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What to expect

Tel: 01908 260139 or 07748 591177 mail: info@sprintsportsmassage.co.uk

A new client to our sports injury clinic will have an initial consultation where we can discuss your injury concerns and issues. This may consist of a postural and mobility assessment including an assessment of all the major joints which will help identify specific issues for treatment. A health questionnaire will normally be completed prior to the first treatment to protect both the client and therapist. This will also eliminate any possible contraindications to sports massage.

The client will then lay, sit or rest on the couch in various different positions depending on the specific areas of the body that require treatment. This may be laying face down, on the back, on the side or sitting on the edge of the couch. Sports massage differs from other massage therapies in the fact that treatment is specific to each patient and even each session, there is no given routine. This is by no means a simple body massage but therapy to enable you to improve your performance and mobility. You definately will not find any scented candles and whale music in our clinics.

The therapist will then use their hands, fingers, thumbs, forearm and elbow to apply specific pressure. For deep tissue work it is sometimes necessary for the therapist to apply deep pressure by kneeling on the couch. This helps to maintain their posture and control the amount of pressure used. Towel & draping techniques are always used to maintain dignity.

Soft Tissue Release (STR), Neuromuscular Technique (NMT) & Muscle Energy Technique (MET) may also be used. These relatively modern techniques feature heavily in the treatments of any well trained Sports Massage Therapist.

During and after your treatment we can discuss changes you can make to your lifestyle, training or work environment. Identifying the causes of your injury and dysfunction will allow you to eliminate the potential cause and will aid your long term recovery.

What to wear - You may need to remove your clothing depending on the area being massaged but this is not always the case. Some techniques work just as well through clothing and massage in the workplace or trackside is usually administered through clothes. Loose fitting sports clothing including shorts is ideal and sensible underwear. Ladies may need to undo their bra but not necessarily expose themselves. Any well trained therapist will respect your dignity and use towel techniques to cover you.
Timings -This is entirely dependent on your specific requirements. A typical first session will be around seventy five minutes which will include an initial consultation and postural assessment. Following sessions can be thirty minutes, an hour or longer depending on how much treatment you feel you need. It is not unusual for a treatment to last two hours for heavy overuse conditions or injuries. Likewise some pre and post event massage can last fifteen minutes as many clients just need a small amount of work needed on a specific area.
Rule of thumb is you know how you feel, where you feel tight, sore and where mobility is restricted. This will determine the length of the session.
Referall - During treatment there may be injuries or issues that present themselves that a Sports Massage Therapist is not qualified or experienced to treat. It is not unusual therefore for you to be refered to your GP or other healthcare professional. Sprint has a network of contacts including Physios, Podiatrists and Osteopaths who have a major interest in treating sports injuries.

 

STR on the hamstrings               Knee assessment