Most sports massages are tailored to be used as a pre-workout stretch and opportunity to warm up the muscles or used as a post-workout massage designed to reduce soreness and increase flexibility. However, you don’t have to be a regular sports athlete to have a sports massage. 

What Are The Benefits?

There are a number of reasons why you would want to have a sports massage, there are not only physiological and psychological advantages, there are physical aspects to consider too: 

• Pain relief – Massage can reduce the feeling of pain throughout your muscles by releasing endorphins. These endorphins which are released due to this type of massage help towards decreasing anxiety, mood improvement and pain relief. 
• Feelings of relaxation – Throughout a session, heat is generated throughout the muscle which allows them to relax. 
• Reduction in anxiety – Through the release of endorphins in muscles through heat, overall relaxation is encouraged, thus reducing anxiety levels. 
• Invigoration – As noted earlier, with massage often involving fast paced movements and stretches, this can produce a feeling of invigoration. 
• Increase in flexibility – Throughout a massage, the muscle tissue expands and stretches in a number of different ways allowing for stored pressure to be released. 
• Prevent or relieve DOMS – Otherwise known as delayed onset of muscle soreness, is assisted by the enhancing blood flow delivering fresh oxygen to the injury area. 
• Increased blood flow – The circulation of blood is enhanced to the muscle area through massage, in a similar way to exercise. The main difference being that deep tissue massage causes your blood vessels to become wider, increasing the ability of nutrients to flow through. 
• Scar tissue break down – Previous injuries may result in the creation of scar tissue and can affect muscles and tendons. An increase in scar tissue can then lead to a higher risk of injury in that area, massage has the ability to break it down.