sports massage

services

introduction: There is a lot of confusion about sports massage. Anecdotally, I think it is often perceived that sports massage is a bit more robust and effective than holistic or relaxing massage! People sometimes have come to me and asked for a ‘sports massage’ when what they really mean is “can you give me a deep massage”.

I first trained as a massage therapist in 1975 and over the years I have developed skills in just about every conceivable massage technique there is. If people come to me now for a massage I usually assess their needs and treat accordingly. However, I was also trained to the highest level as a sports massage therapist, and qualified to the standard currently required by the Sports Massage Association. I use my sports massage skills together with my osteopathic knowledge to treat sports men and women from amateur through professional to elite level.

definition: I define sports massage as:

‘…the application of manipulation and stretch methods applied to the muscles and connective tissues of the body, with the purpose of enhancing athletic performance…’

treatment phases: My techniques and treatment plans are based on two phases of an athletic year, but can be transposed to most competitive sports.

            1. The training phase

            Based on the objectives during this phase, which are:

                        a) preventative (to prevent injury)

                        b) control over-use syndromes

            2. The competitive phase

                        a) pre-event

                        b) intermediate

                        c) post-event

These describe the types of need I will be interested in to achieve changes in an individual, to promote their performance, during the two time periods.

For You?: At whatever level of sports you perform, sports massage can help you improve. Also, with the added skills of osteopathy at my disposal I can offer an all round treatment approach which also includes the treatment of sports related injury.

southampton osteopathy - to book online click here; or phone ian on 07792 782056