Archive for the ‘Sports massage therapy’ Category

How massage can aid blood circulation

Wednesday, September 8th, 2010

Ben Tolson, one of our massge therapists writes:

How efficient do you think your blood circulation is and why does it matter?

Blood carries material from the digestive system for body maintenance and repair. Blood also carries away the waste products from your muscle activity. Oxygen and carbon dioxide are taken to and from the lungs and water from the digestive system which is vital in nearly all body processes.

Even now when you are not active your muscles are involuntary activly squeezing the blood slowly back to the heart. When you exercise this process is increased so that blood and lymph flow is increased to cope with the raised demand for oxygen and assocaited heart and breathing rate.

rem How massage can aid blood circulation

This is great when muscles are relaxed and everything works as it should. However, if muscles are tight then the blood flow is interrupted and the muscle won’t receive a full supply of nutrients and waste products build up. As the waste products build up the blood supply is disrupted further and this causes a viscious cycle causing the muscle to tense up more. This in turn causes the muscle fibres to harden with a reduction in function accompanied by pain and stiffness. The muscle is now extremely inefficient and when used for any activity will tend to tire quickly.

If the body senses any pain (in this example from general tension) then the surrounding tissue will tense up in order to protect the perceived damaged area.

Massage can break down the acquired tension in a muscle and mechanically pump the blood through the muscles. Once the tension has been broken down the waste products will be carried away and stretching and deep massage of the muscle will help restore it to its normal functioning. Massage will need to carried out around the whole area of tension of there will have been a chain reaction of muscle shortening taking place.

Stretching, kneading, gliding strokes amongst others will all aid this process. Also as we get older muscles tend to dry out so having regular massage helps to keep them supple and making you look and feel great. Having a massage can be a very relaxing experience which in itself will promote relaxation and reduce the heartbeat.

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How much water do they want me to drink!

Wednesday, October 14th, 2009

We bang on at our patients to drink more water and tell them the right amounts that they should be drinking. This is based on covering what you lose with a bit added on top for safety’s sake. You lose in a day:
Normal Weather Warm Weather Warm Weather
No exercise No exercise Exercise

Skin (not sweat) 350 ml 350 ml 350 ml
Sweat 100 ml 1400 ml 5000 ml
Respiratory Tract 250 ml 350 ml 650 ml
Urine 1400 ml 1200 ml 500 ml
Faeces 100 ml 100 ml 100 ml

Total 2,300 ml (2.3l) 3,300 ml (3.3l) 6,600 ml (6.6l)
(sorry about the tabbs)
So, a fair bit every day.

You do get water from your food and from metabolic water production, about 1.5L a day and we suggest:

Sedentary individuals drink at least 2L or about 8 cups of water per day

Athletes in normal climates drink at least 3L or about 12 cups of water per day.

Athletes in hot weather climates drink at least 4L or about 16 cups of water per day.

There you go, set in stone.

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Post-event massage: what’s the point of that then?

Thursday, September 17th, 2009

Simone Crocker, another one of C1 Chiropractic Health Centre’s sports massage therapists adds:

Post-event means after any activity that has been at a high enough intensity to raise your heart rate and engage your muscles in an active way for a sustained period. It could be a 5k, cycling sportive or a good old rock climb but either way, if you have been doing a sporting event, (hopefully one which you have responsibly trained for) chances are your going to ache a bit afterwards (especially if you’ve put your heart and soul into it).

The ache we feel in our muscles after engaging them in activity is known as delayed onset muscle soreness or DOMS. It’s a term used to describe the plethora of effects that exercise has, namely the breakdown and rebuild of lean tissue, the metabolizing of energy in order to move and the physical contraction and flexion of muscles. All of this is brilliant stuff because it staves away heart disease, diabetes and osteoporosis to name but a few common evils but how do we get rid of that annoying stiffness and return back to our flexible happy selves?

Post event massage stimulates the circulation to remove all the waste product that builds up as a result of exercise. There are so many theories about what causes DOMS: lactate acid build up, calcium imbalance, pH imbalance in the muscles but either way, massage can reduce the stiffness and also massively reduce recovery time (by up to 5 times apparently). It can also encourage repair of damaged tissue by improving circulation, reduce inflammation and stop any painful muscle spasm. Using gentle active and passive stretching techniques can also detect any injury as a result of sustained activity.

Its not to be underestimated: I did my first half marathon 2 years ago and 12 hours later sat on a 9 hour flight with little attention to stretching. For the first 3 days of my holiday I could barely walk, which was by far one of the most stupid things I have ever done.

A sports massage therapist will also be able to pass on handy stretches to keep you supple in the days following the event, so you can get right back into your regular training and do it all over again!

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Sports massage therapy – how does it help athletes in training?

Wednesday, September 16th, 2009

Rebecca Strange one of our sports massage therapists writes:

Sports massage treatment during training. The pre-event massage is most effective up to two days before the event. A sports massage can help the muscles perform at a high level during training without over training and injury.

Use a sports massage to aid in warming up the muscles before training or before the event. A sports massage can help stretch the muscles as well as stimulate blood flow and relaxation. By having the muscles well stretched and relaxed it can help prevent sports injuries.

Utilise a sports massage after the sporting event to help in muscle recovery. A post-event sports massage can also aid in reducing muscle spasm and soreness. Post-event massages are short and direct lasting only 10-15 minutes. The post-event focuses on the muscles used specifically for the sport.

Sports massage is useful not only for its physical benefits but also for its psychological benefits. Using a sports massage can improve the performance of the serious athlete as well as the recreational athlete. By reducing body tension and increasing confidence through massage therapy an athlete can reach its potential.

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