Sports massage focuses on muscles relevant to an event. For athletes who train continuously, the aim is to enhance endurance, lessen the chance of injury and shorten the time needed to recover from an event. sports massage may utilize a combination of massage techniques and may be used with stretching in order to help athletes to loosen, warm and prepare their muscles so that their performance and endurance might be enhanced. Following an athletic event, Sports Massage may be used to relieve pain and prevent stiffness, returning the muscles back to their normal state.

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Sports massage can also provide valuable information about the athlete's condition and the effects of their training program. Regular sports massage can help to avoid problems associated with overuse allowing for extra training sessions without the risk of injury or trauma. It is often specific to a particular muscle group or for quicker rehabilitation of a muscle injury.

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A person does not need to be a top flight athlete to benefit from sports massage. Anyone who exercises or wishes to improve their general physical fitness may benefit from treatment, in particular those who do so less frequently.

Sports massage has three basic forms:

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•       Pre-event massage

•       Post-event massage

•       Maintenance massage