Jogging Journalist: emergency sports massage
After pulling a muscle I sat out of this week's training, opting to visit a sports massage practitioner instead.
Community news reporting calls for journalists to step into a community and hear its heartbeat, record the daily struggles and joys of the residents. To take things up a notch, Berea Mail journalist, Danica Hansen has decided to take part in Stella Athletic Club’s Couch to 10km Challenge. Watch her journey unfold in the diary of the Jogging Journalist. Today we bring you the ninth post in the series.
LAST week I wrote about the importance of core strength to prevent backache from developing during long-distance running. Well, I’d love to say I bounced back, but it turns out I pulled a muscle, and a week later, I am still struggling.
I was planning to suss out a new pair of shoes and share my thoughts on pronation and supination in this week’s post, but I must interrupt this program to talk about my emergency sports massage instead. After a tough training session on Tuesday, I decided to sit out on Thursday and seek medical attention. I called MediSport Massage Therapy and booked an appointment with sports massage practitioner, Jana Louw, who also happens to be my bestie – she’s got my back.
ALSO READ: Jogging Journalist: Blisters, backache and…a pronation?
Jana quickly picked up on the cause of my problem, spotting a muscle spasm in the erector spinae, a group of muscles that run along the length of the spine as well as upper back muscles, lower trapezius and latissimus dorsi.
“Sports massage is an effective way to warm up and relax the muscles. This increases circulation to the affected areas, which in turn eases the muscle spasm. This also brings oxygen and nutrient-rich blood to the area to flush away any metabolic waste or build-up and promote healing,” explained Jana.
As she worked her magic, I felt my stiff, sore muscles relax and by the time I stood up from the massage table, I was back to my old self. Not only do sports massage practitioners manipulate the soft tissue to treat an injury, they can also help athletes to avoid further injury. Jana explained that my back would feel tender for a day or two.
ALSO READ: Jogging Journalist: Rush hour and rainbows
“Inflammation caused by massage promotes healing because it improves circulation. It’s best to stay away from anti-inflammatory medication for two days and let the massage do its work,” she said.
So please excuse this amateur athlete- I will be returning to my former couch-potato life for the next few days. With a little luck, I will be telling you about my new shoes next week- stay tuned folks!
* Notice: Coronavirus reporting at Caxton Local Media aims to combat fake news
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