Self-Massage is Obvious--But?

photo by doctormike

One of the big challenges I faced writing Self-Massage for Athletes is that a lot of stuff in the book seems fairly obvious. It’s obvious that massage is good for you. That by massaging sore muscles, improving circulation, and releasing trigger points, massage relieves muscle pain, speeds recovery, and prevents injuries. 

It’s obvious that self-massage is easy to learn and that you can apply many of the ideas from modern massage therapy to self-massage and produce an effective therapy at little cost. And because you can enjoy the benefits of massage every day you can probably produce a more powerful affect than seeing a professional massage therapist once a month or even once a week.  It’s clear that with every massage stroke you apply you get instant feedback: which muscles need work and which don’t, how deep to go, and how long to stay.  

It’s also obvious that athletes can learn a lot about their bodies from using self-massage. It’s obvious that by learning and practicing self-massage an athlete will be healthier, fitter, and faster than if he did not. Sure it’s obvious.

But precisely because it’s so obvious, it needs to be written about. Thought about.  Talked about. Because it’s so obvious, it’s easy to dismiss the benefits of self-massage and fall into the habit Americans have of ignoring their bodies until a problem explodes into injury or illness and needs professional care: MRI’s, drugs, surgeries. 

After all, if self-massage were so obvious, why don’t millions of athletes use it to complete a workout? Why don’t they use it to detect muscle weaknesses before they become injuries? Why don’t they use it instead of vitamin I to relieve muscle pain and soreness? Why do really smart people suddenly turn stupid when faced with applying simple massage strokes to their own bodies?  

Because to embrace self-massage you have to be willing to change the status quo. And many successful athletes, coaches, and doctors who are in positions of authority have climbed to the top by embracing the status quo, not by challenging it. 

It’s much easier to do nothing and hope you don’t get injured than to be proactive and try something new and elegant. To glide, press, squeeze, and drum your sore tired muscles back from pain requires effort. To get more in touch with your body and in so doing prevent injuries by catching small problems before they grow into large ones, requires effort. It’s much easier to rely on someone else to fix you when you break, to pop a pill, or employ the latest medical technology than to take matters into your own hands and minimize your chances of injury. 

Pros Do It

Yes, it would be nice to have a personal massage therapist the way high paid athletes do. We envy the superstars of professional sports who can make a call and someone comes over to work all the toxins out. But unless you’re Lance Armstrong, Kobe Bryan, Deena Kastor, Tiger Woods, Maria Sharapova, or Derek Jeter that’s not happening for you.

Your Future

Today, your physical world is probably different than it was ten years ago. And it may be very different ten years hence. As we age our bodies tend to deteriorate. In America, they tend to deteriorate quickly. The people who get physically stronger with age are those who pay attention to their health, who are proactive, and willing to take a hands on approach.

So, yes, the basic ideas upon which self-massage are based are obvious. But using them, challenging the status quo, putting them to work—that’s not obvious in any way.