Why is cupping so Popular?

Cupping therapy is all the rage now—thanks to Michael Phelps, Kim Kardashian, Gwyneth Paltrow, and many others—but it isn’t new.

 

Like acupuncture, cupping therapy has been used for thousands of years. There are several styles of cupping (and many styles of cups). I perform sliding cupping, which involves burning the oxygen out of the inside of the cup (the flame is only lit long enough to burn out the oxygen and never goes near the body). The cup is placed onto the body with a gentle suction caused by the vacuum of the oxygen-less cup. Then, I gently slide the cup over tight or sore areas – usually along fascia/muscle planes.

 

By sliding the cups over the muscles, I’m gently separating the muscle from the fascia, basically giving the muscle room to relax and reducing muscular adhesions.

 

Even though the stars mentioned above have made cupping therapy famous because of the bruising they showed off at swim meets or gala events, cupping therapy done correctly rarely causes bruising. 

Sometimes, there will be some slight red marks throughout the day, but for the most part, they disappear within 24 hours.

 

Cupping can be done in addition to acupuncture or as a stand-alone therapy.