy and acupressure, focuses on restoring the body's natural design for pain-free movement. Discover how her tailored approach to massage therapy has profoundly impacted my life and my wife’s, and learn about the potential for achieving improved mobility and well-being.
Explore the transformative power of touch as Holly and I highlight the role of holistic massage therapy in alleviating tension and stress stored in our bodies. We delve into the essentials of massage sessions, from brief sports massages to extensive relaxation experiences and the added benefits of essential oils and acupressure. Get insights into how massage therapy can complement traditional medical practices and the importance of an initial consultation to address specific concerns. Find a massage therapist near you or look for a VA Whole Health program at your local VA Medical Center.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Larry Zilliox (00:00):
Good morning.
I'm your host, larry Zilliox,Director of Culinary Services
here Today, we have a veryspecial guest, Ms.
the Warrior Retreat at Bull Run, Ms.
Holly Crocker.
She's the owner of BalancedArch Massage here in Haymarket
and, in the interest oftransparency right up front, I'm
going to tell you she is mypersonal massage therapist and
(00:24):
this has made such a hugedifference in my life and my
wife's life that I wanted tohave her come and join us so we
could talk about massage therapyand the benefits for veterans
out there, to give you a betterunderstanding of what it is, how
it might help you, where to getthe service.
(00:44):
So, holly, welcome to thepodcast.
Holly Crocker (00:47):
Larry, thank you so much for having me here.
Larry Zilliox (00:49):
It's such a pleasure to be here so tell our
listeners a little bit aboutyour background and what led you
to becoming a massage therapist.
Holly Crocker (01:00):
Well, first let me thank you for letting me be
here and thank all of ourservice members, so incredibly
grateful to them, and not onlyto them, but to their wives,
their spouses, their children,their families, because when
they serve, their families serveas well and also to all those
shadow warriors and those whodon't always get the
acknowledgement on theintelligence community and
(01:21):
frontline firefighters, policeofficers, secret service agents.
What led me to massage therapywas, honestly, modern day living
and stressful lives, and mybody was wrecked from pushing it
and pushing it and not takinggreat care of it.
And so I'm a mom of five out ofchildren, and I spent way too
(01:47):
much time in my car, at a deskworking on a computer and not
taking care of myself, and Istarted to develop sciatica down
my legs and my lower back and Iwent to every doctor there was
available and you know thesurgeons didn't want to operate
on me, so they didn't wantanything to do with me and
nobody could figure out what wasgoing on.
(02:07):
So I worked between a physicaltherapist, a personal trainer
and a massage therapist forthree years to figure out what
was going on with me.
It turns out that I had an SIjoint that was out of alignment,
that was throwing off my pelvis, which threw off my back, which
impacted the nerves going downthe back of my leg, and I was
(02:28):
way too young to feel this badLike I.
Just you know, I couldn't drive, I couldn't walk, couldn't keep
up with my kids.
It decided to go back to school.
I have absolutely no backgroundin science my background is
international studies andSpanish but I loved learning
(02:51):
about the body, from helping toheal my own, and I decided to go
back to massage school, whichis a seven-month program.
I loved it.
I did a great job.
I actually could learn.
I was shocked that I couldlearn.
I've gone on and I've takenlots of extra classes and I'll
mention now that I do bothWestern and Eastern massage and
(03:13):
I do Chinese meridian therapy aswell and acupressure Not
acupuncture that's with needles,but acupressure which is with
your hands, which is supergentle, and I love it.
I healed myself throughlearning how to be a massage
therapist and so the people whoI'm helping I can totally under
relate what their problem is andI love it.
(03:35):
Massage is.
It's amazing.
I love it.
I love seeing what it can dofor people and it doesn't matter
how young or old.
Like I've helped small children, I've helped athletes, I've
helped the elderly, so I love it.
Larry Zilliox (03:47):
Yeah, what's your definition of massage therapy?
You know there's massage, youcan go and get a massage which
is relaxing and all that, butthen massage therapy is that a
course of treatment?
Is it a type of therapy?
What are our listeners?
Is it a type of therapy?
What are our listeners?
What should they know about?
What is massage therapy?
Holly Crocker (04:07):
Okay, so let me give you a little background for
the listeners.
I know you've already heardthis, larry.
So the body is amazing.
It consists of over 206 bonesand over 600 muscles that work
on those bones to make the bodymove like it's supposed to.
And our bodies are built tomove.
They're built to move withoutpain.
(04:28):
Unfortunately, our modernlifestyles, where we're always
sitting or reaching in front ofus or sitting at a computer or
driving a car or looking down ata cell phone everything is in
front of you and what ends uphappening is muscles only work
in one direction.
So the muscles on our front ofour bodies tend to become very
(04:49):
tight and tense and what theycall hypertensive, and then the
muscles on the back that arecompensating for that have
become long and stretched andweak and sometimes inhibited.
And then you find you've seenpeople who have like the rounded
shoulders or like the necks,that are like way forward.
Or you know massage therapy inmy definition.
(05:12):
What I do in my practice is Ihelp people rebalance.
That's why the name of mypractice is Balanced Arch
Massage.
It's to rebalance the skeletalsystem so that you aren't in
pain, because that pain is amessage from your body that
something is not right.
You know you stub your toe, youhave pain Okay, you hurt your
(05:33):
toe Right, but you have shoulder.
You know neck problems isprobably because you've been
working at computer so long thateverything in your chest is
super tight and the back of yourneck is telling you this really
hurts.
I can't hang on like thisanymore.
I like to work with my clients.
Every session is based on theirneeds for that day.
(05:54):
Sometimes I only see a clientonce.
Sometimes I see a client forrepeated visits and it depends
on what their body needs andwhat they want.
Larry Zilliox (06:05):
I will say I'm a repeat customer because I'm in
really bad shape.
I need a lot of work.
Holly Crocker (06:14):
You're such a pleasure, larry, you are so
amazing and I have to say that,without disclosing any personal
information, it's such apleasure to work with you and
with Charmaine and to see howsomeone who has had habits for a
long time can regain motion ormomentum with their muscles.
