Sports Massage Techniques Tips

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what are the benefits of sports massage therapy?

Benefits of sports massage therapy

Sports massage therapy has many benefits for the professional, semi-pro, and amateur athlete. The physical effects of sports massage therapy can greatly improve an athlete's health and lifestyle by alleviating pain and reducing potential for injury in several ways.

Stroking movements help move fluid through the circulatory system. As pressure increases in front of the massage therapists stroke, suction is created behind the stroke. This helps repair damaged muscles by increasing a fresh blood and oxygen supply and removing toxins that have built up in the tissue.

Deep massages help to regulate the pores in the fibrous tissues, which increases permeability. This allows for more fluids and nutrients to flow through the tissue. Waste products are removed and new oxygen and nutrients are supplied.

Stretching of the tissues during a massage helps muscle fibers release tension and pressure build up. The massage helps stretch muscles lengthwise and sideways along the natural flow of the circulation and muscle tissues.

The ultimate impact of sports massage therapy is to increase health to the body's internal tissues by improving circulation of blood and nutrients while simultaneously removing toxins that have naturally built up in the athlete's tissues. If you would like to learn more, you can contact an accredited massage school like the Cortiva Institute.

   
what can sports massage and therapy do for sports enthusiasts?

Sports massage therapy

Sports massage therapy can help the body maintain and improve conditioning for sporting events. A sports massage helps prevent injury to muscles and joints that can lead to loss of mobility and is especially helpful for restoring mobility to muscular tissue that has suffered strain or other injury. Massages also help athletes relax and stretch muscles, which boosts performance and reduces pain and stress on the body. The basic techniques used in sports massage are often similar to therapeutic massages, but focus on the muscle and tissue health. Furthermore, these techniques often apply more friction and deep pressure, which helps reduce build up of acids that inhibit muscular health. Other sports massage therapy techniques focus on reducing injury to reach the stage where the body's natural healing process takes over.

You can learn more about specializing in sports massage and therapy at an accredited massage therapist school like the Cortiva Institute.

   
what can I expect in Sports Massage Jobs ?

Sports Massage Jobs

Sports massage jobs can improve your lifestyle by helping you gain a lifelong career that bridges medicine, therapy, and sports. Sports massage jobs are found in sports health clinics, sporting clubs, spas, and increasingly as traveling assistants with a particular team, even in the Olympics! Sports massage jobs require education and licensing, both of which you can receive at the Cortiva Institute.


Since athletes are always looking for improvement and a special performance edge, sports massage jobs are becoming very popular. Sports massage specialists help athletes gain increased body mobility, stability, and flexibility. It also reduces pain and helps prevent injury.

The most important component of sports massage jobs is helping athletes who have strains, tears, and other muscle tissue problems be able to continue practicing and performing in their chosen sport. One of the largest problems that a sports massage therapist will face in their job is athletes who ignore warning signs in their bodies. Therefore, it is also important to know how to communicate to sports clients a fair amount of self care, such as stretching and flexibility motions that help maintain health.

   
what are sport massage technique?

The sport massage technique

The sports massage technique is often applied at a deeper level of pressure. This allows for the muscle tissue to be manipulated effectively. The goal is to induce a deep state of relaxation for the client. There are some techniques that can be uncomfortable for the client, however. Some techniques are applied with strong thumb pressure, which allows the massage therapist to work deeper muscles, but can hurt in damaged areas, even if it is beneficial. In that kind of situation, the client needs to work not to tense up, and notify the therapist of the pain. Tension during the massage won't allow the massage to work. It is important to remember that if the sports massage techniques are causing the client to tense up, spasm, or wince with pain then the massage has gone beyond uncomfortable and should be stopped. At this time, it may be prudent to refer the client to a medical clinic as there may be underlying complications that the client assessment did not catch.

   
what are the benefits of sports massage techniques?

