Sports Massage is NOT just for Athletes

We have lost count of the number of times, when we begin a discussion about Sports Massage, that we hear something that sounds like this: "Oh, I'm not an athlete; I don't think that Sports Massage is what I need." Maybe we can help clear up some of the confusion about what Sports Massage is and what it isn't. At Massage on the Move, we differentiate very cleary between Sports Massage and Athletic Massage. Yes there will be similarities, but the real difference between the two can be found in the intended result of the session or series of sessions.

Perhaps we should start with our philosophy as it relates to Sports and Athletic Massage modalities. We hold fast to the premise that, at some level, we are all athletes, and that life itself is an athletic event for as long as we are - well - as long as we are alive. The only differences between an athlete and a regular person are the intensity at which they perform their activities and their personal goals for those activities. We have to use our bodies every day to perform whatever activities we have planned (and some unplanned too). The concept of being able to perform those activities in an efficient, pain free, and relatively pleasant fashion without the risk of injury can be applied just as easily to a trip to the market as it can to preparing for the Olympics. The difference is in the degree.

And we maintain the following as well. The exhileration of a person who climbs one flight of stairs without having to stop, without being out of breath, and without pain when all three of those things were a daily occurance is no different than the exhileration of an Olympic Athlete who just won the gold medal. The feelings are the identical; the emotions are identical; the only difference is they probably don't play the national anthem at the top of the stairs...perhaps the theme song from Rocky though.

So what then is Sports Massage? In contrast to a technique like Swedish Massage, whose purpose is to relax everything, improve circulation, decrease stress and all of the physiological "side effects" of that (e.g. lower blood pressure, lower heart rate, less tension), Sports Massage is focused on improving the function of the soft tissues for activity. Typically Sports Massage is applied at a faster pace than Swedish, with shorter and more varied strokes. It is more likely to wake you up than put you to sleep. More time is spent in specific areas of the body and muscle groups than with Swedish. We find that Swedish Massage does not vary much from session to session, while Sports Massage may be entirely different from one week to the next because it is based on our recent activity and our future activity as well. Sessions and Series are designed for the individual. Different therapies and modalities will be recommended or introduced based upon response to prior sessions. I would say that Sports Massage is much more therapeutic as opposed to simply relaxing.

If there is a sport involved, regardless of whether it is professional, amateur, or recreation, the Sports Massage will address the muscles and movements that are specific to that sport along with balance and flexiblity. Sports also tend to have common injuries associated with them - golfer's elbow, tennis elbow, shoulder, back and knee problems for example. Sports Massage is concerned with preventing those injuries or repairing damage already done. At Massage on the Move, we are also Personal Trainers. This allows us to introduce stretching and strengthening into the program as well.

I for one want to remain active, if not competitive, for as long as I possibly can. Remaining active, being able to engage in those activities which we enjoy, is a key to well-being and quality of life. Sports Massage - think about it!