SPOTLIGHT
STUDIO SPOTLIGHT:
MUGGYMOOSE
Massage + Thai Bodywork BY REEVE KLATT (SHE/HER)
L
ocated in Duluth’s Canal Park, Muggymoose Massage and Thai Bodywork offers a variety of specialties including Therapeutic Table Massage, Thai Bodywork, Ashiatsu, Ayurveda, and more. I chatted with owner Margaret Harstad about the magic of Thai Bodywork and how her hands are her superpower.
REEVE: Can you tell me a bit about your background and how Muggymoose came to be?
MARGARET: Well, my background is long and deep! But the short version is that I was going through some life changes and decided to go to massage school thinking I’d get bored with it or change my mind. But I didn’t get bored with it — and still don’t, because I’m continually able to add new studies, filling my need to constantly grow. I’m actually shocked — this is the longest I’ve ever done anything, and I love it! I’ve been doing bodywork for 19 years, and I opened Muggymoose in 2006.
R: Okay, we’ve got to talk about the name! How did you come up with it?
M: My nickname as a child was Mug! Before Thai Bodywork, I owned a food company called Muggymoose Adventure
16
Foods. It was just a silly name I came up with at the time. I originally had a different name when I started doing massage, but it wasn’t fitting for me. I decided to bring back the original name about 14 years ago. It’s a memorable name, so now I get people saying “Ohh, you’re Muggymoose!”
work. I started offering it in 2007 when there was no one in Duluth doing Thai Bodywork, and it took people a while to warm up to it. Now it’s a big piece of what we do!
R: It’s not every day that you hear the phrase “Thai Bodywork.” What is it?
M: In Thai Bodywork, you receive a
In Thai Bodywork, you receive a combination of rhythmic massage and rocking, stretching, acupressure, and yoga all at the same time!
R: How did you discover Thai Bodywork? M: I started studying Thai Bodywork very early on in my studies. My first training in Thai Bodywork was a year after I graduated massage school, and I began to incorporate it more and more into my work. Thai culture and traditional Thai medicine are very spiritual to me; I’ve been to Thailand numerous times, and I love the ancient
combination of rhythmic massage and rocking, stretching, acupressure, and yoga all at the same time! The practitioner moves the client’s relaxed body through different stretches and openings you cannot accomplish on your own. The overall goal is to increase energy in the body’s physical and subtle system. It’s accessible to anybody — people who can’t walk, the very old, the very young. And it is almost impossible for a receiver to not notice where they have either muscular or emotional tension in their body, as I’m literally moving and holding them in these positions. So, there’s a lot of trust that comes up and sometimes emotional work for the clients. It’s really powerful work.
R: You also offer a whole range of services beyond Thai Bodywork.
M: Yes! We offer so many different specialties and are always growing. I offer
MNYOGALIFE.COM
