My massage clients are much smarter than I, and that is why they need my help.
I am, of course, very smart myself, that is why my spouse likes to call me “hala kahiki po’o” (pineapple head) when I’ve done Einstein-ed myself into some predicament.
Case in point: When I was learning to stretch, I would try, try, and try my darndest to stretch only to feel more pain and less flexibility. Stretching, I thought, just doesn’t work for me. It might work for people who are naturally stretchy, but not for tight, inflexible me. So thought the pineapple head.
Later on when training as a massage therapist, I was introduced to the art and science of stretch – how to, how not to, and when. My assumptions about stretch not working had to go out the window.
Yes stretching does help. And the people like myself who are stretch-proof are the people 
who need it the most.
In true pineapple head tradition, I found the answer to why stretching is difficult for many people right under my nose. Before I had just skipped to the illustrations in the stretching book without learning the basics first. This time I actually read the book we studied on stretching and learned the steps I missed.
So now when my clients come in with furled hamstrings, I freely tell them about my foible, how I missed the basics, then found them. And I explain that for stretching to work, you must focus, breathe out with the stretch and stay in a pain-free zone, no matter how miniscule, until the muscles allow the stretch.
Then we practice.
As a massage therapist, I take pride in my skills to get people to relax and unwind knots. And I love to give the gift that can give clients relief every day, no matter where they are.
