Article By: Sergio Muredda, Registered Massage Therapist at Athlete's Care Yorkville
With the great weather Toronto has to offer in the summer we all want to be outside soaking up the rays before it’s gone. After a sedentary winter we suddenly shock our bodies with increased activity that we aren’t physically prepared for. We bring the same intensity of running on a treadmill and taking spinning classes throughout the winter to running and riding our bikes outdoors, even though it’s totally different from what our muscles are used to doing. We tend to forget that as we increase the demands we make on our bodies we also have to increase the amount of time we spend healing, resting and rehabilitating the body. Massage therapy is an excellent way to rest, recharge and repair our muscles so they’re ready to train again.
How does massage work?
Over the years there have been many studies on the benefits of massage. In my opinion, the best description for massage would be to call it “manual yoga”. Many massage modalities focus on pinning and then manually moving the muscles with our fingers, thumbs or elbows, thus making massage the equivalent to having someone stretch your muscles for you! Recent studies conducted on massage show that massage promotes chemical responses in the muscle cells that decrease inflammation and promote muscle tissue repair.
Who can benefit from massage?
Most people think massage is a luxury only affordable for professional athletes and the rich. Not true! Massage is beneficial and essential for everyone! The human body is the machine that gets us from point A to point B. Whether you’re a pro athlete or a weekend warrior, you have to make sure to service the machine just as you would bring your car to the mechanic for a tune-up and an oil change. Maintenance is crucial for overall health and to ensure all your muscles and joints are functioning to the best of their ability.
There are countless musculoskeletal syndromes and conditions that affect the average person in the workplace. You don’t have to be a construction worker, shoveling and lifting heavy objects with your back all day, to be suffering from workplace pain. A great deal of the workplace conditions come from office positions like sitting in front of a computer at a desk. Conditions like tendonitis, carpal tunnel syndrome, thoracic outlet syndrome and sciatica, to name a few, can come about from being seated at a desk and can be effectively treated with massage therapy.
Massage therapy treatments can be specific and focused, unlike your typical full-body relaxation massage offered at local spas. An affordable and concentrated 30-minute appointment can be an incredibly successful way to treat most musculoskeletal conditions. Make sure to keep your motor running smoothly this summer!
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