Post event massage is administered as soon as an athlete has
adequately warmed down after competition, or athletic activity. I have performed post-event massage at the
London Marathon since 2009. My services
were provided for some particularly hard working (through fund-raising and of
course running 26.2 miles!) and well-deserving charity runners.
This type of massage is light, free-flowing and gentle in
all respects. It utilises sweeping and
pumping techniques that help rid the muscle fibres of waste material, and bring
fresh oxygenated blood to facilitate healing.
It helps recovery and to restore regular muscle function. It can also be used to facilitate
warming-down, to help check for injuries and to monitor the athlete’s health. Post competition and training, muscle fibres
tend to suffer from microscopic tears. Deep
massage would aggravate the trauma to the tissues. Any inflammation and bleeding could be increased. Always tell your Massage Therapist if you
have been training hard, have a competition coming up soon, or have just
finished a competition – it is imperative that your treatment is adjusted
accordingly.
Post event marathon massage is a very interesting part of a
Sports Massage Therapist’s job. You get
to meet lots of different athletes from different cities and countries, hear
about their training regimes, their personal ambitions and their
achievements. Everyone has a ‘running
story’ – what brought them to running in the first instance and what led them
to run a Marathon. Some of the people
you meet make a profound mark on you.
Our bodies are wonderful machines that we can train to perform
remarkable feats – training for a Marathon involves great mental and physical
preparation.
I was taught to look out for a variety of injuries and to
monitor the runner’s physical health in general. The most common injuries tended to be
blisters, swollen limbs, exacerbation of pre-existing, or ‘chronic’
injuries/conditions, heat exhaustion, dehydration, cramps and hypo-glycaemia
(low blood sugars).
I was particularly interested in exploring the muscle tissue
condition. I was amazed by the runners
who had prepared very thoroughly for the Marathon, in particular how little the
miles seemed to affect their muscles.
The bodies of those who had adopted a less structured training approach
told a different story – one of pain, tightness, tenderness, inflammation and
general trauma.
One particular year, I met a runner who had completed 44
Marathons and was aiming for 50 – meeting him touched me deeply. His well-conditioned body, with soft fluid strong
muscle was inspirational to me, for his body was so well prepared and conditioned that it did
not seem to be affected by the activity at all.
Preparing well allows our
bodies to become acclimatised and cope with the excessive demands placed upon
the body. It allows us to stand a better
chance of being injury free and to have a longer ‘running life expectancy’.
If you, or your club, are
interested in Post-Event Sports Massage in Cyprus, please get in touch.