(06:37):
And as a massage therapist Ican tell by massaging you, where
you're holding tension and whatmuscles are active and which
ones are not active.
So there are two nervoussystems.
The sympathetic nervous systemis your fight or flight.
It's I've got this to-do listthat has to get done, I've got
to go here, I've got to go there.
Here's the enemy.
I'm running from this enemy.
(06:59):
I have to go in this direction.
Most of us live in thatsympathetic state.
But the other nervous system isthe parasympathetic nervous
system.
That's the rest and digest,that's the take the breaks off,
relax, breathe, actually letyour body recuperate, so then
(07:19):
the next day you can take on thestress of what's going on day.
You can take on the stress ofwhat's going on.
What isn't.
Relaxation is like getting infront of the tv and watching
like a horror movie or somethinglike that, because you are like
literally activating this yeah,system, taking a walk,
breathing, literally likebringing oxygen into your body,
(07:40):
moving like working the back ofyour body.
Sometimes some of your musclesbecome inhibited.
Larry Zilliox (07:46):
Okay.
Holly Crocker (07:47):
Right.
So, like, for example, when yousit all the time, your hip
flexors become very tight fromsitting and perhaps your glutes
actually are inhibited now andthey don't work.
Even though your body makes themotions that your glutes are
supposed to do, your brainrecruits other muscles to do
that.
You can feel that as a massagetherapist that those muscles are
(08:09):
super hypertensive and they'reactually not working.
Physical therapists work withthis all the time, but to
actually make the body work theright way so that you don't have
pain elsewhere, you need tomake sure that those muscles are
active.
There are some people who thinkthat if you have a deep massage
and it hurts like to the pointwhere it hurts then that's
(08:29):
healing.
But in my case I don't believethat that's true.
Your pain spasm reflex is whenyou feel pain, then your body
tenses up.
So if you get a deep massageespecially for me, I know
personally, if I get a deepmassage my body actually feels
worse afterwards.
Yeah, so my philosophy is thatI work deep but I let the
(08:53):
muscles and the tissue let me into get to those tight spots,
because you have so many layersof muscles and tissues and
fascia under the skin that youhave to get to.
Larry Zilliox (09:03):
Well, let me ask you this and tissues and fascia
under the skin that you have toget to?
Well, let me ask you this so inVirginia, you're a certified,
licensed professional, and soevery state has licensing when
it comes to medicalprofessionals and massage
therapists.
And so, right off the bat, ifsomebody is looking for a
massage therapist, that shouldbe one of the first things they
(09:25):
check is say OK, is this personcertified or licensed?
If our listeners wanted to findin their area a good massage
therapist, what do they look forin a massage therapist?
Holly Crocker (09:41):
First of all, you want to find somebody that
you're comfortable with.
I'll tell you what you want tofind a massage therapist who
will address your needs.
Why are you going?
If you just want a massage, arelaxation massage, great.
If you want a deep tissue, likea therapeutic massage, that's
going to help you.
Look at the reviews online, seewhat their advertising says and
see if they work with you.
(10:03):
Some people are looking forsports massages.
If you're an athlete, sportsmassages are great.
They're very different than arelaxation massage.
They're actually meant toactivate your muscles and
energize your muscles so thatyou can go perform better for
whatever activity you're doing.
There are massage book andother online platforms where you
(10:24):
can research about massagetherapists and find a good
practitioner that way.
Larry Zilliox (10:29):
There's no harm in just making an appointment
and going in and seeing how youlike that massage therapist and
the type of technique that theyuse.
So in your particular case youhad mentioned you do Western and
Eastern type massages and whatI can tell our listeners from my
own personal experience is thatgoing to Holly you get a really
(10:54):
in-depth explanation about whatshe's doing to you and how it's
helping you.
It's not just, oh, just, youknow, lay down over here and
I'll somehow work magic and Iguarantee you'll feel better.
It's.
You get a real understanding ofthe process and also homework
(11:21):
of the process and also homework.
You get homework to workcertain muscles throughout the
week until it's time to comeagain and feel amazing.
But yeah, so I think it'simportant that our listeners,
veterans, think about massagetherapy as a way to help them
adjust their body, especially asthey get older, things get a
little out of whack and you'veprobably been walking wrong or
(11:44):
sitting too long or developingbad habits that affect your
posture and just your whole body, and I would recommend people
go and just see if they can getin alignment again and free
their chi, which is my bigproblem.
All my chi was blocked up andit was just ridiculous really,
(12:07):
but I think my chi is free now.
Talk a little bit about what arethe mechanics of massage.
Is it usually half an hour?
Is it an hour or two hours?
I know for myself it's twohours and I need all of that,
but not everybody does.
So how does it work?
(12:27):
What are the mechanics of anappointment look like?
Holly Crocker (12:30):
So let me address something that you, before I
answer that question, let meaddress something else that came
up when you mentioned all ofthat, and that is that our
bodies hold tension, emotion,stress, memories both good and
bad in our bodies, and so youknow, you can tell when you're
stressed, you feel it in yourneck, right.
(12:52):
But when bad things happen,your body also responds and your
nervous system is ever adapting, and so your brain will start
to think, you know, that havingthat your shoulders forward is
actually straight.
When it's really not, that'snormal, exactly so your body
(13:13):
holds these positions, thinkingthat it's normal, and so our job
as massage therapists isactually help to remind your
body.
No, really, this is what'sstraight, this is where your
body is supposed to be, and it'samazing, you know what can
happen Like I've worked on asold as 88 years old, who've had
(13:36):
muscles that have beencontracted for a very long time
and super hypertensive, and in amassage session, I can, you
know, open up their whole chest,and they're standing up
straighter.
And that's one great thing aboutbeing in the military is you
learn great posture becauseyou're supposed to be standing
up straight at his attention,right?
But posture is the number oneproblem in my book these days,
(13:57):
because when you have poorposture then that does affect
all of your muscles and thenthat creates pain.
A session for me is howeverlong your body needs.
If it's a sports massage, thenit's 15 minutes prior to an
event or 20 minutes post massage, post exercise.
