What is Sports Massage?
Sports massage is a form of massage that involves your soft tissues being manipulated through a range of techniques to benefit an individual engaged in regular physical activity. It is designed to help correct soft tissue problems such imbalances caused by repetitive and strenuous activity whether that be through a sport, active lifestyle or occupation.
Sport massage can be delivered in a multiple ways:
- Pre-event/activity massage – to enhance performance by preparing the tissues and individual for the event/activity ahead.
- Intra-event/activity massage – to help prevent injury and maintain soft tissue quality in during and between events.
- Post-event/activity massage – to alleviate tension built up, increase range of movement, aid recovery and reduce stress.
- Maintenance massage – to help prevent injury, promote recovery, identify muscle dysfunction, improve joint range of movement, improve soft tissue quality, alleviate tenderness and stiffness, reduce stress and improve mental well-being.
During a sports massage session the therapist will help to relieve stress and tension that has built up in the individual’s soft tissues. This build-up of stress and tension is most commonly due to physical activity, overuse or overexertion. As well as relieving tension and stress, sports massage can prevent injuries because it helps maintain the flexibility in muscles.
When is it right to get one?
Sports massage is great if you’re looking to treat a specific problem. For example, maybe you have tension in your neck, causing aches and restricting your range of movement due to bad posture. The therapist can work with you to help identify the root cause of the problem, help to alleviate some of the tension and discomfort through the manipulation of soft tissue, also helping you to correct bad movement patterns or bad posture that may be causing the problem in the first place. A weekly sports massage would benefit many of us wanting to stay injury free and help to maintain the quality of our soft tissues.
Benefits of Sports Massage
- Increased joint range of motion
- Reduced muscle soreness
- Anxiety and stress reduction
- Relief of muscle tension
- Increased mental awareness and clarity
- Injury prevention
- Improved recovery
- Improved performance and reduced fatigue
- Increased circulation aiding removal of waste products through our lymphatic system
How to book
Speak with Anthony our Fitness Instructor and Sports Massage Therapist who will be happy to help you here at Acresfield Health Club & Spa. Sports massage is £34 per hour. To get in touch please call 01995 604975.