Massage Techniques

Sports Massage Therapy Benefits

Wondering exactly what sports massage is?  Although geared towards athletes, Sports Massage can be of benefit to a wide range of people. Sports massage therapy is a form of deep tissue massage that often also incorporates myo fascial techniques to assist in correcting imbalances and problems in the muscles, tendons, ligaments, and in connective tissues. The therapy works most of the muscle groups in the body but is concentrated on areas of particular concern.

Sports massage is used to correct specific problems and provide relief from muscle and joint injuries. It can also be used as a recovery aid between workouts to enhance performance by promoting flexibility, increasing endurance, aiding in the prevention of further injuries and can even help reduce fatigue and recovery time after injury.

Compared to other massage techniques, one of the main unique benefits of sports massage is its increased ability to target the muscle-tendon junctions. As described in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, a study in 2010 found that even a 30-second massage improved the range of motion in the hip-flexor. It is suggested that to gain the maximum benefit from sports massage, it should be a part of an overall training and recuperation regime and that it should be undertaken around once a week.