Using Massage Therapy To Boost Fitness Goals
If your New Year’s resolution is to get healthier through diet and exercise, you’re not alone. Over half of Americans make fitness-related goals. But did you know that incorporating massage into your workout routine can be key to reaching those goals?
Whether you’re training for a marathon or simply aiming for more regular workouts, massage provides benefits that enhance your performance and aid recovery.
Benefits of Massage Therapy
Reduces Muscle Soreness and Speeds Recovery
It’s no secret that muscle soreness can derail fitness motivations. Starting a new exercise program leads to microscopic tears and inflammation. While a sign your body is adapting and growing stronger, this discomfort causes many to miss workouts. Research shows massage decreases inflammatory hormones, providing relief for hard working muscles.
Increases Flexibility and Range of Motion
Between strength training, cardio, and flexibility classes, flexibility helps you maximize activities with better mobility. Massage lengthens shortened muscles and increases elasticity. A consistent massage regimen keeps muscles pliable for bending, twisting and avoiding injury during workouts and daily movement. Improvements in flexibility can also give you the ability to add new exercises to your routine.
Improves Circulation and Delivers Nutrients
Whatever your preferred fitness activity, rest and recovery allows your body to rebound. Increased blood flow from massage delivers vital oxygen and nutrients to fatigued tissue. Fluid movement assists the lymphatic system in clearing metabolic waste from exertion.
Prevents Injury and Builds Muscle Endurance
Using massage to warm up muscles pre-workout and flush out lactic acid post-workout reduces injury risk and muscle fatigue. Consistent massage keeps your baseline fitness level high by preserving flexibility gains. This boosts endurance for increased strength training capacity, running mileage, or other workouts.
Types of Massages for Fitness Goals
Sports Massage Targets High-Use Muscle Groups
This specialized technique targets muscle groups like legs, back, and shoulders that are used regularly during your workout. Sports massage applies long compressions and rhythmic strokes to enhance mobility and increase range of motion in frequently exercised areas. The focused pressure also flushes out lactic acid buildup that contributes to post-workout muscle fatigue and soreness.
Deep Tissue Massage Releases Tight, Fatigued Muscles
Using slower strokes, deeper pressure, and precise motions, deep tissue massage targets chronic tension and works out knots in fatigued, overworked muscles. If you constantly feel tightness or restricted range of motion from training, deep tissue massage can be highly effective for releasing and breaking up this rigid, restricted tissue. The intense pressure reaches deeper layers of musculature to clear adhesions and scar tissue.
Hot Stone Massage Melts Away Tension and Soreness
In this relaxing massage, heated smooth stones are used as massage tools, supplemented by a therapist’s hands. The warmth of the heated stones relaxes tense, exhausted muscles to allow the massage techniques to better penetrate deeper layers of muscle tissue. Hot stone massage helps redirect blood flow to oxygen-starved, overworked muscle groups, draining away built-up lactic acid, fatigue, and general muscular aches and pains.
When to Get Massage Therapy
Pre-Workout Massage Warms Up Muscles
Book a tune-up massage before you head out for a tough workout, intense training session, or athletic competition. Pre-workout massage increases blood flow to muscles and enhances their flexibility through techniques like effleurage, petrissage, and range of motion stretches. These preparatory massage sessions ready your body for upcoming physical activity and can reduce your risk of pulls or strains.
Post-Workout Massage Aids Recovery
Scheduling a massage session soon after exertion helps flush out lactic acid, metabolic waste, and other byproducts that contribute to the sore, stiff feeling in muscles following intense activity. Post-workout massage helps quickly clear this performance-inhibiting debris out of your muscular and lymphatic system to kickstart the recovery process. Targeted massage stimulates healing blood flow to damaged muscle tissue, accelerating your body’s natural recuperative abilities.
Consistent Massages Between Workouts Maintains Flexibility
Consistent massage between workouts or training sessions helps maintain flexibility and range of motion gains. Getting a massage a few days to a week between hardcore fitness activity gives your body the ongoing maintenance it needs to sustain a consistently high fitness level. Preserving loose muscle tissues without regression ensures you can continue progressing towards new goals rather than constantly recovering lost ground.
Reach Your Wellness Goals in 2024
While regular exercise certainly enhances fitness goals, the real power comes from a holistic approach to physical wellness. Think of massage therapy as another gear to push performance further. The collective impact of looser muscles, less pain and efficient restoration means more energy to put towards your resolution. More mileage at the gym, lifting heavier weights, attempting new personal records – whatever your goal, massage removes limitations.
At Urban Oasis Spa, our certified therapists personalize each massage to target problem areas from your training. We equip our clients to thrive and live their healthiest lives through relaxing, restorative massage. Schedule a massage with us today to reach new heights in your fitness journey!
You can book your massage online or call us at 615-378-7226.
