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Pre and post massage for athletes.
If you’re training for a event coming up and are looking to be in tip-top shape, the needs of those pre sport verses the needs of those post sport are very different. Pre sport massage focuses on relieving muscles via light compression and lymphatic release, where as post sport focuses on repair, via slow deep friction techniques, stretching (passive and active) and mobilisation. Pre sport massage should not be invasive as massage can temporarily weaken muscles in order to aid in successful repair.
Pre sport massage
Pre sport massage is given under the assumption that the athlete is pre conditioned to the activity that they are about to undertake and is therefore a means of enhancing the natural health of muscles by stimulating blood flow to provide nutrients to muscles in a relaxed state, and the lymphatic system, to remove waste from muscles that may be lingering. The massage focus is optimisation, to reduce risk of damage (not to undo damage).
Post sport massage
Post sport massage is focussed on undoing damage caused during activity; with an emphasis on (post sport) it is never advised to get this type of massage before a sport event. The massage focuses on breaking up scar tissue, tight connective tissues, and posture. Generally it is slower than remedial massage to focus on fibre release and increasing range of movement. I like to apply trigger point therapy within my post sport treatments as it allows for a far more successful release and breakdown of scar tissue, therefore, more successful mobilisation post treatment.
Benefits of Trigger Point Therapy
Trigger Point Therapy focuses on relieving referred pain or sensation (pain, tenderness, pins and needles, numbness and burning). A trigger point is a point of bound / taught fibres in a muscle, often referred to as muscle knots, a point of heightened tenderness or sensitivity, which prevents full usage of a particular muscle. Active trigger points have predictable referral patterns, some causing pain locally to the effected trigger point, others referring to other regions of the body. Due to this referral, a domino effect in terms of pain or injury can occur if trigger points are left untreated; this meaning an area previously unaffected by referred sensation may become affected.
From a patients perspective.
Trigger Point Therapy is a compression of the point of tenderness, which temporarily heightens the sensation already experienced due to additional pressure being applied to the area. The pressure must be held and maintained in order to obtain a release; in terms of sensation, it feels as though the practitioner holding the point is slowly releasing pressure, in actual fact the point is releasing / relaxing, which gives a sensation of relief as muscle function is improved and referred sensation is reduced.
Trigger Point Therapy with Massage.
Massaging an area with active trigger points can be painful; however, when massage and trigger point therapy is combined a practitioner can release muscles far more effectively. Remedial massage greatly increases blood flow to muscles, while trigger point therapy releases regions within muscles with restricted blood flow, thus providing nutrients to depleted muscle fibres in a more effective fashion. Active trigger points create a local twitch response (often confused with a muscle spasm); if a trigger point is left active after massage it won’t be long before it becomes tight and sore again due this twitch response, as the muscle is over engaging. Releasing trigger points allows for far greater fibre release with slow / stretching massage, which increases range of movement and encourages capillary growth, resulting in healthier muscle fibres.
In terms of performance: Clients who I have treated with trigger point therapy gain longer periods of relief and suffer less issues with their lymphatic system in terms of acid and other waste build up in their muscles; this meaning greater endurance and performance. If you enjoy sport and like massage, this is definitely something to consider within your fortnightly to monthly massage. Note: Trigger points take time to release, so treatment should be focused on a specific area of the body, not all over, to get the best results.
Stress and your body, part 3.
After having read Parts 1 and 2, you will now have a much better understanding of how your body can change when it is dealing with stress, and how these changes present themselves as symptoms. Having just gotten through the end of a year, christmas, and possibly sending your children back at school, you may very well have experienced first hand some of these manifestations of stress.
In this article I will explain how treatment can help. It is helpful to address the symptoms to make you feel better and more comfortable, but it is also very important to address the the cause ie the stress itself, and hence reduce your body’s’ reaction to it. Symptomatically we can change the pain and muscle tightness that occurs in the neck and shoulders by correcting any misalignment and jamming up in the vertebrae of the neck and upper back. By treating the spine at these areas we are improving movement of the spine and stimulating the nerves to flow freely and thereby stimulate the muscles to relax and work more freely.
The diaphragm can also be treated by a very gentle release that helps it relax, which then allow the ribs to release. Sometimes the spine at the level of the diaphragm may need an adjustment to help it release, and possibly some work needs to be done on the muscles between the ribs. This results in reduction in tightness and restrictions in movement, and allows improved breathing.
The jaw is another issue. When it tightens it can potentially tighten many areas of the skull, which can become very uncomfortable. The jaw can be released directly by working on the muscles and with gentle pressure to the jaw joints. Often it is necessary to look at the whole skull. With that we test for any jamming of the areas of the skull where the many bones that make up the skull join each other. This treatment is gentle and even relaxing , and has great results in reducing tightness and any headaches associated with it.
These are all ways to reduce any symptoms, but it is also important to address the degree to which your body reacts to stress. As seen in previous articles your body will react to stress, there is no changing that. But you may notice that your body will react in differing degrees with different stresses. Sometimes even to the point where you think it is excessive, or an over-reaction. The degree to which your body reacts is different for every person and is influenced by your past experiences and emotions. If we have had a bad experience in the past we will often be more sensitive to something similar happening, this is due to a learned response, or what can be called body memory.
There are two ways that we can look at these reactions. One is using the technique of Neurolink, the other is a techniques called Neuro Emotional Technique (NET). If you have been coping with stress for a while, it may be difficult for your body to come out of that response once the stress has stopped. Neurolink is a technique that resets your body and Nervous System. Just like a computer that has crashed when it has been overloaded with tasks and needs to be rebooted, our Nervous System is similar and Neurolink can ‘reboot’ your system.
NET is a technique that works on a deeper level to find out why we are reacting strongly to something, and what experiences in your past have led to this strong reaction. It also resolves and releases the memory of these past experiences that is being held in your body. This helps reduce any reaction of fear or anger or sadness, for example, that your body may currently be exhibiting.
Stress can be a pain in the neck
Have you ever referred to something or someone in your life as a “pain in the neck”? You were probably more accurate than you realised. Any emotional stress (which can include rushing and being very busy) can result in the muscles across the top of your shoulders tensing up. Tense muscles will be uncomfortable. Then if this tension is prolonged, over a short time the muscles in surrounding areas including the neck muscles and between the shoulder blades will also become tight and painful.
Another response to stress is commonly clenching of the jaw or grinding teeth at night. This results in muscle spasms around the jaw, which also will cause muscle tightness in the neck, and hence neck pain and stiffness.
Poor or prolonged work posture can cause neck pain also. Work is commonly related to stress, and this together with a sustained posture over the course of the day will result in tight muscles around the neck and shoulders, resulting in pain.
Chiropractic care can help in several ways. Chiropractors can help release the tight muscles, as well as give advise on stretching and posture and activities to help maintain good muscular balance.
More more information, please read on, or contact Martina, our principal Chiropractor.