How about, at the end of a long day, you pick up some of our Nourishing Foot Oil and pamper yourself with a nice, invigorating foot massage. As you do that, you allow the oozing goodness of 22 exotic essential oils including sunflower, sesame, kukui nut, jojoba, grapeseed, vitamin E Tocopherol, lemon basil, peppermint, butcher’s broom extract, dashmoola extract, neem extract, cardamom, cassia, camphor, lemongrass, tea tree, manjista extract, lavender, clove, ginger, ; olive leaves, ashwagandha extract, to be absorbed into the skin, that are deeply moisturizing and refreshing.  We will tell you how to give yourself the perfect foot massage.

Prep up

• First off, soak your feet in some warm water. You can add a few drops of essential oils in this water.
• Pat the feet dry.
• Grease your palm with Shankara’s nourishing foot oil generously and then apply the oil all over the feet all the way up to the ankle and below the calves.

1. Start with some light twists

Gently hold your right foot with both the palms. Then pull the right side of the foot while pushing the left side of the foot, and then pull the left side of the foot pushing the right side, giving it a gentle twist. Do it on both the feet one after the other. As you give the twist, you can move your hands up and down the edge of the foot.

2. Give a nice rub to the arches

For this, with one hand you need to hold the top of each foot and then rub the arch, from heel to the top of the foot.

3. Toe stretches

Hold one foot by the heel, and with the other hand, bend the toes together forward and backward, lighting stretching them to their full motion.

4. Pull the foot sideways

For this one, hold the foot with both the hands and pull the foot outwards on the sides. Repeat this on the other foot.

5. Squeeze the heel

Here, hold the foot in one hand and with the thumb of the other, squeeze down the heel and release it. Repeat this a few times and feel the tension getting released from the foot. This part of the foot carries most of the burden of the walking and movement you do all day. This is also an important pressure point and pressing in this region is connected to the functioning of the small intestines in the healing system of reflexology.

6. Knuckling in

Let us get knuckling! Press the knuckle in the arch region of the foot as if you were kneading the arch region all the way to the bottom and top of the foot.

7. Stroking the toes with the thumb

Place your foot over the other leg, so you do not have to hold it. Place your fingers on both sides of a foot. Begin from the top, stroking down each toe finger with your thumbs.

8. Massage the Achilles

To relieve the pressure in this region, hold the Achilles between your thumb and index finger in a light pinch and gently massage it by stroking it down towards the heels. Repeat this a few times and feel a sudden relaxation in the feet.

9. Finger gliding and side circling

In this interesting step, place your foot flat on the floor. Now begin with making circles around the ankles with your thumbs. When the thumbs are in the downward motion, stretch the fingers of both the hands all the way to the toe tips and back to the ankle, giving the top of your feet a nice massage. Repeat these cycles a few times.

10. Finish it with a twist

To finish off your foot massage, if you are seated on the floor or chair, gently place the right foot over your left leg to hold the foot with your palms on both sides, while the ankle rests on the left leg.

Pull the left side of the foot towards you and push the right side back. Then, pull the right side of the foot while pushing the left side back. Do these while moving your palm up and down the foot from toes to the heel. Repeat it with the other foot.

And now you can lie down and observe the relaxation in the foot region.

(Also read: The Ultimate 6-step DIY Routine For Softer Feet This Winter)