Massage – Like anything, consistency will yield best results!
The benefits are far reaching so here is a quick over view of some of them and a reminder to book REGULAR massages for best results. They should be used as a preventative approach, rather than a reactive / treatment modality.
As endurance athletes, regular active and passive maintenance is important to keep our bodies free of illness and injury physically and psychologically. In the same way a good bike owner would degrease, clean and even take their bike for a service, it is important we service our own body parts as well. To reduce feelings of post workout soreness, stiffness and fatigue we can employ techniques such as foam rolling, contrast bathing and compression garments to help increase blood flow to remove yesterdays accumulated metabolic by products and inflammation/inflammatory markers, helping us to feel less fatigued. In the same way, regular massage can aid in recovery.
Massage is technique and therapist dependant, however, works by providing a source of heat and pressure to open up blood vessels to and from your achy muscles helping to alleviate muscle soreness. It also gives us that warm and relaxed feeling, which may reduce some of the lingering stiffness and tight areas and certainly reduce the feeling of fatigue.
Many of us like a ‘hard’ or ‘firm’ massage, which can be great, when used at the right time. Too much pressure can leave you squirming on the table and may contribute further to the fatigue and tight spots, while light massage can be soothing and calming providing the relaxation effects. A hard massage can be great when a period of light recovery is scheduled in the 2-3 days post to allow for the microtrauma to resolve. A light massage can be great and incorporated into a fortnightly or monthly routine to alleviate the aforementioned factors of fatigue. For some it may help feel more alert, improve sleep, increase motivation to nail those key sessions and train the next day, improve productivity at work and certainly improve your mood. As triathletes, we can oftentimes be zombie like; hangry, sore, sleepy…you get the picture. So think seriously about ‘recovery’ as the fourth component of triathlon. Find what works for you, keep it regular, keep it general and make sure it leaves you feeling good.
As always, for those little niggles that just don’t seem to go away, professional advice from a doctor or physiotherapist is always advised. You can even ask them if massage is appropriate for your specific needs.
Text: Ryley Pasquali