Sports massage is good for anyone who engages in regular physical activity, especially those who emphasize repetitive movements
Gone are the days when we thought that getting faster and stronger just meant training harder. We now know that proper recovery is critical to improving our performance and longevity. Sports massage can be beneficial for anyone who engages in regular physical activity, especially those who emphasize repetitive movements. So, what exactly is sports massage and why should you try it?
What is Sports Massage?
Sports massage includes different techniques that focus on manipulating the soft tissues of the body to correct imbalances caused by athletic performance. In addition to the muscles you’d expect to be manipulated in a normal Swedish massage, sports massage focuses on the fascia, which connects and connects all of your body’s structures, even the tendons and ligaments.
“Sports massage can be very beneficial for athletes looking to improve range of motion, increase flexibility, relieve muscle pain from repetitive activities, and manage any pain associated with certain sports such as tennis elbow,” says Massage Strong’s Mark Pike
“While massages for athletes can restore muscle and relieve soreness after recent activity, they can also help improve future performance and recovery from injury. The repetitive movements that are often required in sports can create imbalances that can lead to pain and tension .Avoid pain areas, we often overcompensate in another area, which can lead to more tension and pain.”
The theory is that when you perform repetitive movements in your training, such as the constant flexion/extension patterns of the ankles, knees, and hips during running and hiking, you create an imbalance in the soft tissues around these joints. After all, the best pair of trail running shoes can only offset so much. Basically, your body adapts to your movement needs, but this can sometimes lead to imbalances that affect your ability to perform other activities and everyday tasks. This imbalance can look like dysfunction, tension or even pain.
Sports massage focuses on correcting imbalances that occur in the soft tissues so that their functional movements around the joints work properly.
Sports massage is just one branch of a broader discipline called exercise therapy, which also includes techniques such as injury assessment, gait analysis, and injury rehabilitation.
If you’re looking to incorporate more recovery techniques into your routine, you may want to find a sports massage in your area and check out our yoga sequences for runners, hikers, and rock climbers.
Sports Massage Tips
While the goal is to relax your soft tissues, don’t necessarily expect the soothing, spa-like experience of a Swedish massage. Sports massage can be rougher and faster, and you’ll be wearing most of your clothes.
“Sports massage focuses on working soft tissues through deep stroking and targets connective tissue and inner muscle layers, which help correct problems caused by constant physical activity. Sports massage is often considered a deep-tissue massage,” explains Parker, adding that Added any post – massage sore no worries.
“Many first-timers find relief from the massage very quickly, usually starting to feel some soreness after a few hours. This is common and nothing to worry about. The mild soreness from deep tissue massage is healing from previously tense muscles The signs are before the tension is removed.”
Sports massage can be performed prior to athletic performance, as a warm-up followed by immediate recovery, injury rehabilitation or as part of a regular training regimen.
When you arrive at your sports massage appointment, you will discuss your needs with your therapist and possibly perform a movement analysis before they decide what technique to use. Sports massage covers a variety of techniques, and you may get several in one session, such as:
Kneading: This technique is used to rearrange collagen fibers, improving muscle mobility by lifting the muscle in a circular and upward motion.
Cupping: In this practice, the therapist places a special cup on the skin to create suction, designed to increase blood flow to the affected area.
Trigger Points: Trigger points are sensitive or painful areas in a muscle or connective tissue that result from pressure. Compression of trigger points produces referral pain, which can help pinpoint the area in the body where the pain originates.
Hack: Just like it sounds, the therapist will use the sides of the hands to make slashing movements on your muscles to help stimulate your circulation and nervous system.
Wringing: The therapist lifts and squeezes the muscle while moving it forward and back to help improve tissue elasticity.
Vibration: This technique can be done manually with a pushing motion, but many clinics are using new equipment to apply electrical vibrations that can soothe or stimulate and target the circulatory and nervous systems.
The Benefits of Sports Massage
Sports massage can reduce existing injuries and help maintain biomechanical function and balance (Credit: Natras)
Sports massage can provide a range of benefits to support physical function and health, and like any massage, it may also have psychological benefits.
“Applying pressure to deep tissue can reduce inflammation, reduce scar tissue, and increase blood flow, all of which are great ways to promote injury healing and improve performance,” says Pike.
These are some of the benefits of sports massage:
- It may help prevent future harm
- Mitigate existing damage
- Helps maintain biomechanical function and balance
- Supports athletic performance
- Supports functional, pain-free daily movement
- Provide psychological support for athletes
Sports Massage vs Deep Tissue Massage
Sports massage is a deep tissue massage because it is designed to target areas deeper than the surface of the muscles, but a deep tissue massage on a spa menu might be a full body massage, while a sports massage will focus on a specific area, like your gluteus maximus or Trapezius.
