Tips For Finding An Exceptional Sports Massage Therapist You Can Trust
Tips For Finding An Exceptional Sports Massage Therapist You Can Trust
Blog Article
Role of Sports Massage in Physiotherapy
Athletes seek sports massage to assist with the recovery from exercise and a reduction in muscle soreness. It also improves muscle flexibility and aids in injury prevention.
Athletes regularly incorporate sports massage into their training regimens as a pre-event warm-up and post-event recovery strategy. The physiological effects of massage include: Increased temperature, Breaking down adhesions, and increased tissue elasticity.
Improved circulation
During massage, the flow of blood towards the muscles increases as does the availability of oxygen and nutrients to the muscle. This enables the muscle to work more effectively and generate greater amounts of power.
Sports massage can also improve circulation by increasing venous return and lymphatic drainage. This means that waste products such as lactic acid are removed from the muscles more quickly. This reduces the inflammatory response and decreases swelling, making muscles more flexible.
Athletes who seek to enhance performance, speed up recovery times and minimize injuries often incorporate regular sports massage into their training regimen. This ensures that their muscles are loose and free of adhesions, allowing them to generate more power and achieve peak physical condition. It also alleviates fatigue and mental stress, improving focus and relaxation.
Increased temperature
The massage techniques used in sports therapy can increase the temperature of the soft tissues through friction generated between the skin and the hands. This allows for vasodilation and capiliarisation which increases tissue elasticity and helps in decreasing muscular knots and tightness.
When combined with a regular training programme, sports massage can improve performance and facilitate the recovery process. This allows athletes to train more effectively and reduces the risk of injury.
It can also help to prevent delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) after exercise. This is caused by the build-up of waste products such as lactic acid. The body flushes these out through massage to decrease pain, stiffness and speed up the recovery process. It can also increase range of motion by increasing the lymphatic drainage.
Breaking down adhesions
Sports massage breaks down adhesions – fibrous scar tissue that forms after injury – by breaking down the cross links within collagen fibres and encouraging them to align into their normal form. This increases range of movement and reduces stiffness and pain.
Maintaining flexibility is vital for maximising performance. Poor muscle elasticity results in restricted movement, and can increase the risk of injury. Sports massage stretches and loosens the fibres of tight muscles, allowing them to move more easily and increasing the flexibility of surrounding soft tissues.
Regular sessions of maintenance sports massage can help athletes achieve optimal physical condition and prevent injuries. By reducing fatigue, improving flexibility and facilitating recovery, it helps them to perform better during training and competition. They are also able to maintain their training schedule and push themselves harder, achieving new levels of athletic performance.
Breaking down inflexible scar tissue
The break down and realignment of collagen fibres during a massage allows muscles to common misconceptions about sports massage move more easily. Scar tissue that has formed around an injury can restrict movement and increase pain, so breaking down the inflexible fibres and allowing the muscle to move more freely reduces these restrictions and increases flexibility.
Sports massages can also be used to maintain muscle balance and prevent injuries in athletes. This type of massage is typically used post-training or between events to help remove lactic acid, speed up recovery and warm up the muscles.
Effleurage - the stroking motions of a massage – relaxes and soothes the muscle, identifies trigger points and tender areas, improves blood flow and stretches out fascia and tissue. This prepares the muscle for petrissage – a technique that involves kneading, picking up and manipulating muscle to relieve knots, treat delayed onset muscle soreness and aid recovery.
Increased lymphatic drainage
The alternating squeezing and releasing action of sports massage causes an increase in lymphatic drainage. This can reduce the minor edema that may occur after a deep tissue massage. Lymphatic work can also enhance the tissue regeneration process, particularly after a serious injury.
Reducing muscle fatigue: Intense training and competition often leads to muscles that are tired and sore. Sports massage reduces this muscular fatigue by promoting blood flow, flushing out metabolic waste products and reducing inflammation.
It also encourages urination and bowel movements, which helps to eliminate the toxins that accumulate during intense training and sport. This can lead to a more effective recovery and enhanced performance. Physiotherapists have a professional degree and extensive medical training in treating a wide range of injuries and conditions.