I can do as long as a 60 minutesports massage to help activate
(14:17):
muscles between events forsomebody, but for a relaxation,
healing massage for me two hoursis best.
When I'm working with myclients I can do it in 90
minutes, but I can't get to thewhole body in 60 minutes.
You're just too rushed if youthink about all the body area
that you're covering and thatdoesn't give you the time to
(14:38):
actually go slow and actuallyrelease that tissue like the
client needs.
If I'm doing something likeessential oil therapy, yeah it's
my favorite.
You love it, and that is usingessential oils on acupressure
points, which helps to free theenergy flowing through your body
and it make you feel better.
But it's the chi, it's the chi.
(15:00):
You free your chi.
Larry Zilliox (15:01):
Yes.
Holly Crocker (15:02):
Acupressure in itself is very powerful.
It's super relaxing, supergentle.
I love it.
I use it on myself all the time.
I highly recommend everybody doself acupressure honestly.
And I didn't even know anythingabout it until I started, until
I became a massage therapistand started learning about it.
(15:22):
But to answer your questionabout the appointments, depends
on what your body needs.
Larry Zilliox (15:27):
Right, right, and that's all part of the initial
evaluation.
When you meet with a massagetherapist and say these are my
problem areas, this is where Ireally hurt.
You know, for me part, I didn'teven realize it, but my
breathing was very bad.
My muscles in my chest were notworking properly and you tuned
(15:50):
them up real good and so Ibreathe a lot easier.
And so I breathe a lot easier,which helps with my sleeping,
singing in church, actually allsorts of ways.
But yeah, it's so importantduring that initial consultation
and meeting to get it all outon the table and don't hold
anything back.
So you know, ok, my knees hurt,my elbow hurts.
(16:11):
I fell out of a helicopter, youknow, when I was 23 and I was
fine.
But turns out when I'm 63 it'snot fine.
And these are all good reasonsto see a massage therapist.
Holly's in private practice andit's a referral basis only.
She has a lot of clients, butthere are plenty of massage
(16:32):
therapists around and in yourarea.
I think it's important to atleast try it, at least make an
appointment and talk to amassage therapist about how they
think they can help you basedon your medical needs.
And you know a good massagetherapist too.
(16:53):
If they think you needtreatment beyond their
capabilities, they're going totell you that they're going to
say look, there's nothing I cando to help you with that.
That almost seems like youmight need surgery or you should
be going to a physicaltherapist or that sort of thing.
So also, too, I think it's afair question to ask what are
(17:15):
the limitations here for me?
Because I think if there's amismatch in a therapist's
capabilities and the client'sexpectations, it's just not
going to be a good fit and it'snot going to be a great episode.
Holly Crocker (17:29):
Expectations it's just not going to be a good fit
and it's not going to be agreat episode.
It's called scope of practice.
So as a massage therapist, justlike every other medical
profession, we have our niche inthe healthcare community, and
so if it's not within our scopeof practice, then we will refer
you out.
Most massage therapists knowgood physical therapists or
orthopedists or things alongthose lines.
(17:50):
Right, I'll just say this,though If you have, say, back
pain, give me an example.
Our natural tendency is to go tothe primary care doctor,
because that's what Westernmedicine is all about.
You go to your primary doctorand they'll tell you you have
muscle pain, but they actuallywon't touch you.
I don't know about you, but myprimary care doctor doesn't even
(18:13):
listen to my heart most of thetime when I go Like they.
Just, you know they listen,they're a doctor for that, right
, they listen to you.
I have all the respect in theworld for doctors.
I really do appreciate them.
We couldn't live without thembut they'll often just refer you
out for physical therapy oroften, sometimes to a massage
therapist as well, and I thinkthere's really a need out there
(18:33):
for good massage therapists,because so much of our body is
bones and muscles, yeah, and ourmodern lifestyle is so out of
whack with what our bodies areable to do that.
We get stuck in these limitedmotions limited motions and then
we end up in pain.
that when you take a musclerelaxer or you know a painkiller
(18:55):
or something, it actuallydoesn't fix the problem, it just
masks the symptom.
Larry Zilliox (18:59):
Yeah.
Holly Crocker (19:03):
So what I like to do with my clients is let's
figure out what's causing it, sothat you don't have to take all
those things.
Larry Zilliox (19:07):
Yeah.
Holly Crocker (19:07):
Right and I know that's worked for me and that's
worked for my clients that I'veI've worked on.
I'm not telling anybody to tonot take their medication that's
been prescribed for them, but Iknow for me I I haven't taken
an ibuprofen for a headachesince I started practicing.
Larry Zilliox (19:23):
Yeah.
Holly Crocker (19:24):
You know, there's acupressure that I can do for
that, or I realize that myposture is off and I I adjust
that.
So there's, um, it's a veryholistic way of healing If if
someone's interested in findinga more holistic way of taking
care of themselves and so from aholistic standpoint, is massage
(19:44):
therapy a part of holistic?
Larry Zilliox (19:48):
Well, I don't know, be a part of holistic?
Well, I don't know.
Lifestyle, or when I hear theword holistic, I think it means
a lot of different things to alot of different people and it
does encompass everything likeacupuncture and acupressure and
massage therapy and everything.
Is it a lifestyle?
How do you define holistic?
(20:08):
Natural, natural, Okay.
Holly Crocker (20:11):
And massage therapy is very natural.
Yeah, the power of touch isincredibly powerful.
You know, just holding afriend's hand, or you know
someone who's grieving, givingthem a hug, right.
The power of touch is sopowerful and in our modern world
we're so busy.
Larry Zilliox (20:28):
Yeah.
Holly Crocker (20:28):
I'm not sure we're really touching people
like we need to.
You know, it's also a phobicworld, right, because nobody
wants to be sued for anything orwhatever.
But the power of touch isamazing because we're creatures
that need that.
Yeah, even people who say theydon't really, they really do.
The beautiful thing aboutmassage is when done properly,
it can't hurt you.
Larry Zilliox (20:49):
Yeah.
