Stride to Glide: How Massage Therapy Can Keep Runners on Track
Massage therapy has emerged as a popular recovery modality among runners. Rightly so, massage therapy provides a powerful tool that helps runners and athletes reduce recovery time after a run or track meet, minimize injury, and improve body movement fluidity. Massage therapy before an event also helps to improve circulation, increase range of motion, and stimulate and warm up the muscles.
Research Insights
Numerous studies have investigated the impact of massage on athletes, particularly runners, yielding varied but favourable results. A 2011 study1 featured in the Journal of Physical Therapy in Sport scrutinized the efficacy of a consistent massage regimen on novice runners across a 10-week training duration. A noteworthy observation was that all participants receiving massages successfully completed a 10K race, contrasting with only 58 percent of the control group. This study concluded that regular massage helped to improve the performance benefits for novice runners by reducing pain perception.
Running involves repetitive movements that result in sustained muscle contractions necessary for generating speed, power, and endurance at peak levels. However, this repetitive strain can lead to shortening and tightening of muscles, impairing circulation and restricting joint mobility, particularly in the ankles, knees, and hips. As these lower body and core muscles are predominantly engaged during running, it is necessary to maintain their robustness, vitality, and optimal functioning for effective engagement and preventing injuries.
Massage therapy provides remedial measures to counteract these effects of repetitive strain by elongating contracted muscles, improving muscle tone by reducing trigger points and adhesions, enhancing joint and muscle mobilization, and enhancing local circulation. The research documented in the Journal of Physiotherapy highlights the efficacy of massage therapy as a post-race recovery technique, demonstrating reductions in pain perception and perceived fatigue.
Moreover, the benefits of massage therapy accumulate4 over time, meaning that they increase with ongoing treatments. Muscular stiffness and diminished joint mobility, if left unaddressed, can disrupt biomechanical alignment and gait patterns during running leading to problems over time. Regular massage treatments can improve awareness of the natural state of balance and equilibrium of the body, facilitating early detection of subtle changes before they escalate into chronic conditions.
Another pertinent investigation, detailed in a 2019 publication2 of the Journal of Physiotherapy revealed considerably reduced pain scores in runners and a significant reduction in quadriceps pain post-running for participants who underwent massage therapy compared to controls. Furthermore, a 2004 study3 featured in the Journal of Sports Science and Medicine examined the effects of massage therapy on muscle recovery in runners following a half-marathon and realized subjective perceptions of an improved sensation in the massaged leg during recovery post-treatment.
Types of Massage That Benefit Runners
Active release
Active release is a massage technique that combines movement with specific, deep pressure to help relieve muscle adhesions and reduce scar tissue build-up. Active release is best used when treating a specific injury, especially where the formation of scar tissue impacts the ability of the body to heal itself.
Swedish Massage
Swedish massage can benefit runners, especially before big competitions. Utilizing long, flowing strokes of various pressures helps to release muscle tension and increase blood flow. Swedish massage is best used in the days before big competitions or as a recovery tool after hard training sessions and workouts. The lighter, relaxing strokes help relieve stress and muscle tension without damaging the muscles, which is important if you have a big race approaching.
Trigger point
Used in combination with Swedish and Deep Tissue massage, trigger point therapy is a massage modality that targets muscle knots and areas of referred pain in the muscle tissue and loosens adhesions. This modality is best used to treat injuries although it can be used just as effectively during maintenance sessions to reduce hypertone and maintain the health of the muscular tissue.
Deep tissue massage
Deep tissue massage targets both the superficial and deep layers of muscles and fascia and is often quite intense due to the deliberate, focused work (not be confused with “deep pressure”). It typically focuses on a few specific problem areas and since runners often have quite a few tight spots and interconnected issues, deep tissue massage is often the go-to modality during intense training segments.
The Efficacy of Massage Therapy
The collective findings from existing research suggest that massage therapy offers a discernible decrease in post-run pain perception. Reduction in muscle pain or stiffness can facilitate more consistent training among runners, thereby indirectly contributing to improved performance. Moreover, individual experiences and preferences may influence perceived benefits, with the relaxation and stress-reducing attributes of massage therapy potentially augmenting mental well-being and overall training enjoyment.
Concluding Thoughts
Empirical evidence indicates that regular massage therapy sessions hold the potential to alleviate muscle pain and stiffness among runners and remain a promising recovery tool for many runners.
For those contemplating its incorporation into their regime, Abhi Durge, RMT at Toronto Massage Therapy uses all the modalities mentioned above to formulate massage therapy treatments that are appropriate for pre and post-event and aligned with your goals of enhancement, injury prevention, and recovery.
Tips from the RMT
Getting a monthly or bi-weekly massage can help prevent injuries by catching tense areas before they turn into bigger problems. If it is not possible to get treatments regularly, consider one or two per training session during your hardest training segment, which tends to elicit injuries that can be treated by massage.
For endurance and marathon runners, it is best to book 2-4 days before your run after you have stopped training and are on a low-intensity workout or rest. Note that the deeper the massage, the longer the body takes to recover and respond. Other than immediate aftercare post-event, it is recommended to get treatment 1-2 days after your big run. Timing the massage as close to your last intense activity gives your body the most amount of time to recover and feel back to normal.
Amateur/Novice runners, when planning your massage it is best to book for after your run.
If you’re planning to run the next day keep in mind that you may be feeling the effects of your massage for up to 48 hours.
References:
- Kimberley A. Dawson, Lance Dawson, Amy Thomas, Peter M. Tiidus, Effectiveness of regular proactive massage therapy for novice recreational runners, Physical Therapy in Sport, Volume 12, Issue 4, 2011, Pages 182-187, ISSN 1466-853X, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ptsp.2011.02.007.
- Paula Urio Bender, Clarissa Medeiros da Luz, Jonatan M Feldkircher, Guilherme S Nunes, Massage therapy slightly decreased pain intensity after habitual running, but had no effect on fatigue, mood or physical performance: a randomised trial, Journal of Physiotherapy, Volume 65, Issue 2, 2019, Pages 75-80, ISSN 1836-9553, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jphys.2019.02.006.
- Dawson LG, Dawson KA, Tiidus PM. Evaluating the influence of massage on leg strength, swelling, and pain following a half-marathon. J Sports Sci Med. 2004 Nov 1;3(YISI 1):37-43. PMID: 24778552; PMCID: PMC3990931.
- Gasibat, Qais & Rafieda, Agiela & Aween, Mohamed. (2024). The Influence of Therapeutic Massage on Muscle Recovery, Physiological, Psychological and Performance in Sport: A Systematic Review. Sport Mont Journal. 22. 3-20. 10.26773/smj.240220.