Marathon running and sports massage

During the spring and summer months there are an increasing amount of marathons, half marathons, and outdoor events that have become really popular for a lot of people that I treat, it’s human nature to rise to a challenge and this fuels the desire to push oneself a bit further, even the most sedentary individuals are getting the urge to do more exercise and start doing the occasional 10k race or the increasingly popular Park run events that usually take place on Saturday mornings across the country (and now globally). 

 

 

 

There are a few things to bear in mind if you decide to start running, or even train for a marathon, firstly, the increase in mileage increases the wear and tear on your body, on shorter distances this is minimal, but logic dictates that the more times you perform a repeated movement continually, the more the chances of aches and pains occurring as a result. This doesn’t mean to say you shouldn’t do it, it just means that the more repeated stress you put your body under, the more you need to do to keep things on track and in shape, whether it be using a foam roller, having a deep tissue sports massage, or some restorative exercise such as Pilates and yoga. I definitely recommend using a foam roller or other self massage aid EVERY DAY whilst training for a marathon in particular, and have a sports massage once a week in the last few weeks before a marathon, then after that a monthly maintenance massage is ideal. 

The key to keeping your body on track is to remember that the more volume and intensity of training you do, you’ll also need to do more restorative and remedial work.