Do I need to be an athlete to have a sports massage?
Do I need to be an athlete to have a sports massage?
The short answer to this question is no.
Sports massage is beneficial for anyone who suffers from muscular pain, discomfort or injury. Sports massage originated in the professional sporting industry to help athletes prepare for events, recover quicker from heavy training sessions, help treat injuries and ultimately improve performance. Sports massage therapists can now be found in all top-level clubs and they work closely with medical staff to help keep athletes in peak condition.
Who can benefit from Sports Massage Therapy?
Over the years, sports massage techniques have evolved and it is now widely recognised as a therapy to help in the treatment of a range of muscular problems not just for those involved in sport. We offer sports massage to both sports people and the general public at the clinic and we see really good results in the people we treat.
The stresses of modern-day life have a huge effect on the muscles in the body. Similar to athletes, when muscles become tight or overworked movement is often restricted which ultimately leads to pain and discomfort.
Benefits for office workers
A large proportion of people we now treat have muscular problems brought on by work. Many people now spend hours behind an office desk looking at a computer all day. Over time sitting in the same position causes certain muscles to become tight and shorten in length. This can have a detrimental effect on posture leading to tension in the neck, shoulders and back which ultimately leads to pain.
Benefits for manual workers
It’s not just office workers that struggle with muscular problems. We also treat a range of manual workers such as builders, plasters, decorators, plumbers, electricians to name a few. We usually find that repetitive movements within these types of jobs puts a large amount of stress on the muscles. Similar to office workers, if muscles get tight and overworked, they can be painful and have a detrimental effect on posture.
Sports Massage techniques
The techniques used in sports massage are the same when treating athletes or the general public. Deep tissue massage forms the base of a good sports massage. Working deep in to the muscles helps increase blood flow and iron out any knots or niggles. Other techniques such as trigger point therapy, which focuses on specific points of the muscle, and stretching may also be used within treatments.
As with chiropractic treatment we have found that having regular sports massage treatment is very beneficial. Keeping muscles supple, through regular treatment, reduces the risk of muscles that are prone to getting overworked becoming tight again. Generally, we have found that those who have a sports massage every 4-6 weeks respond the best and sports massage is now seen as a good preventative treatment.
To summarise, you don’t need to be an athlete to receive a sports massage in our Sheffield clinic. We do treat a wide range of sports people in clinic but If you have any type of muscular problem we are here to help. Our therapists at the clinic are trained to the highest level and use a variety of techniques to get you out of pain quickly.