Holly Crocker (20:50):
It can release a lot.
It can release the tension inyour body, but it can also
release emotions.
It can release pain, bothphysical and emotional pain,
relieve pressure, lower yourblood pressure, bring on
relaxation, you know, improveyour sleep, improve your
breathing, you know, improveyour ability to walk or move or
(21:12):
range of motion in your jointsWithout pain, without pain.
Yeah Right, that's the point islike you, you know, have
everything back in alignment.
Acupressure is awesome becauseit either works or it doesn't.
It's not needles, I don't.
I don't do needles, I doacupressure, which is just using
the pads of your fingers.
Larry Zilliox (21:31):
Yeah.
Holly Crocker (21:32):
Super gentle, super relaxing, and it can't
hurt you.
Larry Zilliox (21:36):
Yeah.
Holly Crocker (21:36):
Like you're just touching your body, like and
when coupled with aromatherapy,it's.
Larry Zilliox (21:42):
It's just incredible, it just like, oh,
it's unbelievable.
Holly Crocker (21:46):
So Can I talk about that for a second?
Yeah, so I just found itincredibly powerful.
When you combine certainessential herbs with certain
acupressure points, you caneither reduce someone's tension
and help them sleep better, eatbetter, relax, or if someone has
like no energy, you can bringthem energy.
(22:07):
You can give them more energy,clearer mind, more focus.
You know you can use it forthings like tense menstruation
or headaches.
It's incredible because there'sso many points all over your
body and so many differentessential oils, the combinations
, and you're treating not justthe muscles but you're able to
work more of the body, more ofthe systems.
(22:30):
It's really powerful.
Larry Zilliox (22:31):
Yeah, and what I like about it is that the aroma
is wonderful.
I mean, it's sense that youdon't normally encounter in your
day-to-day activities.
So you get this smell, thissmell, this aroma of something
(22:55):
that's just so different, I mean, and they all are very
wonderful and relaxing.
You know, it's not like you'resmelling gym socks or anything
like that.
It's all really nice aromas,very relaxing and soothing, and
certainly somebody I thinkeverybody would benefit from it.
I know I did what's the mostimportant thing before we close
(23:15):
out today, that you want toleave our listeners with when it
comes to massage therapy?
Holly Crocker (23:22):
Just listen to your body, you know, pay
attention to it.
You know when you're workingout.
Make sure that you're workingout equally, although if you're
doing a lot of chest exercises,you really need to be doing like
three times the number of backexercises, because everything we
do is in the front of ourbodies.
But just because you're youngdoesn't mean that all your
muscles are active.
I was working on a high schoolcross-country runner and was
(23:46):
amazed to figure out her glutesweren't firing, which is pretty
impressive if you think about it.
And boy, she ran a lot fasteronce I inactivated her glutes.
Was amazing.
You know, if you are, if you areready to get back into shape
and you want to go to the gym,one of the reasons why you get
hurt when you go right back tothe gym after not being active
is because a bunch of yourmuscles probably aren't, are
(24:07):
inhibited and they're notworking.
So then you're using smallermuscles to do those bigger
muscles jobs and that's when youget injured.
So take the time instead ofjust jumping right up and doing
something hard.
Take the time to activate thosemuscles.
Make sure your body is movingin the way that it's supposed to
and it's using all the rightmuscles before you jump right
(24:28):
into exercising.
Larry Zilliox (24:29):
Well, that sounds like another reason for our
listeners to seek out a massagetherapist to say I plan on going
back to the gym.
That's going to be my newyear's resolution.
So basically this is the timeof year to go see a massage
therapist.
You know, because I know you'regoing to make that resolution
that you know come Januaryyou're going to go to the gym.
(24:51):
So now's the time to see thatmassage therapist and say what
do I need to do to get ready togo to the gym so I don't hurt
myself, because I'd rather frontload this massage therapy than
go to the gym, hurt myself andbe in pain and have to come back
to you to deal with thatproblem.
So I really like that ideabecause a lot of our veterans
(25:14):
are constantly wanting to getback in shape and I think too,
if you make that commitment togo to a massage therapist before
you're going to try to get backin shape, I think that will
make you more committed toactually trying to get back in
shape and not talking so muchabout it actually doing it.
So I think that's great advice.
(25:37):
So I do want to say to ourveteran listeners that in season
one, if you go back to episode35, this was back in December of
2023,.
I did an episode with DrJennifer Cho and she's the
deputy director for the VA'swhole health program at the DC
(25:58):
Medical Center and they have awhole health program that
involves a lot of these holisticapproaches.
A lot of these holisticapproaches such as massage
therapy and acupuncture and justa whole host of alternative
therapies that are reallyunusual for the VA, because
(26:21):
usually the VA is just all aboutmedicine and pills and doctors
and operations and things likethat.
So it was very interesting tosee that they're looking at and
starting to become involved inthese type of alternative
therapies.
So if you're interested andyou're near a VA facility, check
out if they have the WholeHealth Program.
(26:42):
But listen to that in seasonone it's episode 35, and you'll
get a good bit of informationabout the VA's whole health
program.
Holly, thank you so much forcoming and spending this time
with us.
It's just great.
Holly Crocker (26:56):
Thank you so much , Larry.
I really appreciate you lettingme be here and I just wish all
of the listeners out there goodluck.
And I just mentioned you know,massage therapy can be an
amazing tool in your toolbox totake care of your body and help
you uncover why it's hurting andhelp you release, Even if it's
just not just physical things,emotional things as well.
The power touch is reallyamazing.
(27:17):
Even just a massage from yourloved one, you know, a mom to a
kid, a husband to wife, whateveryou know massage therapy, if
you think about it, we have alot of bones and muscles and
they all could benefit, right,Because we're always using our
bodies for everything.
So thank you for letting mehave this opportunity to share
(27:37):
massage therapy with everyone.
Larry Zilliox (27:39):
Yeah, don't ignore your bones, your muscles
and your chi.
That's right.
Well, for our listeners, we'llhave another episode next Monday
morning at 5 am.
For our listeners, we'll haveanother episode next Monday
morning at 5 am.
