After the sports recovery process is vital to restore physiological and psychological function to an athlete after both training and competition days. For those athletes that compete in a regular sport, generally on a weekly basis, it is particularly important that they take their recovery seriously.
The recovery process is necessary to help minimize the risk of fatigue and maximize the speed of recovery between competition days.
As more and more elite sports persons gain a higher demand and a strong desire to gain an edge over the opposition, it becomes more important that effective recovery strategies become of high priority in sporting teams.
Once the implementation of an appropriate recovery strategy is made, it can enhance sports performance in a range of ways. These include increasing physical adaptions following training or competition and decreasing the likelihood of developing Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS) as well as decreasing its severity. Recovery also increases the quality of future training sessions or competitions and reduces the risk of developing an overuse injury. Another great benefit of implementing an appropriate recovery strategy is how it decreases stress and leaves you in a relaxed state.
Sleep is mentioned above as an effective recovery strategy. Many people do not have a good sleep-wake cycle which is vital in both mental and physical recovery. Ensuring that you go to bed and wake up at the same time every morning, and ensuring that you are getting at least 8 hours of sleep each night will improve and speed up the recovery process. Avoid having the television on and avoid using your laptop, tablet, or mobile phone before falling asleep – as the brightness of the screen stimulates the brain and makes it much harder to fall asleep.
Different Recovery Techniques You Can Use
There are a number of recovery strategies that are popularly used by athletes to improve their recovery. These can include:
- Active Recovery in the form of a Warm Down
- Static Stretching
- Hydrotherapy in the form of Ice Baths, Spas, Swimming Pools, etc.
- Compression Wear
The Rapid Reboot Recovery System is made to supercharge your recovery. With size-specific compression boots, the system is made to fit athletes of all shapes and sizes. The control pump lets you customize your settings for a completely unique recovery system.
Rapid Reboot compression technology helps your body’s natural healing process by increasing the blood flow to targeted areas. It boosts lymphatic drainage to relieve inflammation and reduce swelling. Customers noticed a significant reduction in stiffness and soreness after use.
The system is designed to cut down your recovery time and bring medical-grade compression technology to your home. With a wide array of sizing options and custom pressure settings, you’ll experience a more custom recovery than some of the other models on the market.
- Nutrition and Nutritional Supplements
- Hydration
- Sleep
- Massages/Relaxation/Meditation
It is the position of the American Massage Therapy Association (AMTA) that those who participate in exercise programs, as well as athletes in training, can benefit from massage therapy.
Does sports massage improve performance?
Sports massage aims to improve exercise performance and muscle function. Therapeutic massage emphasizes stress relief and well-being. … Most athletes experience increased flexibility and range of motion, greater endurance, and reduced muscle pain after a massage.
Are massages good for athletes?
Athletes may find an edge in these psychological benefits, making massage a double-duty treatment; a mind and body therapy. … Increases blood flow throughout the body, bringing vital oxygen and nutrients all over. Relieves muscle pain and tension. Improves connective tissue healing, which promotes muscle elasticity.
What are the benefits of Sports Massage?
Below are just a few of the benefits that massage can provide: Relaxation – massage helps the muscles relax through heat generated, circulation, and stretching. It may also lower high blood pressure. Flexibility – someone with tight muscles may have better flexibility following treatment.
What is the difference between sports massage and deep tissue?
A deep tissue massage is perfectly explained by its name. The pressure is adjusted to manipulate the deeper tissue layers in the body. … This is a job for a specially trained sports massage therapist. A sports massage is the manipulation of soft tissue (muscle) in order to prevent or improve sports injuries.
Massage is beneficial to more than muscles
- Reduces heart rate.
- Lowers blood pressure.
- Reduces recovery time after an injury.
- Rehabs an injury.
- Lowers anxiety.
- Improves mood.
- Increases blood flow throughout the body, bringing vital oxygen and nutrients all over.
- Relieves muscle pain and tension.
Massage Therapy for Those Who exercises
Position Statement
It is the position of the American Massage Therapy Association (AMTA) that those who participate in exercise programs, as well as athletes in training, can benefit from massage therapy.
Background Information
Millions of people around the world play sports and exercise, from the elite professional athlete to the novice just starting a walking program for general health and wellness benefits. Exercise is recommended for everyone. Although other government groups in the past have recommended exercise and fitness, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services released the first official U.S. Physical Activity Guidelines in October 2008, as the official guidelines of the U.S. government. The Guidelines indicate that some activity is better than none, and then go on to make several specific recommendations:
- Moderate amounts of physical activity provide substantial health benefits for all adults. This dose is defined as 150 minutes/week of moderate-intensity activity such as walking, or 75 minutes of vigorous activity/week such as jogging or vigorous sports. Furthermore, this moderate dose can be obtained by mixing some days of moderate-intensity and some days of vigorous-intensity, with one minute of vigorous equaling two minutes of moderate-intensity. For this combination, 150 minutes is the goal.
- Additional health benefits can be obtained by doing more than a moderate dose. This higher target is described as 300 minutes of moderate-intensity, 150 minutes of vigorous-intensity, or combining moderate and vigorous intensity.
- All adults should participate in 30 minutes of strength building exercise on two days of the week. These exercises should engage all major muscle groups.
- Children and adolescents should participate in 60 minutes of physical activity each day. Most of this should be moderate to vigorous-intensity activity and should include vigorous activity at least three days/week. It also is recommended that children and adolescents participate in muscle-strengthening three days/week and bone-strengthening activities at least three days/week.1
Sports massage can be used to improve athletic performance, speed recovery, and can be utilized by all individuals who participate in any athletic and/or exercise program to help improve conditioning and maintain peak performance. Many professional and collegiate athletic programs employ or contract with massage therapists, and sports massage has been sought for many years by athletes of differing backgrounds for multiple reasons.2 With the 2008 Physical Activity Guidelines being very clear that activity is essential for people to be healthy, sports massage can be recommended to those individuals who participate in exercise programs as well as professional and collegiate athletes.
Research has shown that in relation to exercise and athletic participation massage can:*
- Reduce muscle tension4
- Help athletes monitor muscle tone
- Promote relaxation
- Reduce muscle hypertonicity
- Increase range of motion
- Improve soft tissue function
- Support recovery from the transient immunosuppression state
- Support the recovery of heart rate variability and diastolic blood pressure after high-intensity exercise.
- Decrease muscle stiffness and fatigue after exercise
- Improve exercise performance
- Decrease delayed onset muscle soreness
- Be the most efficient intervention for maintaining maximal performance time in subsequent exercise tests when combined with active recovery from maximal exercise
- Reduce serum creatine kinase post-exercise
- Reduce swelling
- Reduce breathing pattern disorders
- Enhance athletic performance
- May help prevent injuries when massage is received regularly
Individuals who participate in exercise and athletic programs who seek enhanced performance, improved conditioning, faster recovery, injury prevention, and assistance in maintaining peek fitness can benefit from massage therapy given by professional massage therapists working within their scope of practice.
*Disclaimer: This information is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice. You should not use this information to diagnose or treat a health problem or disease without consulting with a qualified healthcare provider.
Please consult your healthcare provider with any questions or concerns you may have regarding your condition.
The information provided is for educational purposes only and is not intended as diagnosis, treatment, or prescription of any kind. The decision to use, or not to use, any information is the sole responsibility of the reader. These statements are not expressions of legal opinion relative to the scope of practice, medical diagnosis, or medical advice, nor do they represent an endorsement of any product, company, or specific massage therapy technique, modality, or approach. All trademarks, registered trademarks, brand names, registered brand names, logos, and company logos referenced in this post are the property of their owners.