Is It Normal For A Sports Massage To Be Painful?
Sport Massage Therapy may not have the same atmosphere or effects of luxurious spa treatment, but the benefits will improve your athletic performance and help recovery from injury.
There is no need to have tight or sore muscles for weeks to come when regular therapy can help speed up recovery. Deep tissue rub may be painful at first, but the effect on conditioning and performance improvement is well worth the initial discomfort.
According to the American Massage Therapy Association, many professional, college and high school athletic programs integrate Sports Massage into their training programmes. The massage takes place before or after the competition. And while Sports Massage is more physically intense than a spa massage, you’re still going to walk away with less stress and stress.
Why can sports massage sometimes be painful?
Sports massage is a form of deep tissue massage, so a lot of pressure is put on the muscles to treat them. This pressure could be uncomfortable. The more tense your muscles are, the more uncomfortable it will be because they cannot be stretched or manipulated as easily under the pressure of the hands (or elbows) of your sports massage therapist. The more relaxed you get into a massage, the less discomfort you feel, so regular massage, stretching and foaming will help you loosen your muscles and have a more comfortable experience.
You may also find that your muscles are aching for a day or two after a sports massage. The muscles that have been worked on during the massage may feel tender the next day in the same way as they do after a tough gym session. There may also be some mild inflammation around the area, but you should not have bruising, even if you may feel that you are bruised. A good sports massage is basically like a body workout, as your muscles are being manipulated in ways that they might not be used to, and the increased blood flow to the muscles and toxins that are flushed out can cause the pain you feel the next day.
Good Pain vs. Bad Pain
The discomfort that you feel during and after a massage is completely normal and, in general, it means that it works. But a sports massage should never cause you so much pain that you feel the need to get tense to bear it. If your muscles are tense, they won’t get much of a massage benefit. If you feel that the pain is too much, talk to your massage therapist and ask them to exercise a little less pressure. The amount of pressure required for each individual will be different. If the aching in your muscles persists for more than a few days after the massage, or if you develop bruising afterwards, it is advisable to consult your doctor about this.
