Why MELT products are different
The background
In my years of practicing therapeutic modalities to help people resolve imbalance, pain, and initiate recovery, I’ve learned both heavy compression to light touch intervention along with reintegrative and repatterning approaches to aid clients to improving their body’s performance and efficiency. Neuromusclar and craniosacral therapy span a great breath of self-care protocols.
Over the years, I’ve learned that the more specific the touch and intent of the intervention, the less you have to work to get the body to adapt to a better place.
As I worked on clients and incorporated light touch therapeutic intervention, I found I could in fact go far deeper into the body, acquire bigger changes and create the outcome of improved performance and efficiency faster. It was something at first I couldn’t explain but now feel I have the capacity to explain it – case in point, the MELT Method book was published in January of this year.
In trying to share this idea of self-care to influence the greatest amount of people – i.e. the general public, I worked for years to devise the method and hands-off therapeutic products and techniques that could be used by anyone at any age. MELT meets people wherever they are at physically and can be performed in just 10 minutes a day. So it’s the most inexpensive, easy, effective self-care treatment that has helped more than 100,000 people and empowered them to take action to staying active, pain-free and healthy for a long lifetime.
To bring self-care to more people I went out on a limb to develop products that people could use that were non-toxic, safe, and specific to the method of MELT to get the best results the fastest. When I first developed MELT I sought out products that would do the job just as effectively as my hands. Trust me, I tried everything. I wish I had a photo of my office from 2001-2005. It was chuck full of balls, bands, tires, inner tubes, PVC pipes, rollers, kitchen utensils, kids toys… It was like a mad scientist’s office. And guess what? None really did the job but many actually caused me more pain and problems! They were either full of toxic materials not safe to use daily, or they were too hard, too soft, to big, or too small to acquire the results I was looking for. For a number of years I just settled on what I could get. Developing a method is time consuming. Developing products that you want to sell at a reasonable price to the mass public so any person, at any age, and any fitness level could reap the benefits intended… well, that’s easier to develop in your mind than in reality.
The right tool for the job
It’s taken me years to finally have the ability to develop products that were truly developed for MELTing. The new and improved MELT roller is unique. It’s smaller in circumference and much softer than a traditional foam roller making it easier to use and gives a more precise touch to achieve the ultimate outcome of MELTing – restoring stability and function when it’s been lost and improving the quality and integrity of a person’s body for a lifetime. After working on thousands of people of all ages, those who have practically every known disorder and disease defined by medicine, as well as witnessing people try to self-care for their body using a roller and balls, it became clear to me what was missing. The texture, size, and composition of the MELT body roller and balls gives the right amount of compression so you can’t go too deep too fast into the body where you would cause pain or negative results from trying to help your body resolve imbalance. The thing I love about MELT the most is it actually feels good when you are doing it and gives identifiable and immediate results to empower a person to sense the changes for themselves! What’s been profound are the lasting results people write in and share with me after using it for months.
People ask, “Can’t I just use a foam roller and a golf ball to do the same thing?” My answer is NO. Trust me, I tried that as it would have been easier for me to develop the method, less costly to do so, and it would have taken a LOT less time. Although you can use some of the compression techniques using another roller, before you do, you should know how and why you are using a roller in the first place or jamming your foot on a ball. What’s your intention? Those of you who have used a foam roller know… it hurts! Why cause pain to get out of pain? Why cause more distress in your body to eliminate accumulated stress? Sometimes we do things and, honestly, it’s not allowing you to achieve the outcome you are wanting. And, sometimes we do things and we haven’t even thought of why nor what outcome we want to achieve in the first place!
The Rebalance Sequence
One of the most unique and essential sequences in MELT is the Rebalance Sequence. It’s 4 simple MELT Moves that aid in restoring you body’s natural ability to restore balance on all levels. This is one sequence you shouldn’t do on a traditional roller. In fact you could hurt yourself trying to help yourself using a hard roller and you wouldn’t know it at the time of doing the moves – that’s the problem. This sequence is peformed while lying on your spine on the roller. This is one position you should not do on a hard roller. Why? It’s a two-fold answer. 1. The traditional foam rollers were developed to roll on – not lie on your spine. 2. The spinal receptors are very sensitive to pressure and we never have pressure directly on the spine in daily living. In fact, when we lie on our back on the floor for example our ribs, pelvis, and head take on the pressure.
Very little to any of the spine ideally ever touches the floor if your body is in good alignment. So lying directly on just your spine on a hard roller is a no-no. Besides, no one really has a good answer on why they are doing it anyway and the answers I’ve heard are full of holes.
More about the right tools
Rubbing your foot with a golf ball can actually irritate the plantar fascia and cause pain and problems. Arching over a roller aimlessly on your back can cause issues deep in the body that most would never even consider or think about. As an expert in self-care application, I’ve seen what doing these things without good body awareness or understanding can do and trust me, it’s not good. Taking self-care into your own hands without true consideration and goal oriented outcomes is like experimenting with drugs or medication. Even when you do something good for your body – what you think is a good idea, may in the end actually cause more problems. And it’s always a bummer when you have to admit out loud that YOU are the cause of your dysfunction. Damn.
MELT is a method. It’s grounded in self-assessments, self-applicable techniques, and specific outcomes that you can sense occur from the very first time you apply the method to your body. If the outcome you are seeking is to help improve neurological balance, whole-body efficiency, enhance movement stability, performance, and boost energy levels, start with MELT. It’s simple, easy, and it works. The MELT roller is conducive to all body shapes and sizes and the smaller, softer roller allows the tissue of your body time to adapt and restore efficiency quickly. The MELT hand and foot treatment balls were developed with a living human body in mind, thus they are made with specificity. For a decade, I personally thought out the sizes, density, and materials used. Although the method continues to evolve, gain accuracy, specificity, and clarity, the foundation remains stable and untouched. The ultimate goal of MELT – eliminate chronic pain so you can live a healthy, long, pain-free, pill-free life.
As a master of self-care, I can assure you, before you go hurting yourself to help yourself, learn how to MELT and make lasting changes without pain being a part of the process.