Can You Exercise After A Sports Massage?
Sports massages are a great way to relieve tension in your muscles and help with recovery. But what about post-massage workouts? Will they interfere with the benefits of the massage?
Exercising after a workout can both increase muscle soreness and compromise the value of the soft tissue work you’ve received by increasing inflammation in your muscles before they have had sufficient time to heal themselves. But it is really up to you—sometimes people feel so limber and spry that their impulse is to head straight over to the gym (or yoga class, or run). If this sounds like you, try taking some gentle steps first post-massage and see how your body feels.
- It’s best to wait at least 24 hours after a massage before engaging in any strenuous activity.
- Running, weight lifting, high-intensity aerobics, power yoga, and other difficult exercises are examples of hard exercises that should be avoided for around 48 hours following the session.
- Following your appointment you’re generally safe with some light walking or stretching but avoid more intense workouts like running until two days have passed since then – this allows time for muscles and tendons to ease back into their natural alignment without being put under pressure through excess strain on them from all our usual activities!
While trying to recover from post-massage soreness you can do the following to ensure a fast recovery. The faster you recover, the sooner you can get back to working out.
Remember to Do Gentle Stretches
After you get a massage, it’s important to do some stretches on your own. This will help with the release of muscular tension and increased flexibility as well as improving circulation. You’ll also be able to take time for yourself and relieve stress by connecting with your body!
Stimulate Muscle Relaxation with Herbs
Many herbs help with muscle relaxation, inflammation reduction, and other symptoms. They can be taken in pill form or as a tincture to make them more powerful! One of the best herbal options is clove which has been shown to reduce pain by up to 25%. Next time you’re feeling sore after an intense workout session (or any reason) try one or two cloves for some relief.
Avoid Dehydration
Drink lots of water before and after your massage to help flush out toxins. Avoid alcoholic, caffeinated, or sugary drinks because they can dehydrate you and make it more difficult for the body’s natural detoxification process to function as efficiently.
Healthy alternatives include fresh fruit juice, vegetable juices like coconut water that is rich in electrolytes which will also hydrate you during a heatwave–or enjoy an herbal tea!
Take a Hot Shower
Warm-up in a sauna or take a hot shower to loosen tight muscles and release toxins that might be making you tense. Take some time out for yourself: soak in warm water mixed with baking soda or Epsom salt, like an at-home spa treatment! A heating pad may also help relax sore areas after any intense exercise; however, only use it for 15 minutes maximum as heat can damage skin over extended periods of exposure by drying them out too much.
If you’re feeling great after your massage and want to head out for a workout, consider how doing so may compromise the soft tissue work that was just done. It can be hard to keep yourself in check with all of those endorphins running through your body. If this sounds like you—you feel limber enough post-massage to try some gentle exercise before heading on home or back into the office—try taking it easy first. You might even find that waiting an hour is beneficial because by then, most people experience a decrease in their muscle soreness from whatever they did during their session as well as decreased inflammation in muscles.
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