Why should I have a Sports Massage?
We asked Helen Quinn (professional masseuse) about the benefits of sports massage and why it’s so important.
Q) Can you just tell us a bit about Sports Massages?
A) People that train regularly should be getting regular sports massages. There are some people that are under the misconception that they’re just for elite athletes and people at the top of their game but actually people that are regular gym goers, people that sit in their car every day and people that are on their phones should be coming for regular massages because they’re putting their body under huge amount of stress.
If you don’t have regular massages, then what will happen eventually is that it will be of detriment to your training. You will start to get injuries, get aches and pains and won’t recover as quickly. So if you were coming for regular massages you would be able to train better and feel better.
As part of a sports massage you would have a posture check which is a real indication of how someone lives their life. A massage would be catered as to what the individual needs. Whether that’s a relaxation, it’s invigorating or they’ve got a specific area where they’ve got an injury.
Q) How does a sports massage work?
A) Ultimately, people suffer from range of movement. So by stimulating the blood to the muscle we can reduce the risk of injury, increase the speed that you get over your training sessions, increase the speed you get over an injury and ultimately increase your range of movements.
Q) Does it hurt?
A) I’m not going to say it doesn’t, but it should never be to the point where you can’t bare it. It should be a little bit uncomfortable because we need to know it’s working. People have different pain thresholds so some people don’t react in the slightest to it, other people you don’t need to be working that hard on them because their pain threshold is lower. A sports massage would not be one really that you’d fall asleep to.
You would say to anyone after a sports massage that you’re not necessarily going to feel great instantly because you may be a little bit sore. But you should feel fresher, massage just makes people feel better.
Q) Does massage just help physical problems? Or does it help with your mental health too?
A) It’s scientifically proven that just human touch can make you feel better so just someone touching the skin can make you feel better instantly.
Q) How often should you be getting a sports massage?
A) Ideally, if you’re training heavily you should really be getting one a week. But in the real world there’s time constraints, there’s an element financially too. So I would suggest that if people are regular gym goers, if they can be having one done twice a month that would be great.
Q) What about for those people who don’t exercise as much but want to relieve stress and help with their posture, how often would you recommend that they go?
A) I would say have a massage once a month, definitely.