If you have any questions orsuggestions, you can reach us at
podcastatwillingwarriorsorg.
Until then, thanks forlistening.
Good morning.
I'm your host, larry Zilliox,Director of Culinary Services
here Today, we have a veryspecial guest, Ms.
the Warrior Retreat at Bull Run, Ms.
Holly Crocker.
She's the owner of BalancedArch Massage here in Haymarket
and, in the interest oftransparency right up front, I'm
going to tell you she is mypersonal massage therapist and
(00:24):
this has made such a hugedifference in my life and my
wife's life that I wanted tohave her come and join us so we
could talk about massage therapyand the benefits for veterans
out there, to give you a betterunderstanding of what it is, how
it might help you, where to getthe service.
(00:44):
So, holly, welcome to thepodcast.
Holly Crocker (00:47):
Larry, thank you so much for having me here.
Larry Zilliox (00:49):
It's such a pleasure to be here so tell our
listeners a little bit aboutyour background and what led you
to becoming a massage therapist.
Holly Crocker (01:00):
Well, first let me thank you for letting me be
here and thank all of ourservice members, so incredibly
grateful to them, and not onlyto them, but to their wives,
their spouses, their children,their families, because when
they serve, their families serveas well and also to all those
shadow warriors and those whodon't always get the
acknowledgement on theintelligence community and
(01:21):
frontline firefighters, policeofficers, secret service agents.
What led me to massage therapywas, honestly, modern day living
and stressful lives, and mybody was wrecked from pushing it
and pushing it and not takinggreat care of it.
And so I'm a mom of five out ofchildren, and I spent way too
(01:47):
much time in my car, at a deskworking on a computer and not
taking care of myself, and Istarted to develop sciatica down
my legs and my lower back and Iwent to every doctor there was
available and you know thesurgeons didn't want to operate
on me, so they didn't wantanything to do with me and
nobody could figure out what wasgoing on.
(02:07):
So I worked between a physicaltherapist, a personal trainer
and a massage therapist forthree years to figure out what
was going on with me.
It turns out that I had an SIjoint that was out of alignment,
that was throwing off my pelvis, which threw off my back, which
impacted the nerves going downthe back of my leg, and I was
(02:28):
way too young to feel this badLike I.
Just you know, I couldn't drive, I couldn't walk, couldn't keep
up with my kids.
It decided to go back to school.
I have absolutely no backgroundin science my background is
international studies andSpanish but I loved learning
(02:51):
about the body, from helping toheal my own, and I decided to go
back to massage school, whichis a seven-month program.
I loved it.
I did a great job.
I actually could learn.
I was shocked that I couldlearn.
I've gone on and I've takenlots of extra classes and I'll
mention now that I do bothWestern and Eastern massage and
(03:13):
I do Chinese meridian therapy aswell and acupressure Not
acupuncture that's with needles,but acupressure which is with
your hands, which is supergentle, and I love it.
I healed myself throughlearning how to be a massage
therapist and so the people whoI'm helping I can totally under
relate what their problem is andI love it.
(03:35):
Massage is.
It's amazing.
I love it.
I love seeing what it can dofor people and it doesn't matter
how young or old.
Like I've helped small children, I've helped athletes, I've
helped the elderly, so I love it.
Larry Zilliox (03:47):
Yeah, what's your definition of massage therapy?
You know there's massage, youcan go and get a massage which
is relaxing and all that, butthen massage therapy is that a
course of treatment?
Is it a type of therapy?
What are our listeners?
Is it a type of therapy?
What are our listeners?
What should they know about?
What is massage therapy?
Holly Crocker (04:07):
Okay, so let me give you a little background for
the listeners.
I know you've already heardthis, larry.
So the body is amazing.
It consists of over 206 bonesand over 600 muscles that work
on those bones to make the bodymove like it's supposed to.
And our bodies are built tomove.
They're built to move withoutpain.
(04:28):
Unfortunately, our modernlifestyles, where we're always
sitting or reaching in front ofus or sitting at a computer or
driving a car or looking down ata cell phone everything is in
front of you and what ends uphappening is muscles only work
in one direction.
So the muscles on our front ofour bodies tend to become very
(04:49):
tight and tense and what theycall hypertensive, and then the
muscles on the back that arecompensating for that have
become long and stretched andweak and sometimes inhibited.
And then you find you've seenpeople who have like the rounded
shoulders or like the necks,that are like way forward.
Or you know massage therapy inmy definition.
(05:12):
What I do in my practice is Ihelp people rebalance.
That's why the name of mypractice is Balanced Arch
Massage.
It's to rebalance the skeletalsystem so that you aren't in
pain, because that pain is amessage from your body that
something is not right.
You know you stub your toe, youhave pain Okay, you hurt your
(05:33):
toe Right, but you have shoulder.
You know neck problems isprobably because you've been
working at computer so long thateverything in your chest is
super tight and the back of yourneck is telling you this really
hurts.
I can't hang on like thisanymore.
I like to work with my clients.
Every session is based on theirneeds for that day.
(05:54):
Sometimes I only see a clientonce.
Sometimes I see a client forrepeated visits and it depends
on what their body needs andwhat they want.
Larry Zilliox (06:05):
I will say I'm a repeat customer because I'm in
really bad shape.
I need a lot of work.
Holly Crocker (06:14):
You're such a pleasure, larry, you are so
amazing and I have to say that,without disclosing any personal
information, it's such apleasure to work with you and
with Charmaine and to see howsomeone who has had habits for a
long time can regain motion ormomentum with their muscles.
(06:37):
And as a massage therapist Ican tell by massaging you, where
you're holding tension and whatmuscles are active and which
ones are not active.
So there are two nervoussystems.
The sympathetic nervous systemis your fight or flight.
It's I've got this to-do listthat has to get done, I've got
to go here, I've got to go there.
Here's the enemy.
I'm running from this enemy.
(06:59):
I have to go in this direction.
Most of us live in thatsympathetic state.
But the other nervous system isthe parasympathetic nervous
system.
