Louisa Grosvenor.
Cycling on a regular basis will normally consist of long hours in the saddle. The repetitive nature of the sport will lead to specific muscles and muscle groups being sore and tight. If the tension within the muscles is not released or treated then it will spread throughout the whole body. For example, a tight lower back, can cause stiffness and pain in the hip which can then lead to pain felt in the knee.
It is important to incorporate a regular deep tissue massage into your routine to:
- Loosen tight muscles
- Flush out toxic chemicals
- Keep muscle fibers smooth and loose
- Cycle pain free
BENEFITS OF SPORTS MASSAGE POST CYCLING
- Reduce tenderness after an endurance training session or race
- Increases blood flow
- Decreases recovery time
- Removes waste products from the muscle
- Enhances mobility
WHEN TO RECEIVE A DEEP TISSUE MASSAGE
It is important to have a massage at the appropriate time during your training. If the muscles are left untreated for too long, then the muscles will stiffen and tighten and more likely to lead to injury.
2-5 days before an event or race. This provides sufficient recovery time between the massage and the event, and will allow your muscles to move more freely.
Following the event, whilst muscles are still sore from the strenuous work, a light, gentle massage can be applied within 48 hours to ease the tension and flush out lactic build up.
2-3 days post event, a deep massage technique is applied to break down adhesions and regain full range of movement.
For regular maintenance, once a month is the ideal time frame to have a sports massage, this
enables you to maintain regular training sessions and encourages the muscles to remain loose and free from tension
