Our physios are extremely skilled in sports massage and have provided sports massage for athletes at Olympic, Commonwealth, European and World Games.
There are many benefits to sports massage, these include;
Decreasing muscle tension.
Increasing muscle flexibility.
Reducing the risk of injury.
Circulatory benefits.
There are many different types of massage such as hot stone massage and Swedish massage. Although these are relaxing and can decrease some muscular tension they do little to address underlying issues that may be contributing to pain. A sports massage is individually tailored to you and targets the specific tissue that either cause the pain, restricts range of movement and increases the risk of injury.
Sports massages don’t have be agony to be effective. The level of pressure used during a massage does change and can range from light to very firm. However, your Physio would always let you know if more pressure is needed to be applied. Importantly, your physio will ask for your feedback to ensure you can tolerate the firmer pressures that might need to be applied. Some people prefer a lighter massage and others prefer very deep massage where high levels of pressure are applied to the muscles and soft tissues.
What is the aim of the massage?
The massage will be very different depending on the aim of the massage. Massage immediately following sport often consists of a lighter massage. This is aimed to relax and stretch the muscles and improve circulation. It will help get the lactic acid that is produced during sport out of the muscles. This can also help when looking to continue with training within the next few days.
Pre-event massage consists of much quicker massage techniques. The purpose of this is to excite the muscles and prepare them for the sporting activity. This improves the muscles ability to contract and can increase sporting performance.