That's the rest and digest,that's the take the breaks off,
relax, breathe, actually letyour body recuperate, so then
(07:19):
the next day you can take on thestress of what's going on day.
You can take on the stress ofwhat's going on.
What isn't.
Relaxation is like getting infront of the tv and watching
like a horror movie or somethinglike that, because you are like
literally activating this yeah,system, taking a walk,
breathing, literally likebringing oxygen into your body,
(07:40):
moving like working the back ofyour body.
Sometimes some of your musclesbecome inhibited.
Larry Zilliox (07:46):
Okay.
Holly Crocker (07:47):
Right.
So, like, for example, when yousit all the time, your hip
flexors become very tight fromsitting and perhaps your glutes
actually are inhibited now andthey don't work.
Even though your body makes themotions that your glutes are
supposed to do, your brainrecruits other muscles to do
that.
You can feel that as a massagetherapist that those muscles are
(08:09):
super hypertensive and they'reactually not working.
Physical therapists work withthis all the time, but to
actually make the body work theright way so that you don't have
pain elsewhere, you need tomake sure that those muscles are
active.
There are some people who thinkthat if you have a deep massage
and it hurts like to the pointwhere it hurts then that's
(08:29):
healing.
But in my case I don't believethat that's true.
Your pain spasm reflex is whenyou feel pain, then your body
tenses up.
So if you get a deep massageespecially for me, I know
personally, if I get a deepmassage my body actually feels
worse afterwards.
Yeah, so my philosophy is thatI work deep but I let the
(08:53):
muscles and the tissue let me into get to those tight spots,
because you have so many layersof muscles and tissues and
fascia under the skin that youhave to get to.
Larry Zilliox (09:03):
Well, let me ask you this and tissues and fascia
under the skin that you have toget to?
Well, let me ask you this so inVirginia, you're a certified,
licensed professional, and soevery state has licensing when
it comes to medicalprofessionals and massage
therapists.
And so, right off the bat, ifsomebody is looking for a
massage therapist, that shouldbe one of the first things they
(09:25):
check is say OK, is this personcertified or licensed?
If our listeners wanted to findin their area a good massage
therapist, what do they look forin a massage therapist?
Holly Crocker (09:41):
First of all, you want to find somebody that
you're comfortable with.
I'll tell you what you want tofind a massage therapist who
will address your needs.
Why are you going?
If you just want a massage, arelaxation massage, great.
If you want a deep tissue, likea therapeutic massage, that's
going to help you.
Look at the reviews online, seewhat their advertising says and
see if they work with you.
(10:03):
Some people are looking forsports massages.
If you're an athlete, sportsmassages are great.
They're very different than arelaxation massage.
They're actually meant toactivate your muscles and
energize your muscles so thatyou can go perform better for
whatever activity you're doing.
There are massage book andother online platforms where you
(10:24):
can research about massagetherapists and find a good
practitioner that way.
Larry Zilliox (10:29):
There's no harm in just making an appointment
and going in and seeing how youlike that massage therapist and
the type of technique that theyuse.
So in your particular case youhad mentioned you do Western and
Eastern type massages and whatI can tell our listeners from my
own personal experience is thatgoing to Holly you get a really
(10:54):
in-depth explanation about whatshe's doing to you and how it's
helping you.
It's not just, oh, just, youknow, lay down over here and
I'll somehow work magic and Iguarantee you'll feel better.
It's.
You get a real understanding ofthe process and also homework
(11:21):
of the process and also homework.
You get homework to workcertain muscles throughout the
week until it's time to comeagain and feel amazing.
But yeah, so I think it'simportant that our listeners,
veterans, think about massagetherapy as a way to help them
adjust their body, especially asthey get older, things get a
little out of whack and you'veprobably been walking wrong or
(11:44):
sitting too long or developingbad habits that affect your
posture and just your whole body, and I would recommend people
go and just see if they can getin alignment again and free
their chi, which is my bigproblem.
All my chi was blocked up andit was just ridiculous really,
(12:07):
but I think my chi is free now.
Talk a little bit about what arethe mechanics of massage.
Is it usually half an hour?
Is it an hour or two hours?
I know for myself it's twohours and I need all of that,
but not everybody does.
So how does it work?
(12:27):
What are the mechanics of anappointment look like?
Holly Crocker (12:30):
So let me address something that you, before I
answer that question, let meaddress something else that came
up when you mentioned all ofthat, and that is that our
bodies hold tension, emotion,stress, memories both good and
bad in our bodies, and so youknow, you can tell when you're
stressed, you feel it in yourneck, right.
(12:52):
But when bad things happen,your body also responds and your
nervous system is ever adapting, and so your brain will start
to think, you know, that havingthat your shoulders forward is
actually straight.
When it's really not, that'snormal, exactly so your body
(13:13):
holds these positions, thinkingthat it's normal, and so our job
as massage therapists isactually help to remind your
body.
No, really, this is what'sstraight, this is where your
body is supposed to be, and it'samazing, you know what can
happen Like I've worked on asold as 88 years old, who've had
(13:36):
muscles that have beencontracted for a very long time
and super hypertensive, and in amassage session, I can, you
know, open up their whole chest,and they're standing up
straighter.
And that's one great thing aboutbeing in the military is you
learn great posture becauseyou're supposed to be standing
up straight at his attention,right?
But posture is the number oneproblem in my book these days,
(13:57):
because when you have poorposture then that does affect
all of your muscles and thenthat creates pain.
A session for me is howeverlong your body needs.
If it's a sports massage, thenit's 15 minutes prior to an
event or 20 minutes post massage, post exercise.
I can do as long as a 60 minutesports massage to help activate
(14:17):
muscles between events forsomebody, but for a relaxation,
healing massage for me two hoursis best.
When I'm working with myclients I can do it in 90
minutes, but I can't get to thewhole body in 60 minutes.
You're just too rushed if youthink about all the body area
that you're covering and thatdoesn't give you the time to
(14:38):
actually go slow and actuallyrelease that tissue like the
client needs.
If I'm doing something likeessential oil therapy, yeah it's
my favorite.
