Remedial Soft Tissue Therapy

Soft Tissue Therapy is the management, manipulation, and rehabilitation of soft tissues of the body including muscles, tendons, and ligaments. It is applicable not just to sports people but to anybody wishing to guard against or recover from a soft tissue injury.

The techniques used by soft tissue therapists have been developed to ensure effective and efficient results are gained from each massage given. Soft Tissue Therapy may:

• Improve circulation and lymphatic flow

• Assist in the removal of metabolic waste

• Sedate or stimulate nerve endings

• Increase or decrease muscle tone

• Increase or decrease muscle length

• Remodel scar tissue when required

• Assist in mental preparation for sporting participation

You do not need to be a sports performer to benefit from Soft Tissue Therapy. The benefits above can also help relieve the many day-to-day problems, repetitive strain injuries, sprains, tension and fatigue that everyone experiences.

Postural Assessment

Postural analysis is an important accompaniment to massage. It helps identify the imbalances in your body that lead to your aches, pains and strains in the first place. Massage is an excellent tool for treating them. But if the initial cause is not identified and corrected they could continue to return. Don’t worry we are not judging you as nobody has perfect posture, it how we are made up, but we all have areas which can lead to further problems resulting in injury or imbalances.

Joint Assessment

During a clinical joint assessment, we would ask you to perform some active range of movement tests to a point where you can’t move in that way any more. These will sometimes be performed as a passive test, which means that we will move your body and also ask you to resist. You will also complete strength tests for the muscles around the joint being assessed and assess the ligaments around the joint. The final part of a clinical joint assessment is the special tests for that joint which can help with identifying specific problems and allow me to form a treatment plan.

Sports Massage

There are a number of reasons why you may want to have a sports massage, there are not only physiological and psychological advantages, there are physical aspects to consider too which will be discussed below.

Pain relief – Massage can reduce the feeling of pain throughout your muscles by releasing endorphins. These endorphins which are released due to this type of massage help towards decreasing anxiety, mood improvement and pain relief.

Feelings of relaxation – Throughout a session, heat is generated throughout the muscle which allows them to relax.

Reduction in anxiety – Through the release of endorphins in muscles through heat, overall relaxation is encouraged, thus reducing anxiety levels.

Invigoration – Massage often involves fast-paced movements and stretches, this can produce a feeling of invigoration.

Increase in flexibility – Throughout a massage, the muscle tissue expands and stretches in a number of different ways allowing for stored pressure to be released.

Prevent or relieve DOMS – Otherwise known as delayed onset of muscle soreness, is assisted by enhancing blood flow and delivering fresh oxygen to the injury area.

Increased blood flow – The circulation of blood is enhanced to the muscle area through massage, in a similar way to exercise. The main difference being that deep tissue massage causes your blood vessels to become wider, increasing the ability of nutrients to flow through.

Scar tissue breakdown – Previous injuries may result in the creation of scar tissue and can affect muscles and tendons. An increase in scar tissue can then lead to a higher risk of injury in that area, massage has the ability to break it down.

Rehabilitation Exercises

Rehabilitation exercises aim to return full function following injury through re-building muscle strength, endurance, power and improving overall flexibility and mobility.

Stretching and Mobility Exercises

Often when we have treated particular areas the muscles have become shortened and it is important to teach them to return to their normal state. I will teach you different stretches for these areas which in turn will aid the recovery process. Age, Injury, medical procedures and sometimes illness can affect muscles.