Sports Massage Therapy

Athletes require their bodies to do incredible things, from running to stretching to bearing large amounts of weight. When we think of athletes, we typically visualize football, basketball and baseball players, yet this field also incorporates dancers, gymnasts, swimmers, skiers and snowboarders as well. The particular sport being practiced by an athlete often leads to physical discomfort and damage to the muscles and tissues. For example, a dancer may experience leg cramping in the legs, feet and lower back, while a baseball pitcher will have issues with the shoulder, arm and wrist area.
           
Generally speaking, a simple massage works to decrease tension and discomfort in the entire body. A sports massage is different in that it specifically targets the area(s) of the patient’s body that have the greatest degree of regular stress put upon them.
           
Many sports injuries or strains result in the need for some kind of physical therapy. Sports massage is one method of receiving physical therapy for sports’ related injuries. Therapeutic sports massage is specifically geared towards addressing damage to the soft tissue area, as is most common with athletes.
           
​Patients can expect to experience marked muscle and tissue relaxation as a result of participating in sports massage therapy. Blood circulation is also improved, as is the patient’s range of motion, a combination which typically temporarily relieves chronic aches, pains and/or stiffness associated with the athletic activity. As is the case with most therapeutic massage, sports massage therapy is most effective when done on a regular basis rather than only sporadically.