You love it, and that is usingessential oils on acupressure
points, which helps to free theenergy flowing through your body
and it make you feel better.
But it's the chi, it's the chi.
(15:00):
You free your chi.
Larry Zilliox (15:01):
Yes.
Holly Crocker (15:02):
Acupressure in itself is very powerful.
It's super relaxing, supergentle.
I love it.
I use it on myself all the time.
I highly recommend everybody doself acupressure honestly.
And I didn't even know anythingabout it until I started, until
I became a massage therapistand started learning about it.
(15:22):
But to answer your questionabout the appointments, depends
on what your body needs.
Larry Zilliox (15:27):
Right, right, and that's all part of the initial
evaluation.
When you meet with a massagetherapist and say these are my
problem areas, this is where Ireally hurt.
You know, for me part, I didn'teven realize it, but my
breathing was very bad.
My muscles in my chest were notworking properly and you tuned
(15:50):
them up real good and so Ibreathe a lot easier.
And so I breathe a lot easier,which helps with my sleeping,
singing in church, actually allsorts of ways.
But yeah, it's so importantduring that initial consultation
and meeting to get it all outon the table and don't hold
anything back.
So you know, ok, my knees hurt,my elbow hurts.
(16:11):
I fell out of a helicopter, youknow, when I was 23 and I was
fine.
But turns out when I'm 63 it'snot fine.
And these are all good reasonsto see a massage therapist.
Holly's in private practice andit's a referral basis only.
She has a lot of clients, butthere are plenty of massage
(16:32):
therapists around and in yourarea.
I think it's important to atleast try it, at least make an
appointment and talk to amassage therapist about how they
think they can help you basedon your medical needs.
And you know a good massagetherapist too.
(16:53):
If they think you needtreatment beyond their
capabilities, they're going totell you that they're going to
say look, there's nothing I cando to help you with that.
That almost seems like youmight need surgery or you should
be going to a physicaltherapist or that sort of thing.
So also, too, I think it's afair question to ask what are
(17:15):
the limitations here for me?
Because I think if there's amismatch in a therapist's
capabilities and the client'sexpectations, it's just not
going to be a good fit and it'snot going to be a great episode.
Holly Crocker (17:29):
Expectations it's just not going to be a good fit
and it's not going to be agreat episode.
It's called scope of practice.
So as a massage therapist, justlike every other medical
profession, we have our niche inthe healthcare community, and
so if it's not within our scopeof practice, then we will refer
you out.
Most massage therapists knowgood physical therapists or
orthopedists or things alongthose lines.
(17:50):
Right, I'll just say this,though If you have, say, back
pain, give me an example.
Our natural tendency is to go tothe primary care doctor,
because that's what Westernmedicine is all about.
You go to your primary doctorand they'll tell you you have
muscle pain, but they actuallywon't touch you.
I don't know about you, but myprimary care doctor doesn't even
(18:13):
listen to my heart most of thetime when I go Like they.
Just, you know they listen,they're a doctor for that, right
, they listen to you.
I have all the respect in theworld for doctors.
I really do appreciate them.
We couldn't live without thembut they'll often just refer you
out for physical therapy oroften, sometimes to a massage
therapist as well, and I thinkthere's really a need out there
(18:33):
for good massage therapists,because so much of our body is
bones and muscles, yeah, and ourmodern lifestyle is so out of
whack with what our bodies areable to do that.
We get stuck in these limitedmotions limited motions and then
we end up in pain.
that when you take a musclerelaxer or you know a painkiller
(18:55):
or something, it actuallydoesn't fix the problem, it just
masks the symptom.
Larry Zilliox (18:59):
Yeah.
Holly Crocker (19:03):
So what I like to do with my clients is let's
figure out what's causing it, sothat you don't have to take all
those things.
Larry Zilliox (19:07):
Yeah.
Holly Crocker (19:07):
Right and I know that's worked for me and that's
worked for my clients that I'veI've worked on.
I'm not telling anybody to tonot take their medication that's
been prescribed for them, but Iknow for me I I haven't taken
an ibuprofen for a headachesince I started practicing.
Larry Zilliox (19:23):
Yeah.
Holly Crocker (19:24):
You know, there's acupressure that I can do for
that, or I realize that myposture is off and I I adjust
that.
So there's, um, it's a veryholistic way of healing If if
someone's interested in findinga more holistic way of taking
care of themselves and so from aholistic standpoint, is massage
(19:44):
therapy a part of holistic?
Larry Zilliox (19:48):
Well, I don't know, be a part of holistic?
Well, I don't know.
Lifestyle, or when I hear theword holistic, I think it means
a lot of different things to alot of different people and it
does encompass everything likeacupuncture and acupressure and
massage therapy and everything.
Is it a lifestyle?
How do you define holistic?
(20:08):
Natural, natural, Okay.
Holly Crocker (20:11):
And massage therapy is very natural.
Yeah, the power of touch isincredibly powerful.
You know, just holding afriend's hand, or you know
someone who's grieving, givingthem a hug, right.
The power of touch is sopowerful and in our modern world
we're so busy.
Larry Zilliox (20:28):
Yeah.
Holly Crocker (20:28):
I'm not sure we're really touching people
like we need to.
You know, it's also a phobicworld, right, because nobody
wants to be sued for anything orwhatever.
But the power of touch isamazing because we're creatures
that need that.
Yeah, even people who say theydon't really, they really do.
The beautiful thing aboutmassage is when done properly,
it can't hurt you.
Larry Zilliox (20:49):
Yeah.
Holly Crocker (20:50):
It can release a lot.
It can release the tension inyour body, but it can also
release emotions.
It can release pain, bothphysical and emotional pain,
relieve pressure, lower yourblood pressure, bring on
relaxation, you know, improveyour sleep, improve your
breathing, you know, improveyour ability to walk or move or
(21:12):
range of motion in your jointsWithout pain, without pain.
Yeah Right, that's the point islike you, you know, have
everything back in alignment.
Acupressure is awesome becauseit either works or it doesn't.
It's not needles, I don't.
