Sports Massage does more than make you
feel good!
Evidence that a good post-ride rub down helps
your muscles recover.
We all love a good massage especially after a long day
in the saddle. Not only does it feel great, but it benefits the body too,
although just how much it benefits the body is still questioned among some
sports science sceptics.
But it seems,
according to a new study, we may have an answer for some of the sceptics. Researchers
from McMasters University have delved deeper into physiological changes that
occur in the muscles during massage and found that biomechanical sensors are triggered
that send inflammation reducing signals to muscles cells. The researchers discovered
that a 10-minute massage can not only help tired cycling legs, but aid
inflammation-related chronic conditions such as arthritis and muscular
dystrophy. In addition, massage signals muscle to build more mitochondria, the
power centres of cells that play important role in healing. “The main thing,
and what is novel about our study, is that one he’s never looked inside the
muscle to see what is happening with the massage” says Justin Crane, a doctoral
student in the Department of Kinesiology at Master. “No one looked at the
biochemical effects or what might be going on in the muscle itself. We have
shown the muscle senses that it is being stretched and this appears to reduce
the cells. As a consequence, massage may be beneficial for recovery from
injury”.
McMaster’s study
followed 11 men in their 20s, and instructed them to cycle for more than 70
minutes, to the point of exhaustion, following a 10-minute rest. In these 10
minutes, a massage therapist performed a massage on one leg, using a variety of
techniques, commonly used in rehabilitation. Muscle biopsies were done on both legs
and repeated 2.5 hours later.
The researcher’s results found reduced inflammation in
only the massaged leg. “I didn’t think that little bit of massage could produce
that remarkable a change, especially since the exercise was so robust. Seventy
minutes of exercise compared to 10 of a massage, it is clearly potent,” says
Crane.
These results, although only in the developmental
stage, hint that massage therapy blunts muscle pain by the same biological
mechanisms as most pain medications and could be effective alternative to them.
Crane believes this study is the first step in determining the best therapies
for promoting recovery from a variety of muscle injuries.
For a post Recovery Massage Contact
Darren Macfarlane Sports Injury Clinic on
086 1957378
www.sportsinjurytherapy.ie
