What is Sports Massage?
If you happen to enjoy playing sports, you are likely familiar with the occasional sore hamstring or other pulled muscle. If you play hard and train hard, getting a sports massage may be a great way to keep your body in optimal condition for performance. Sports massage is used for a variety of different reasons from injury rehabilitation to simply allowing a player to train more efficiently with less risk of injury.
Sports massage is different from traditional massage mostly in that it focuses more heavily on problem areas of the body. If you traditionally have tight calves when you train, a sports massage therapist will focus on massaging that area and getting the muscles to loosen.
Sports massage also tends to be shorter than most massage treatments. Generally speaking, sports massage is broken down into four major areas:
- Pre-event. This kind of massage is performed 15 to 45 minutes before a sporting activity. It is most pointedly directed towards the parts of the body that will be undergoing the most strain during the event.
- Post-event. This massage is given within an hour or two of completing the sporting event. It helps to normalize the body’s tissues.
- Restorative massage. A restorative massage is given during a training event in order to allow an athlete to train more rigorously with less risk of injury.
- Rehabilitative massage. This massage is for athletes who have suffered some sort of strain to their body. The massage is again concentrated at pain points for maximum effect.
With all of this in mind, the next time that you come to Hawaiian Rainforest, make sure to ask us about the varieties of sports massage that we offer. We are happy to cater to many different athletes with a variety of needs. Contact us today to learn more.