I don't do needles, I doacupressure, which is just using
the pads of your fingers.
Larry Zilliox (21:31):
Yeah.
Holly Crocker (21:32):
Super gentle, super relaxing, and it can't
hurt you.
Larry Zilliox (21:36):
Yeah.
Holly Crocker (21:36):
Like you're just touching your body, like and
when coupled with aromatherapy,it's.
Larry Zilliox (21:42):
It's just incredible, it just like, oh,
it's unbelievable.
Holly Crocker (21:46):
So Can I talk about that for a second?
Yeah, so I just found itincredibly powerful.
When you combine certainessential herbs with certain
acupressure points, you caneither reduce someone's tension
and help them sleep better, eatbetter, relax, or if someone has
like no energy, you can bringthem energy.
(22:07):
You can give them more energy,clearer mind, more focus.
You know you can use it forthings like tense menstruation
or headaches.
It's incredible because there'sso many points all over your
body and so many differentessential oils, the combinations
, and you're treating not justthe muscles but you're able to
work more of the body, more ofthe systems.
(22:30):
It's really powerful.
Larry Zilliox (22:31):
Yeah, and what I like about it is that the aroma
is wonderful.
I mean, it's sense that youdon't normally encounter in your
day-to-day activities.
So you get this smell, thissmell, this aroma of something
(22:55):
that's just so different, I mean, and they all are very
wonderful and relaxing.
You know, it's not like you'resmelling gym socks or anything
like that.
It's all really nice aromas,very relaxing and soothing, and
certainly somebody I thinkeverybody would benefit from it.
I know I did what's the mostimportant thing before we close
(23:15):
out today, that you want toleave our listeners with when it
comes to massage therapy?
Holly Crocker (23:22):
Just listen to your body, you know, pay
attention to it.
You know when you're workingout.
Make sure that you're workingout equally, although if you're
doing a lot of chest exercises,you really need to be doing like
three times the number of backexercises, because everything we
do is in the front of ourbodies.
But just because you're youngdoesn't mean that all your
muscles are active.
I was working on a high schoolcross-country runner and was
(23:46):
amazed to figure out her glutesweren't firing, which is pretty
impressive if you think about it.
And boy, she ran a lot fasteronce I inactivated her glutes.
Was amazing.
You know, if you are, if you areready to get back into shape
and you want to go to the gym,one of the reasons why you get
hurt when you go right back tothe gym after not being active
is because a bunch of yourmuscles probably aren't, are
(24:07):
inhibited and they're notworking.
So then you're using smallermuscles to do those bigger
muscles jobs and that's when youget injured.
So take the time instead ofjust jumping right up and doing
something hard.
Take the time to activate thosemuscles.
Make sure your body is movingin the way that it's supposed to
and it's using all the rightmuscles before you jump right
(24:28):
into exercising.
Larry Zilliox (24:29):
Well, that sounds like another reason for our
listeners to seek out a massagetherapist to say I plan on going
back to the gym.
That's going to be my newyear's resolution.
So basically this is the timeof year to go see a massage
therapist.
You know, because I know you'regoing to make that resolution
that you know come Januaryyou're going to go to the gym.
(24:51):
So now's the time to see thatmassage therapist and say what
do I need to do to get ready togo to the gym so I don't hurt
myself, because I'd rather frontload this massage therapy than
go to the gym, hurt myself andbe in pain and have to come back
to you to deal with thatproblem.
So I really like that ideabecause a lot of our veterans
(25:14):
are constantly wanting to getback in shape and I think too,
if you make that commitment togo to a massage therapist before
you're going to try to get backin shape, I think that will
make you more committed toactually trying to get back in
shape and not talking so muchabout it actually doing it.
So I think that's great advice.
(25:37):
So I do want to say to ourveteran listeners that in season
one, if you go back to episode35, this was back in December of
2023,.
I did an episode with DrJennifer Cho and she's the
deputy director for the VA'swhole health program at the DC
(25:58):
Medical Center and they have awhole health program that
involves a lot of these holisticapproaches.
A lot of these holisticapproaches such as massage
therapy and acupuncture and justa whole host of alternative
therapies that are reallyunusual for the VA, because
(26:21):
usually the VA is just all aboutmedicine and pills and doctors
and operations and things likethat.
So it was very interesting tosee that they're looking at and
starting to become involved inthese type of alternative
therapies.
So if you're interested andyou're near a VA facility, check
out if they have the WholeHealth Program.
(26:42):
But listen to that in seasonone it's episode 35, and you'll
get a good bit of informationabout the VA's whole health
program.
Holly, thank you so much forcoming and spending this time
with us.
It's just great.
Holly Crocker (26:56):
Thank you so much , Larry.
I really appreciate you lettingme be here and I just wish all
of the listeners out there goodluck.
And I just mentioned you know,massage therapy can be an
amazing tool in your toolbox totake care of your body and help
you uncover why it's hurting andhelp you release, Even if it's
just not just physical things,emotional things as well.
The power touch is reallyamazing.
(27:17):
Even just a massage from yourloved one, you know, a mom to a
kid, a husband to wife, whateveryou know massage therapy, if
you think about it, we have alot of bones and muscles and
they all could benefit, right,Because we're always using our
bodies for everything.
So thank you for letting mehave this opportunity to share
(27:37):
massage therapy with everyone.
Larry Zilliox (27:39):
Yeah, don't ignore your bones, your muscles
and your chi.
That's right.
Well, for our listeners, we'llhave another episode next Monday
morning at 5 am.
For our listeners, we'll haveanother episode next Monday
morning at 5 am.
If you have any questions orsuggestions, you can reach us at
podcastatwillingwarriorsorg.
Until then, thanks forlistening.
Popular Podcasts
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
24/7 News: The Latest
The latest news in 4 minutes updated every hour, every day.
Therapy Gecko
An unlicensed lizard psychologist travels the universe talking to strangers about absolutely nothing. TO CALL THE GECKO: follow me on https://www.twitch.tv/lyleforever to get a notification for when I am taking calls. I am usually live Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays but lately a lot of other times too. I am a gecko.