01 / 06 / 2025
3 Minute Read

What is Bodyplay?

 

It’s a term that has been creating a "buzz" in Switzerland for some time now. While it isn’t yet appearing everywhere, the word "bodyplay" is increasingly being used within the Swiss adult industry; though often without a clear understanding of what it actually means. In this article, I will break down the term to help you better understand it.

 

What is bodyplay?

First of all, "bodyplay" is an English term composed of two distinct words:  Body + Play . 

Put together, they form a new concept: playing with the body. "Bodyplay" therefore refers to physical play. But what kind of physical play are we talking about? The term is intentionally vague, leaving room for a very broad interpretation. As such, the physical activities encompassed by "bodyplay" can be performed for artistic, athletic, therapeutic, or even sexual purposes.

 

The various forms of bodyplay

Bodyplay in art

Often used alongside terms like "Body Art" (where an artist uses their own body as the medium or subject of a work) or "Body Paint" (the art of painting on the body, turning it into a living canvas), "bodyplay" (sometimes written as two separate words: "Body Play") refers to experimental or ritualistic physical practices. These practices sit at the intersection of performance, somatic exploration, and, at times, body modification.

 

Bodyplay in sports

Within the framework of certain sports, "bodyplay" refers to the use of the body for physical contact and confrontation. The term can also describe specific types of physical contact occurring within particular contexts. For example, in team sports such as football, rugby, or handball, the term "body play" is most often used to refer to the legal use of one's body to block, push back, or confront an opponent while contending for the ball. In certain racket sports, such as squash, "playing the body" refers to a tactic in which a player (instead of moving toward the ball) deliberately collides with their opponent's body in order to prompt the referee to call an "obstruction" foul.

 

Bodyplay as therapy

In a therapeutic context, the term "bodyplay" is primarily used to describe concepts found within certain schools of body-oriented psychotherapy or alternative healing practices. Specifically, this refers to professional psychotherapy that employs body-based play as an intervention, helping patients (particularly those who have experienced trauma) to access and process psychological wounds stored within the body.

 

Bodyplay in the adult industry

Within the sex industry, "bodyplay" lacks a single, definitive meaning. The term is generally used to encompass a wide range of activities involving the body. These activities are neither standardized nor formally classified and can therefore refer to any practice that entails body-to-body contact. This includes the various forms of massage found in the sex industry such as:  Tantra, Nuru, "body-to-body," or erotic massages with a "happy ending", Lingam, Lomi-Lomi; as well as more intense forms of physical play (BDSM, soft or hard domination), imaginative scenarios (roleplay), and sensory-focused practices (such as impact play, which includes spanking). These practices aim not only to arouse, but also to awaken, evoking emotional depth, vulnerability, and a sense of presence.

You might wonder whether bodyplay can evolve into a sexual experience; the answer is yes. For some people, bodyplay is closely linked to sexual experiences. Conversely, many forms of bodyplay are entirely non-sexual, focusing instead on aspects such as sensuality, spirituality, or emotional release. Since "bodyplay" is a generic term encompassing a wide range of activities from gentle touch and sensory exploration to more intense physical interactions, it can certainly be taken further, for instance, through a classic GFE (Girlfriend Experience).

In the sex industry, the term "bodyplay" is commonly used because it is more comprehensive, more socially acceptable, and less explicit than other terms that the general public might consider less "politically correct" or too provocative.

 

Bodyplay: A variety of interpretations

Because there is no definitive, authoritative definition for "bodyplay," the emotional landscape it encompasses remains vast, profound, and, above all, highly contextual. Depending on the specific context, bodyplay can evoke emotions related to art, surrender, confrontation, trust, arousal, liberation, and/or connection. There is no single "correct" way to engage in bodyplay, and the meaning of the term is far from fixed, quite the contrary.

 

Janet - The Velvet Rooms

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