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The massage treatments that can reshape your body

Pampering is in the past. It may feel nice to lie back and have your body stroked, but if you want to see serious changes in your body, health and even your emotions, you have to go beyond pleasure.

If your pain threshold is low, these treatments won't suit you, but they work deep - so deep, that they can actually reshape your body.

Here, we look at the massage treatments that can reshape your body

Chavutti Thirumal

One of the deepest and yet most subtle therapies, this is often known as Indian rope massage and is practised with the feet, rather than the hands. It originated in south India, primarily to keep dancers and fighters flexible, but now has a small yet fervent band of devotees in London.

It is loved by business types because it is a superb stressbuster. The massage takes up to two hours. Feet can be just as flexible as hands but can exert more pressure. It's not for the coy, however. You will be asked to strip naked and lie on a mat on the floor.

Then your body is doused with warm sesame oil before the massage starts. "Some people find it hard," admits practitioner Jessica Loeb, "but I tailor it to people's pain threshold."
Ouch! factor: Medium. It's deep but wonderfully satisfying.
Anyone who shouldn't try it? Generally safe but if you have any concerns, check with your GP.

Where to get it: Jessica Loeb practises at Natureworks, 16 Balderton Street, W1 (020 7355 4036) and can refer to other practitioners.

Marma Therapy
According to Ayurveda (the ancient Indian system of medicine adored by half of Hollywood), if you want to remain in perfect health you have to look to your marmas.

Marmas are like the junction boxes of the body - 107 points or areas where nerves and muscles meet. Keep them clear and uncongested and you will remain healthy and happy.

Marma therapy manually stimulates the marma points. Before treatment, the practitioner will take your pulses (Ayurveda recognises several different pulses) and look at your tongue. You then lie on the couch or on the floor (fully clothed). Some points are very tender and the touch is tough. The practitioner may also shake your limbs or give a sharp slap to the soles of your feet.
Ouch! factor: Very high. This one takes no prisoners.
Anyone who shouldn't try it? No. Marma therapy can be adjusted to treat anyone.
Where to get it: Doja Purkit practises at the Hale Clinic, 7 Park Crescent, W1 (020 7631 0156).

Tua Na
This gives a wake-up call to the entire body. It's an energising system of massage that leaves your body feeling spring-cleaned. In China, Tui Na is as well-established as acupuncture. It focuses deep pressure along the energy lines (known as meridians) and acupuncture points of the body.

The words tui and na mean "push" and "grab", and that's pretty much what happens, along with a liberal dose of poke and prod and some shaking, squeezing, pulling, rotating, rocking and rolling.

Treatment starts with your neck, shoulders and arms and then usually moves onto a couch where your back, buttocks and thighs will be pounded and kneaded.
Ouch! factor: Very high. Not for wimps.
Anyone who shouldn't try it? Not suitable for those with fragile bones or osteoporosis. Care also has to be taken with pregnant women, or those who have cancer or heart problems.
Where to get it: George Askounis practises at the Kailash Centre, 7 Newcourt Street, NW8 (020 7722 3939). Gina Mercati practises in Ealing (020 8992 3496). Other practitioners can be found on www.bodyharmonics.co.uk.

Rolfing
After a course of Rolfing (or Hellerwork), bodies look, quite literally, different. Clients report release from long-term aches and pains and soaring energy levels. Clients also swear it has boosted their confidence, giving them a feeling of poise and balance.

How come? The answer, apparently, lies in the fascia. Therapists bypass muscles and head for the connective tissue that contains and links the muscles. Once these have been manipulated and stretched back into their original position, your body can change shape. Equally, your neurological pathways will be reprogrammed, bringing about psychological changes. During treatment you will be scrutinised in underwear (and usually photographed or videoed so you can see the improvements), before lying on a couch for treatment.
Ouch! factor: Medium. Not as fearsome as its reputation.
Anyone who shouldn't try it? Not suitable for those with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME) or certain forms of cancer.
Where to get it: Rolfer Jenny Crewdson (020 7721 7833) practises in Pimlico and also holds a list of other Rolfers in London. Roger Golten practises alongside other Hellerworkers at the Ability Centre, 29 Crawford Street, W1 (020 7723 5676).

Mézières Method
Joel Carbonnel insists that his therapy can reveal the "Greek god or goddess" within. In other words, no saddlebag thighs, no bulging bottoms, no rounded shoulders, no flabby waists.

The method apparently corrects longterm distortions of the body, from kyphosis (Dowager's hump) and scoliosis (spinal curvature) to flat feet, knock-knees and bow-legs.

The theory is that if you want balance in your body, you need to stretch and readjust the entire chain of muscles. This involves intense, painstaking work.

Carbonnel sees people once or twice a week and admits that it can take months to reshape a body. He usually works with you on the floor (in underwear) and puts your body into precise positions, asking you to make minute shifts while also using his body weight to adjust you. If a muscle won't give, he will knead it into submission.
Ouch! factor: Medium to high. If you want good effects, you have to work for them.
Anyone who shouldn't try it? Not recommended if you have active cancer, are pregnant or have a rheumatic condition.
Where to get it: Joel Carbonnel practises at the Hale Clinic, 7 Park Crescent, W1 (020 7631 0156) and in Chiswick (0208 747 8583).