Benefits of sports massage techniques

Sports massage techniques can help break down scar tissue that has resulted from injury and trauma. Scar tissue impacts muscles, tendons, and ligaments by causing them to become inflexible and painful, increasing the possibility of repeat injury. Elasticity of tissues is restored through sports massage techniques. As athletes train, tissues become inelastic, losing their ability to stretch comfortably. A massage stretches the tissues and returns them to a youthful elasticity.

Pain reduction is an important part of massage therapy for athletes. As tissues become tense, inflexible, and inelastic, the muscles react by cramping. Massages that target these problems relieve pain and stretch out the muscles so the athlete can continue training. Furthermore, massages are very relaxing. As the massage creates heat through friction, the body naturally reacts by reflex relaxation, a type of automated response to certain motions. This leads to less anxiety for the athlete, and can also create a feeling of invigoration, which renews the athlete's mind, body, and spirit.

   
what can I learn from sports massage courses?

Basics of Sports massage courses and education

Sports massage courses, such as those taught at the Cortiva Institute, help the massage therapist to master the techniques directly related to sports injury and body health. The sports massage courses may include several specific techniques like effleurage, deep effleurage, petrissage, and superficial. Effleurage is a light stroking technique that helps to relax the body and muscles, and to increase blood flow to the body's extremities. Deep effleurage is a deep stroking technique that is applied with firm and continuous pressure with the same goals as effleurage. Petrissage is a kneading motion done with the palms and knuckles that helps reach the muscle tissue and break up acids caused by high amounts of exercise. Superficial massages are hand motions along the top of the skin and applied with light pressure, as if the therapist is polishing the skin, where the goal is to foster relaxation.

Sports massage courses should include anatomy and hands-on learning experience. This helps the therapist know why certain massage techniques have a specific result when applied correctly, and what may occur if they are applied incorrectly.

   
how do Sports massage therapists help athletes?

Sports massage therapists

Sports massage therapists can help athletes in several ways. Recovery is a genre of therapeutic massage that helps the body recover from strain and tears that occur during strenuous exercise. It is geared towards rebuilding muscle while conditioning the body. During recovery, massages improve blood flow and lymph circulation, which helps remove toxins that build up during exercise. The removal of toxins and waste products also helps the muscles absorb more nutrients and increases elasticity, which helps injuries heal faster and relieves muscle pain.

Sports massage therapists may also help prevent over-training syndrome. Over-training syndrome is equivalent to burn-out. Some of the signs are apathy, decreased appetite, increased pain and injury, and sleeping problems. Over-training syndrome happens when the athlete does not allow the body adequate rest and recovery between exercises for extended periods of time. Sports massage therapists can alleviate the symptoms by helping the athlete relax and renew muscles, leading towards a feeling of invigoration rather than exhaustion.

Sports massage therapists have also learned how to assess clients' needs to focus on specific trouble spots, such as areas of previous injury, scar tissue, and generalized pain areas. The sports massage therapist can help repair and maintain these trouble spots by giving them special attention so that the sports enthusiast can focus on becoming a better athlete. If you are interested in learning more about sports massage therapists, contact the Cortiva Institute--they can help athletes and potential students discover the benefits and methods of sports massages.

   
what is Sports Massage Training?

Sports Massage Training

Sports massage training will teach you how regular exercise increases general well being when done in moderation. However, for athletes who are continuously honing their skills, the physiological effects of hard training and continuous exercise can cause complications. As athletes condition their bodies, three main steps occur. Step 1 is the tearing down phase where the athlete pushes the body to its limits. Step 2 is the recover phase where the body rebuilds from Step 1. Step 3 is the build-up phase when the body begins to adapt and meet the new demands created by Step 1 & 2. What occurs as immediate muscle pain is usually from strain in Step 1. Delayed muscle pain occurs after a day or so and is usually noticed during Step 3, and is caused by reduced blood flow and increased waste products like lactic acid. Sports massage training teaches the massage therapist the techniques that overcome these common and painful issues that athletes face. Furthermore, massage therapists learn how to help clients prevent injury and maintain health.

   
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