Are you an athlete? Do you work out often and have trouble recovering from vigorous exercise? Are you preparing for a race or sporting event? A Sports Massage from a certified massage therapist (CMT) or licensed massage therapist (LMT) may be what is needed for quicker recovery and better performance prior to your race. Do you want to increase performance of your body before a race or event? Massage can contribute to the well being and performance of athletes before an event, and help recovery of the body after an event.

Massage is an important part of an athlete’s schedule:

An increasing number of professional athletes feel that massage provides an advantage. The complete workout for high intensity competitive athletes now includes maintenance for repairing and rejuvenating the body and its muscles. The body naturally wears down and the physiological and psychological benefits of therapy make it an ideal complement to a complete training program.

The benefits of massage are well known. However, for athletes, it is beneficial in a number of additional ways::

• Accelerates healing from vigorous exercise through increased circulation to damaged or overworked tissues
• Reduces the risk of injury
• Better performance prior to an event through increased circulation throughout the capillaries
• Less fatigue
• Increased energy

Where does massage fit in with conditioning?

In general, there are three phases the body goes through when training:

1. A break down phase: occurs when an athlete trains hard and the body’s tissue have been worked to capacity
2. Rejuvenation phase: the body heals and recovers from the strains applied to it during exercise
3. Buildup phase: the body adapts to the increased strain applied to it by growing muscle tissue, increasing circulation, and overall increasing physical capacity

Massage should be applied to phases 2 and 3: when the body is repairing itself massage can greatly increase the rate of recovery and aid in the healing process, which also benefits the strengthening phase.

The break down phase in exercise creates stiffness and tenderness in the muscles. This is particularly true when the stress applied to the body has grown beyond its equilibrium.

Most athletes feel tenderness in their muscles 1-2 days after exercise. Causes for tenderness include muscle or connective tissue damage, muscle spasms, and a buildup of metabolites, such as lactic acid, and other waste products produced by the body during a strenuous exercise routine.

Excessive Overtraining and The Benefit of Massage

Over training can lead to additional physical problems, such as loss of sleep, increased resting heart rate, slower recovery, lower overall energy, and is typically caused by a small recovery time frame between workout sessions—the body has not had adequate time to rebuild and restore. Regular therapy can improve the time frame between strenuous workouts by accelerating the body’s recovery time, promoting a faster healing, and increasing the circulation to those areas of the body most affected.

Problem areas of the body

You may have areas of your body that seem to be chronically sore, or stiff, which have never completely recovered from previous injuries or repetitive motions. A massage therapist at Mastiff Fitness can help work with you on a regular basis to improve these troubled areas and improve your recovery. Our massage therapists will pay particular attention on these areas and monitor them over time.

Massage: Pre-Event

An athlete’s warm-up is critical before an event—it can decrease the likelihood of injuries, increase performance, improve circulation, and overall prepare the athlete for a competition. Pre-Event sports massage will supplement the warm-up phase and can give athletes an added edge in competition. In order to receive maximum benefit, pre-event therapy should be administered several hours prior to a competition and in conjunction with a thorough warm-up. These types of massage are shorter in duration than a typical massage and are focused on increase circulation and prepping the muscles for the event. Are you an athlete preparing for a major competition? Call Mastiff Fitness today and find out how we can help improve your athletic performance.

Massage Techniques for Athletes:

Our trained therapists understand body mechanics, muscle structure and function. When working on athletes, whether you’re a weekend warrior or a serious competitive athlete, multiple techniques are utilized to help you recover and improve performance. Swedish massage is commonly applied, with deeper tissue work and trigger points/acupressure for areas where the muscles have been overworked, strained, tight, or are sore, in combination with effective stretching.