In descriptions of Nuru Massage you will often read that the practitioner (giver) will “glide and slide” over the receiver’s body. But what then is the difference between sliding and gliding?
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Now, in practice, you will notice that both terms are often used synonymously but nevertheless there are some slight differences.
Sliding always means having contact with the surface you slide on. So, you could slide with your hands across the back of a person (as in giving massage with strokes). In Nuru Massage, sliding involves smooth movement from point A to point B while giving some pressure. In addition, to slide smoothly you will typically use Nuru gel as a lubricant.
Nonetheless, in everyday speech sliding it’s not necessarily smooth. That is, it can be a “rough slide,” for instance, falling and subsequently sliding across the pave walk. By contrast, gliding generally has a connotation of elegance, continuity, softness and smoothness, while being an effortless action.
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To understand the difference, think of “gliding through the air,” or “gliding over ice” (when ice-skating for instance). Gliding is rather a continuous movement and is not associated with roughness. It would be strange to say that you had a “rough glide” or “painful glide,” but a “painful slide” is certainly used as an expression.
Now, let’s go back to “sliding and gliding” in Nuru Massage. Typically, you would say that when there’s more pressure and effort involved it’s a slide (which can be done with the hands, arms, or the entire body) and when it’s a long, soft and caressing continuous movement with one’s body across the receiver’s body it would rather qualify as a glide.
Anyway, in the context of Nuru there’s perhaps not so much difference between gliding and sliding, but I think you get the gist of it.
