I often recommend at home muscle recovery to supplement your massage and speed up recovery. I know no one likes homework and everyone is busy, but just 15 minutes of prescribed stretching or mobility work can aid in muscle recovery.
If you have a jam packed schedule and little time to yourself, I recommend you 15 minutes to work on your muscles right before bed. This can in the form of stretching, yoga, rolling out with the foam roller or tennis ball, using a massage gun or even a heating pad. Since massage is known to release serotonin, this can even make you sleepy and you might even fall asleep faster and easier. Win-win
Follow this recommended progression:
Heat
Apply a heating pad to whichever muscle is bothering you. This warms up the muscles and fascia which allows them to be worked a little easier. Cold muscles don’t move as easily.
Manual Therapy
Administer manual therapy of some kind i.e. massage gun, foam roller, tennis ball. Massage helps break up any micro adhesions (knots) helping the muscle move smoothly.
Stretching
Lastly adding in a stretch will help elongate the muscle.
This routine in no way replaces massage therapy but it’s a great supplement to your regular treatment schedule. Everyone can benefit from regular massage therapy appointments. We use our muscles all day, every day, and that alone builds up knots in the body. Mixing in at home muscle recovery with monthly massage can keep your body loose and cut down your risk of muscle strain and injury.
If you follow this practice, your muscles will be easier to work with in your office sessions. This can cut down on soreness during and post massage.
And always, post massage hydration is important. A good rule of thumb is to drink your bodyweight (in kg) in ounces.
Example: 170lbs divided by 2.2 = 77 kilograms so a 170lb person should shoot for 77oz of water.
If you have any questions regarding foam rolling techniques, specific stretches or generalized muscle information please reach out via email at Nick.lmt@
