Human Massage Therapy.

To give your horse the optimum chance of success, you need to be in top physical condition. Massage therapy is beneficial for you too. As a qualified Human Sports Masseur, with an equestrian competition background, I am well aware of how those niggling aches and pains affect performance.

It is also important to see how a muscle imbalance in the rider can affect the balance of the horse. Or, visa versa.

Where appropriate I can observe and can treat you both, thus ensuring a more harmonious combination. By the use of digital photography, I can illustrate how your position or how your horse's musculature can result in that imbalance and how it can be corrected.

Sports and Remedial Therapy

Whether you are suffering muscle aches or strains from hard training, competition, or from the rigours of daily life, massage can be of great benefit in promoting relaxation and reducing pain. It can also promote the healing of damaged tissue, help to correct postural imbalances, and effectively stretch tight muscles.

Remedial massage involves the use of a wide range of techniques to treat a variety of ailments. A comprehensive treatment plan based on the underlying cause of the problems will be proposed.

Sports massage is extremely beneficial in the rehabilitation process following injury, and works along side the body’s natural healing process. It can also be used on a regular basis by athletes who wish to sustain high levels of performance whilst minimising the risk of injury.

Sports Injury Diagnosis and Rehabilitation

Correct diagnosis and effective treatment of sports injuries is essential, before recommencing or continuing any training programme. A host of sports and stress related injuries can be effectively treated by massage therapy. Progressive rehabilitation programmes include: mobility, strength building, flexibility and cardio vascular fitness exercises.

What to expect during a treatment

During your initial consultation, an examination will take place prior to treatment. This may include obtaining a detailed history of the complaint, observation for asymmetry, bruising, swelling or muscle tension. Functional tests may also be carried out, in order to determine whether any structures are damaged.

The treatment itself will depend on the nature of the condition, and whether you are suffering from a recent injury or a chronic condition. Various techniques may be employed including kneading, frictions and neuromuscular techniques. It is not unusual to experience some level of discomfort during treatment. Following massage, muscles may be worked using Muscle Energy Techniques, and/or stretched using Soft Tissue Release techniques.

Advice will be given on how to minimise the risk of further problems, active rehabilitation, general management, training techniques and suitable exercise programmes where required.

Initial treatments generally last for about 1 hour, and follow up sessions, about ¾ hour. Maintenance programme treatments will generally be for ¾ hour.

How remedial and sports massage can help

The effects of massage:-

Muscle Stretching:-

Massage can stretch tissues that cannot be reached by other means. During massage the muscle bundles are stretched, improving intramuscular circulation. This helps break down sticky adhesions between these bundles.

Breaking down scar tissue:-

Scar tissue can build up in muscles, tendons and ligaments. This is usually the result of recent injury, or repeated micro trauma, and leads to tension and inflexibility. Deep friction massage will help restore normal tissue tension by breaking down the scar tissue adhesions.

Pain reduction:-

Intensive training can bring about, excessive muscle tension that restricts circulation and deprives the tissue of oxygen. Metabolic waste products accumulate and cause pain. Massage can disperse the waste products by an increase of circulation. Deep massage also causes the pores in tissue membranes to open. This improves the removal of damaging waste products such as lactic acid that builds up after exercise.

Please ring for a FREE telephone consultation.