Hi Praxis Preachers! As many of you are aware – we are unreservedly physio geeks! We love keeping up to date on all the new developments in rehabilitation, sporting injuries, clinical research, manual therapy techniques as well as reformer pilates and massage.
Our physio’s spend every Wednesday morning catching up and going over case studies, webcasts, recently published articles as well as fine tuning their manual therapy skills with each other. We are always endeavouring to improve ourselves, an in turn, our patient outcomes.
We are all so fortunate to be involved with several sporting teams around Brisbane. Our teams include the Aspley Hornets AFL club from the representative NEAFL team all the way down to the juniors, the Cougars Netball team as well as the Bayside Ravens Gridiron team.
From time to time our therapists are selected for representative duties for state and national high performance sporting squads. Whilst this means they are away from clinic from time to time, it also means that they are exposed the ‘coal face’ of elite sport and as such, further ensure our standards are set very high!
As many of you also know, we have introduced remedial massage and reformer pilates to our rehabilitation armoury. Updates will be provided on all things specials and research in this space too!
It is fair to say – there are always exciting things happening at Praxis! So whilst you may not be a physio geek like us, this blog is designed to keep anyone and everyone in the loop. Stay tuned and remember to Prevent. Prepare. Perform…
#praxiswhatyoupreach #preventprepareperform #praxisphysio #praxismassage #praxispilates
Physiological
Changes in parasympathetic activity (as measured by heart rate, blood pressure and heart rate variability) and hormonal levels (as measured by cortisol levels) following massage result in a relaxation response.
Psychological
A reduction in anxiety and an improvement in mood state also cause relaxation, and has been shown prior to sports to help lower performance anxiety.
Ultimately, what the above proposed mechanisms translate into a series of studied benefits on specific conditions. According to the Massage and Myotherapy Australia website, massage has also been shown to help:
- Back pain
- Arthritis
- Insomnia
- Headaches
- Depression and anxiety
- Constipation
- High blood pressure
- Chronic pain
All in all, massage provides good bang for buck when used in the appropriate setting. Our mantra at Praxis is Prevent Prepare Perform and as physiotherapists, we work in tandem with our qualified massage therapists to deliver the best results for a wide variety of conditions. Whilst, physiotherapy is focussed on the diagnosis and treatment of acute or chronic injuries, remedial massage enables a little more hands on time to truly address issues that our physiotherapists may have identified in their sessions. Further, massages offers a great medium for regular ‘tune-ups’ when the rigours of training and working take their toll.
We ensure that your massage experience is not only blissful, but productive for your rehabilitation as well. So if you have been swayed by the evidence, or just looking for that little reward, we are here to help!
Until next time – Prevent. Prepare. Perform
References:
- Hopper D, Deacon S, Das S, et al. Dynamic soft tissue mobilization increases hamstring flexibility in healthy male subjects. Br J Sports Med. 2004;39:594–598
- Weerapong, P., Hume, P.A. & Kolt, G.S. The mechanisms of massage and effects on performance, muscle recovery and injury prevention. Sports Med 2005; 35: 235
- Morelli M, Seaborne DE, Sullivan SJ. Changes in h-reflex amplitude during massage of triceps surae in healthy subjects.J Orthop Sports Phys Ther. 1990;12(2):55-9.
- Arroyo-Morales M1, Fernández-Lao C, Ariza-García A, Toro-Velasco C, Winters M, Díaz-Rodríguez L, Cantarero-Villanueva I, Huijbregts P, Fernández-De-las-Peñas C. Psychophysiological effects of preperformance massage before isokinetic exercise. J Strength Cond Res. 2011 Feb;25(2):481-8.
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