Joe is a devoted massage therapist and lifelong athlete, believing that maintaining healthy bodies is the cornerstone of living an enjoyable life. He possesses expertise in multiple therapeutic techniques including deep tissue, sports and orthopedic massage.
Medical massage and orthopedic massage share similar goals; both therapies focus on providing outcomes-driven therapies; however, medical massage is typically prescribed by a doctor or physiotherapist while orthopedic massage does not.
1. Increased Blood Flow
Squash injuries can leave us with tight muscles that limit movement and create tension throughout our bodies. Medical massage therapy stimulates muscles and soft tissues to release this tension and move more freely – which may result in decreased pain, improved mobility, increased range of motion and better overall health.
Orthopedic massage can help treat existing injuries or help prevent future ones. Its aim is to strengthen muscles, tendons and ligaments surrounding joints to improve alignment of the skeleton; techniques such as trigger point release, neuromuscular reeducation, soft tissue mobilization and muscle energy technique from Osteopathy medicine are utilized during therapy sessions.
Orthopedic massage aims to alleviate or mitigate pain associated with musculoskeletal issues such as SI joint dysfunction, lumbago, neck pain (whiplash), frozen shoulder, carpal tunnel syndrome, thoracic outlet syndrome and pec minor entrapment syndrome – as well as treat sports injuries like tennis elbow, plantar fasciitis and whiplash.
An orthopedic massage also has the added advantage of increasing venous return, leading to an increase in lymph flow. Lymph is responsible for carrying metabolic wastes away from the body and keeping muscles healthier while decreasing injuries.
Orthopedic massage not only increases range of motion in your joints, but can also help improve balance and posture for maximum performance. Furthermore, it increases circulation which decreases pain and stiffness.
Your orthopedic massage practitioner will conduct a detailed assessment of any injured areas to understand how they’re being used and any imbalances present, and use hands-on manual therapy, therapeutic exercises and modalities to address your injury or condition effectively. They’ll also advise how you can avoid further injury.
2. Reduced Pain
Orthopedic massage aims to balance muscles and tissues around joints to produce full range of motion, improving flexibility while relieving pain and stiffness. Through various techniques such as positional release, nerve mobilization technique, muscle energy technique, myofascial release therapy and trigger point therapy the therapist locates areas of tension before relieving them with massage techniques that release knots of tension to bring relief to injured areas.
These treatments combine manual treatment with hand on manual treatments to treat injuries and prevent future ones from occurring. Exercise and movement rehabilitation to promote healing, help restore mobility and return an injured individual back into an active lifestyle. Orthopedic massages differ from standard massages by treating both root cause and symptoms rather than just temporarily alleviating them.
Squash is an intense sport that can take its toll on the body. Sudden stops and changes of direction may lead to ankle sprains while diving for balls or landing them can result in lower leg joint injuries. Furthermore, shoulder tendons may stretch or pull when players collide during play and the neck may suffer as the player constantly twists or bends it in order to take accurate shots.
A physiotherapist can show you how to warm up and stretch before playing, and cool down afterward to reduce injuries. She may also prescribe strength, coordination and balance exercises that reduce the chances of tendon injury as well as help you develop a plan that allows for prompt return should something go amis with your sport.
Staying hydrated when playing squash is crucial, since sweating can quickly lead to dehydration, leaving you fatigued, increasing risk for injury and diminishing performance. A hydration plan with sports drinks and water will help avoid this scenario; also important is keeping joints moving through flexing or rotating of hips, shoulders and wrists to maintain flexibility of muscles around those areas.
3. Improved Sleep
Sleep is essential to our overall health, yet many struggle with getting enough of it. Poor quality rest can result in low energy, difficulty falling asleep, workplace and car accidents and an increase in risk factors for workplace and auto injuries. Massage therapy may help alleviate these issues and enhance quality sleep.
An orthopedic massage is a type of therapeutic massage focused on injury rehabilitation. This form of massage requires extensive evaluation and diagnosis from its practitioner, who considers aspects such as medical history, lifestyle habits and posture before conducting clinical tests to diagnose patients properly.
After conducting a comprehensive assessment, therapists are able to create a tailored treatment plan specifically for their patient. This treatment plan typically includes techniques like positional release, nerve mobilization techniques and myofascial release – some of which overlap into medical massage but must first undergo a needs-based assessment and be prescribed by either a doctor or physiotherapist before being used therapeutically.
Orthopedic massage can be highly effective at alleviating pain caused by injuries, overuse or poor posture. By relaxing tight soft tissues that cause tightness in the musculoskeletal system, it helps relieve tension and improve its functionality – an invaluable therapy.
Many athletes and physically active individuals turn to orthopedic massage as a preventative tool, taking regular sessions as a preventative measure against injury, speeding recovery from injuries sustained during competitions, and increasing range of motion. By optimizing muscle function, improving biomechanics, and expanding range of motion.
Orthopedic massage can be found anywhere from clinics and private practices, to sporting events and training camps, to athletes. It’s ideal for anyone who experiences discomfort from overuse or mobility restrictions; athletes in particular can benefit from it since it helps them perform at higher levels by increasing range of motion – something difficult without an optimally functioning musculoskeletal system.
4. Increased Flexibility
Integrating dynamic stretching exercises into your training and squash routines can greatly increase flexibility while helping prevent injuries. Such stretching exercises often include using balls such as tennis or lacrosse balls as self-massage devices for tight muscles; these methods can help enhance overall flexibility while increasing range of motion for greater safety.
As soon as a soft tissue injury, such as ligament tear or sprain occurs, its supporting muscles and ligaments tighten up around it to limit mobility in that joint. Through specific soft tissue mobilization techniques and Muscle Energy Technique, trained massage therapists can help restore movement by loosening tightened ligaments and muscles to allow full range of motion without pain in joints that have been injured.
Orthopedic massage also improves respiratory endurance, an essential aspect for squash players who must compete at high intensity events over extended periods. Achieve higher respiratory endurance allows players to sustain higher levels of physical activity for longer, which reduces fatigue and enhances performance overall.
Medical massage stands apart from orthopedic massage in that its goal is to address a specific outcome. A massage therapist conducting medical massage will conduct a detailed assessment on their client, including an extensive discussion of history, symptoms and lifestyle factors as well as clinical tests to accurately gauge their condition.
Orthopedic massage, however, is more comprehensive, targeting the skeletal system as a whole, joints, muscles, fascia and tendons. It is typically employed to treat SI joint dysfunction, lumbago, cervicalgia (neck pain), whiplash injuries, torticollis (wry neck) and various other musculoskeletal conditions. Orthopedic massage therapy may be an ideal way for anyone who has experienced an injury to stay aligned without resorting to surgery; making it a fantastic way of keeping in optimal alignment while staying out of hospitalized care.