The 3,000-year-old practice that made headlines on Michael Phelps' back — explained without the mystique.
Book Cupping How It WorksCupping therapy is a manual treatment in which glass, silicone, or plastic cups are placed on the skin and a vacuum is created — either by heating the air inside (traditional fire cupping) or by mechanical suction (modern cupping). The cups stick to the skin, drawing tissue upward into the cup. The practitioner either leaves the cups stationary on key points or slides them along the body in a kind of inverse massage.
The practice originated in ancient Chinese and Egyptian medicine and has been used continuously for over 3,000 years. It re-entered Western mainstream awareness in 2016, when photographers caught Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps with the characteristic round marks on his back — suddenly everyone wanted to know what they were.
The traditional explanation: cupping moves stagnant energy ("qi") and blood, allowing the body's natural healing processes to resume. The modern physiological explanation: the suction pulls fascia away from the muscle layers underneath, decompressing tight tissue. This is the opposite of regular massage — instead of pressing tissue down, cupping pulls tissue up.
What the body experiences:
The famous round cupping marks are the source of more confusion than anything else about the practice. Three things to know:
They're not bruises. A bruise is caused by blunt impact rupturing capillaries from outside. Cupping marks are caused by suction drawing stagnant blood and metabolic waste to the surface from inside. They look similar but feel completely different. Bruises hurt to touch; cupping marks generally don't.
The color tells you something. A practitioner trained in traditional cupping reads the color. Light pink marks indicate minimal stagnation. Dark purple or near-black marks indicate significant stagnation in that area — chronic tightness, restricted blood flow, or old injury patterns. Subsequent sessions in the same areas typically produce lighter marks as the tissue improves.
They fade in 4–10 days. Most marks meaningfully fade within a week. Lighter marks may resolve in 2–3 days. If you have an event where you'll show the cupped area, schedule cupping 7–10 days in advance to be safe.
"Cupping facials" using tiny silicone cups for lymphatic drainage on the face are a related but much lighter technique. Therapeutic body cupping — the kind that addresses chronic tightness and produces visible marks — uses larger, stronger cups and requires real training.
You may encounter several variations:
A cupping session typically lasts 30–60 minutes and is often combined with massage. Your practitioner will discuss your goals, identify areas of tightness, and clean the skin in the treatment area. She'll apply oil (for sliding cupping) and place the cups. You'll feel the suction immediately — a strong pulling sensation that should feel intense but pleasant.
Cups stay in place or slide along your back, shoulders, glutes, hamstrings, IT bands, or wherever you're being treated. After the work is complete, the cups are removed (with a gentle pressure release on the cup edge) and the marks become visible. Your practitioner will give aftercare instructions: hydrate generously, avoid intense exercise for 24 hours, keep the cupped areas warm, and skip alcohol that evening.
We offer cupping as a standalone treatment and as an enhancement to therapeutic massage. Our therapists are trained in modern silicone and glass cupping, with experience in sliding, stationary, and combined techniques.
The most popular configuration. We typically combine cupping with deep tissue massage — the cupping decompresses tight fascia, then the manual work addresses what's underneath. Often more effective than either alone.
Common reasons clients book cupping with us: chronic upper back tension, IT band tightness for runners and cyclists, shoulder restriction, lower back stiffness, and post-event athletic recovery.
Cupping isn't right for everyone. Contraindications include open wounds, severe varicose veins, active skin conditions in the treatment area, recent surgery, certain blood-thinning medications, and pregnancy abdomen/back. We'll ask before we start.
Not technically. Bruises come from blunt impact that ruptures blood vessels. Cupping marks come from suction drawing stagnant blood and fluid into the surface of the skin. They don't hurt the way bruises do, and they fade in 4–10 days. The color and intensity reflect the level of stagnation in that area.
Most people describe it as a strong, satisfying pulling sensation — the opposite of pressure. Sliding cupping (moving the cups along the body) feels like an unusual but pleasant massage. The intensity is controllable and your practitioner will adjust.
Dry cupping (what most spas offer, including ours) uses suction only. Wet cupping involves making small superficial incisions to draw out a small amount of blood — this is a traditional medical practice and is not performed at most American spas. If you see "cupping" on a spa menu, assume dry cupping unless specified otherwise.
Schedule cupping 7–10 days before any event where you'll show your back, shoulders, or wherever the cups were placed. Most marks fade meaningfully within a week. If you're getting cupping for the first time, do it on an area you can cover for at least a week.
For chronic conditions, weekly for a few weeks then taper to monthly is typical. For athletic recovery, immediately after hard training is common. For maintenance, monthly works well.
Hydrate generously. Avoid intense exercise, alcohol, and very hot showers for 24 hours. Keep cupped areas covered and warm. The body is processing the released waste; support it with water and rest.