Massage is an important part of recovery, injury prevention and can help improve performance for athletes. When it is not available or if it is becoming too expensive there are a few self massage techniques and tools that can help an athlete.
Self-massage can help you release tightness, knots, and trigger points in the soft tissues and is an important part of injury prevention and improving performance. The various benefits generated from massage can also be performed on yourself provided it is performed in an effective manner. Although self-massage has some limitations (Cash 1996), the following techniques may help as an alternative to regular sports massage sessions.
TOOLS
- Your hands are the simplest tool for self-massage. Find areas of the body that are tight and need your attention. Follow and apply long strokes of pressure to the muscle fibers to their origin and insertion points to warm up the area. Next apply kneeding or cross-friction massage, against the grain of the muscle fibers, this can help to release adhesions and scar tissue. Is there a particular sore spot, trigger point or knot? Apply and hold some pressure to this area. How does it respond to pressure? Applying cross-friction massage such as kneading, going against the grain of the muscle fibers, can help to release adhesions and scar tissue.
- Foam rollers can provide light or hard massage, depending on the hardness of the foam. These can be as simple as a flat Styrofoam roller or rigid rollers with foam nubs wrapped around a hard core.
- Roller Massager/Massage Stick Handheld Roller Massagers provide a controlled deep tissue massage. Using both hands, instead of your body weight, you can control the compression level towards a specific target area. A roller massager with a contoured surface (such as the RM Extreme) effectively wraps around body parts and the end of the handle can be used for “triggerpoint” single point myofascial release.
- Sports balls make useful, inexpensive devices. Tape two balls together to make a peanut shape to work the muscles on either side of the spine. Hard spikey ball is more effective in getting into deep areas then a soft tennis ball. You can move the ball around a tight muscle areas or find your tight spot and hold pressure in this area until it releases.
- Trigger Point Therapy tools includes a range of instruments to address most parts of an athlete’s body that are hard to reach especially lower back and shoulders. They are pretty widely available at sports shops, race expos, and online.
- Electric E-held massage tool with prices ranges from $100 to $1000 these Electric massage guns are said to decrease pain due to intense vibrations and unparallel range of movement. Many professional athletes have turned to these tools for muscle relaxing magic.
Amy Daniel