More and more sports and fitness enthusiasts are including massage as a part of their conditioning programs. It's not just for the professional athlete or the person who is training for the Olympics. Massage is for everyone and needs to be looked at as a health benefit and not a luxury. People just like you and me are including massage as part of their regular exercise programs. Almost anyone can benefit from massage, athlete or not.
A lot of people avoid massage because of the costs, but look at it as an investment in you body. You can over train your muscles. That is what knots, extreme soreness and cramping are. IF you are tight, knotted, and/or cramping you NEED a massage. If you do not get them massaged out then you are wasting your time exercising through the soreness. You are just making the muscles even sorer, and not building muscle.
Fitness enthusiasts/athletes will find that massage helps improve their flexibility; muscles tend not to be as sore and stiff; it helps in their recovery time, and reduces the anxiety of athletic competition. Massage can help improve performance, increase endurance, and help lower fatigue levels. By reducing fatigue, althletes can train better with longer more effective workouts. When you choose massage or stretches between workouts, there is a high increase in recovery time.
The idea behind massage therapy is to reduce the stress and damage that the muscles endure throughout the day. When muscles become stressed, fatigued or injured, they can block oxygen and nutrients from reaching the rest of the body and the brain. This blockage can lead to inflammation, usually in the form knots. This can cause a build up of toxins in the muscle tissue. This is when a massage can really help the muscles release the toxins and getting the blood and oxygen circulating properly again and help bring some relief. It is always important to drink plenty of water after a massage treatment, this will help the body to purge out any of the toxins released during the massage treatment.
Today massage therapy is well accepted as a method of reducing stress, relieving pain and promoting relaxation.
There are many styles of massage around, so shop around and find the one that is best for you. A few styles to look for that are good for people involved with an exercise program are Swedish,DeepTissue, Shiatsu and Sports massage. Each is very different. A good massage therapist may use many different styles and gear the massage toward your needs.
I found http://www.soothinghandsandstones.massagetherapy.com/ and his rates are super affordable and he is excellent. Sometimes he offers a buy 4 get one free package. Honestly you can’t beat his prices (90 minutes for $45!!!) and his professionalism. I personally use him every month for a deep tissue hot stone massage.
Also, renewedwellnessmassage.com offers a great massage I recently tried where she uses Bio-freeze and warm towels to help relieve the tired muscles. This treatment is ideal for anyone who has muscle tension due to athletic training and/or repetitive movements or for those individuals that suffer from chronic pain. This massage targets the neck and back, arms and hands OR legs and feet and is customized to each clients needs. Therapeutic massage lotion is combined with "Biofreeze" enabling the therapist to work deeper into the muscle fiber giving the client an intense cooling sensation which releases tension, decreases pain, and invigorates the muscles. Warm towels are placed over the area to help relax the muscles even further.
It was very relaxing and I felt great afterwards. The bio-freeze is incredible, especially if you are training hard or are a runner. My new routine is killing my shoulders and she really worked it out!
A quick tip: If you are so tight and knotted up you can put a tennis ball on the wall and roll it from shoulder to shoulder to help relieve some of the tention until you are albe to get it massaged out.
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