Why Sports Massage Can Be Beneficial
Anyone that goes to the gym, practices a sport, does yoga or Pilates, knows how frustrating injuries, even minor ones, can be. They slow down your process, force you to modify sessions or even stop exercise completely. In order to get better and heal that injury before heading back to training or exercise, sports massage can be of tremendous help.
What are Sports Massages?
Sports massages are massage treatments provided to help relieve symptoms related to injuries due to the practice of sports, general injuries and pain in the muscles and soft tissues. This can work in conjunction with other methods of physical therapy or by itself. It works by mobilising and working with deep tissue, massaging tendons, muscles and other soft tissue to relieve pain, provide relaxation and reduce tension.
During a first appointment with a sports massage therapist, they will ask you about your practice, history of injuries, what your objectives are with treating your current injury. They might ask to see you perform some moves to assess flexibility, see the way you walk or move some of your joints to know how to provide a helpful and adapted massage to help your current issue. Different massage techniques, such as kneading, hacking or effleurage are used to provide relief.
What are the benefits of Sports Massages?
There are numerous benefits of sports massages due to the number of techniques available to help.
A patient coming with an injury could see their recovery time speed up and their pain and tension diminish. Scar tissue can break down, blood circulation can improve and with recurrent appointments with a sports massage therapist alongside a sports practice, your flexibility and range of motion will improve and it can prevent further injuries.
Your joint stiffness could dissipate, for example in your neck, hip, knee or shoulder, back pain could get better and chronic issues such as fibromyalgia, rheumatic pain or chronic pain can be managed through massage.
Who can benefit from Sports Massages?
Although the name of this massage puts an emphasis on “sports”, this type of treatment is available to non-athletes as well. Sports massages can help improve recovery of all injuries, sports related or not, and can be put in place for patients seeking help to combat tensions with muscle relaxation.
Sports massages are available in both the Oast locations, Sittingbourne and Sheppey. With a variety of practitioners available at both practices, we can accompany you on your road to injury recovery. Watch a presentation video on sports therapy here, or book your first appointment with us in the Sittingbourne or Sheppey locations. We look forward to seeing you soon!