Sports Massage
Phil Hutchings, CQSW ITEC AIPTI
British Veterans Athletic Team - Sports Massage Therapist, European Indoor Championships, Bordeaux, France - March 2001
Sports massage is nothing new, mystical or indeed the latest training fad. It has been around for thousands of years in Asia and Europe. Ancient Greek Olympians and Roman Gladiators were amongst the first in sport to receive massage as part of their "training programme".
Today in Britain our current Olympians Paula Radcliffe and Dean Macey benefit from regular sports massage in their own preparation for and recovery from competition.
You may ask the question "How can sports massage help me as a club athlete?"
The answer is:
"By aiding recovery and preventing injury. Also by improving your muscle tone, movement and restoration."
A body continually pushed to the limits of physical performance needs to handle the load placed upon it, by being kept in good condition, that is supple, flexible, ready to respond, replenished and of course rested.
For runners a maintenance massage of the legs achieves three important objectives:
- Restoration of main muscle groups via drainage, the working through of accumulated waste products (e.g. lactic and uric acid) into the bodys lymphatic system
- Passive exercise by massaging muscles in different ways to that of the repetitive running motion
- Maintaining elasticity of connective tissue by stretching of tendons and other connective tissue (e.g. Achilles tendon and ilio-tibial band)
Other benefits of sports massage include
- Breaking down of adhesions in soft tissue
- Creates tense-release mechanism (cross-friction massage) allowing return to "normal" relaxed position
- Pressure around joints stimulate synovial fluid
- Speeds recovery from injury
Prevention of injury is one of the most important reasons for using sports massage, especially during the build up to competition. Certainly the athletes I have seen regularly during the last eight years have managed to steer clear of major injuries as well as achieve some very good performances.
Having learnt the basics of sports massage as a young athlete myself, way back in the 1960s, and updated it with formal qualifications and further courses in the early 1990s, I am pleased to see a variety of athletes (youngsters and veterans, internationals and joggers) at my Sports Therapy room above the Runners Centre at Nelson St in Norwich.
If you wish to make an appointment I would be delighted to see you. I can be contacted at the Runners Centre (Tel 01603 665398 or email). A thorough "maintenance" massage of the legs, involving both sports and remedial massage, lasts about an hour. Lower back massages are also popular amongst runners and indeed other athletes to counter impact, base of spine and hamstring attachment problems.
"At no extra cost" benefits include:
- Good conversation
- An essential sense of humour
- And it gets you off your feet for an hour, which can't be bad!
Remember, your legs deserve it and it's good for you!