Remedial Massage & Sport
Sports massage is a specialized form of massage therapy which focuses on enhancing athletic performance, improving post-event recovery and treating injuries for amateur or professional athletes and exercise enthusiasts.
Sports massage works by manually manipulating the soft tissues of the body by correcting inappropriate patterns of movement and by increasing flexibility specific to the sport or activity performed.
The different techniques in sports massage include many of the same strokes used in a general massage, including deep tissue massage, myofascial release therapy and trigger point therapy. In addition, cross-fibre friction, compression and percussion are commonly used to address chronically tight or sore muscles. These techniques are used to return chronically tense muscles to a relaxed state and to break up adhesions that may have formed in the soft tissues of the body.
Sports massage practitioners have an understanding of the exercise physiology and biomechanics specific to sports and fitness activities; allowing them to locate areas of stress the individual may not have been aware of. Practitioners are trained to know what techniques are best to enhance performance before events, improve recovery after events, speed recovery and rehabilitation after an injury and maintain a healthy, fit, active body.
At the 2004 Olympics held in Athens there were 23 Soft Tissue Therapists treating the large Australian team of 482 athletes
Sports massage is used to ensure the health and well-being of the athlete in many ways. In particular, improving physical and mental recovery from strenuous physical activity, facilitate healing by improving blood flow and maintaining flexibility when recovering from injuries, maintaining optimal health during training, competition and recovery periods, and to help prepare a person for a specific competitive event and recover from the event more quickly.
