Cupping
What Does Cupping Do?
The suction from the cups allows us to gather and separate deeper tissues and underlying fascia to free restrictions and adhesions, allowing for greater mobility of the muscles and less joint compression.
What Are The Effects of Cupping?
Immediate improvement in the sensation of muscle tightness and range of motion of the associated joint/s. The more sessions that are performed, paired with the right exercises, create longer-lasting benefits.
Who is Cupping for?
Cupping is indicated for people who seem to have chronic muscle tension associated with joint stiffness, that has not been relieved with more traditional massage techniques.
What is Cupping?
Cupping originated from ancient Chinese practice, used to relieve myofascial tension and adhesions. Fascia is the rigid connective tissue that separates muscle and skin and allows the fibers to glide. Sometimes, the fascia can limit the mobility of muscles, causing tightness and discomfort.
What to Expect: Feels Like, Appears, Appropriate Clothing
Once the cup is placed on the skin and the suction is applied, static cup on static tissues, the patient will feel a gathering sensation of their skin and soft tissue below the cup. If the patient is performing a dynamic movement with the static cup on their tissues, the movement will feel tighter than normal and possibly unable to reach full ROM. If you are performing dynamic cupping over static tissues, the patient will feel a tight, pulling, or tugging sensation as the cup moves over the soft tissue, this can be quite tender.
Precautions/ Contraindication
Set Up
✅ Hand towels, lotion, cupping set with different size cups and pneumatic pump, enough room for the patient to move
✅ Depending on the area you are targeting, the patient can be supine, prone, side-lying, sitting, or standing
Cupping Process
✅ Set patient up in preferred position for the specific body part being treated
✅ Apply cup on the tip of pneumatic pump
✅ Place the open end of the cup on the desired area, and apply desired pump amount to suction
– 1–1½ pumps for static cup on static or dynamic patient
– ½–1 pump for dynamic cup on static or dynamic patient
✅ When sliding the cup across tissue, gently lift and slide across a well-lotioned surface
✅ To remove cups, pull on the blue piece at the tip to release pressure and remove gently
✅ Progress from:
– Static cup on static patient → Static cup on dynamic patient → Dynamic cup on static patient → Dynamic cup on dynamic patient
– Progression through all phases is not required; assess tolerance before advancing
✅ Pre/post testing: Perform quick test (e.g., shoulder AROM) before and after cupping to assess effectiveness
Reiterate What to Expect After tx
✅ There is always a chance of bruising when negative pressure is used on the body’s soft tissues
✅ Circular bruising may appear where static cups are applied, and erythema may occur with dynamic cupping
✅ The tight sensation should only last during cupping and dissipate after cups are removed
✅ Drink plenty of water to rehydrate tissues and assist with bruising recovery
✅ Greater bruising may occur in proximal areas (upper back, shoulder, neck) compared to distal extremities
✅ No pain should be experienced after cupping, though slight soreness may occur in treated soft tissue
✅ Ideally, tissues feel less restricted and joints show improved AROM after cupping
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