Category Archives: Sports Massage

M is for Mobility

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Mobility and movement are pretty important to the human body. If it does not move, it will seize up, quite literally. The axiom “use it or lose it” is very very true, and there is a reason for this. I have recently heard a lot of people going on and on about something called the SAID principle. It is a simplified version of a much more complex physiological theory – SAID stands for Specific Adaptations to Imposed Demands. Very basically, if you make your body do something, then it will adapt to that input and will make the body better … Continue reading →

BMC Climbing Injury Symposium 2012

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I was privileged enough to be at the BMC injury Symposium this year, both as a participant and a speaker. It is a biannual event where climbing injuries and issues are presented and discussed by a number of interested parties from different areas of the climbing and medical world. We were very fortunate to have Volker Schöffl and his wife Isa – the authors of the original and fantastic book “One move too many”, and they presented a number of excellent sections on injuries, surgery and impacts of training on younger climbers. They spoke eloquently and with great detail on their … Continue reading →

Marathon training

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As the London and Manchester Marathon places have just been released, there are a number of first time marathon runners (and also more experienced runners) who are about to start training in earnest for the events early next year. For those of you who are planning on running a marathon, read on! We have worked with many marathon runners in the past and all have benefited from ensuring their training programmes include regular sports massage. Why is that? Well the simple answer is that regular maintenance massage can help to keep your muscles healthy and injury free, which is of … Continue reading →

Psychology of Sports Massage

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The benefits of sports massage that are published are very often limited to the physiological aspects, and with good reason, because it’s easier to quantify them (e.g. measuring circulation or chemical levels in blood). However, the psychological benefits are naturally more qualitative, and being unmeasurable they are therefore difficult to explain in a scientific way. However, the field of sports psychology is not insignificant, and as such we should not shy away from the emotional and mental benefits, just because we can’t speak from an evidenced position. As it is difficult to speak from a research based position, clinical expertise … Continue reading →

E is for Epicondylitis

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Introduction Epicondylitis is an overuse injury of the elbow. When the lateral (outside) structures are affected the condition is more commonly known as Tennis Elbow (or lateral epicondylitis) and when medial (inside) structures are affected it is known as Golfer’s Elbow (no prizes for guessing this is medial epicondylitis). What is Epicondylitis and why does it happen? The main difference between medial and lateral epicondylitis is which specific structures around the elbow suffer from overuse, injury or irritation. Lateral – the main area of concern are the extensors muscles of the hand which attach to the lateral epicondyle (a bony … Continue reading →

C is for Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

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What is this condition? Carpal Tunnel Syndrome is a condition where the median nerve (the one which innervates your thumb, first three fingers and half of the fourth finger) is compressed as it passes through the tunnel of bones and soft tissues at the wrist. Swelling around the wrist or flexor tendons can be contributing factors; pressure is placed on the nerve as it passes through the tunnel. Fluid retention during pregnancy or obesity can increase the risk of this condition because the size of the tunnel is reduced, again, putting pressure on the nerve. The other major contributing factor … Continue reading →