massage

all i could find re: massage on this forum is from 2004.. i was wondering if there is new studies on this subject. looks like a very knowledgeable coach, rick stern says he finds no medical info saying massage helps a rider.. anybody know if there is new info saying a light 10-2-0-30 minute massage after training/racing helps recover? or does the massage just feel good, but has no medical proof saying it does help.. i see every pro team has massage theripists and they team wouldnt pay for this if it wasnt helpful.. anybody know the FACTS on massage? how long or how often? thanks

 

Be a hard ask to design a definitive study that shows an effect either way as people do so many things trying to affect recovery post racing or hard riding. Compression gear, eating, drinking, cold water immersion, ice baths, cool downs, stretching and massage. All I have is personal experience that CWI, Compression garments and deep tissue massage leave me feeling like a whole lot of gunk has been flushed out of the system. I think another benefit of massage is you tend to find tight spots more quickly and can work on them before they become an issue on the bike.

In terms of performance a search on Google Scholar of "Massage Sports Performance" achieves over 4000 hits since 2012, that would be a good place to start trying to piece together a more definitive answer.

 

Massage definitely increases my recovery, I'd go 3 times a week if I had the dough.

 

thanks for the replys

 

1000 scientific words could not explain how good & beneficial a massage is, specially in stage races,

 

Massage has been used therapeutically since the time of the Egyptians. To oversimplify, one gets the benefits of increased circulation without doing any of the work. Massage therapists, aka soigneurs (french to 'care for'), often do a thankless job and its hard work. I paid my rent for five years as a professional therapist and if I didn't ice my hands at the end of every shift I was going to be waking up at 4am with hands on fire. Sure it's easy for a pimply faced teenager to giggle about happy endings but none of those pro's are giggling after a tough day in the mountains I guarantee it.

Riders, please tip your therapist well, especially if they did a good job.