Lance Armstrong Joins the Self-Massage Movement

With a recent article on his Livestrong website, Lance Armstrong has demonstrated a willingness to use of his celebrity to promote one of the most neglected and important healthcare therapies available. The article advocates and teaches the use of self-massage. It reports that self-massage is easy to learn and offers healthful self-massage routines for shoulders, feet, hands, and abs.

The feature states that, “Massage is one of the easiest ways to attain and maintain good health and well-being.” It sites improved circulation, relaxed muscles, improved digestion, increased energy, and the release of endorphins as some of the many benefits of massage.

Lance Armstrong has been an effective champion of improved public health and fitness since his battle with cancer and subsequent triumphs at the Tour de France for a record seven consecutive victories. His website is designed to inspire visitors to make healthy lifestyle changes.

As an athlete and cancer survivor, Lance knows the value of massage. He also knows that most people can’t afford to hire a professional massage therapist as often as needed, which, for active people, may be as frequently as every day.

As Lance knows from first hand experience, the boost that massage gives to the immune system is significant and is reason enough for everyone to enjoy a daily massage. A great deal of research has been performed on this issue by Dr. Tiffany Field, director of the Touch Research Institutes at the University of Miami.

There is an increasing awareness of the benefits of self-massage among active people. With its growing popularity, self-massage may be on its way to becoming a significant movement in health and fitness. If so it will be in part due to Mr. Armstrong’s efforts.

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.

Massage Therapy vs. Self-Massage

What is the difference between massage therapy and self-massage?

Both will do your body good. Both will improve health and mood, reduce stress, speed recovery between workouts, reduce muscle pain and soreness, prevent injury and help you feel better fast.

Massage therapy is for people who care enough about their body to go to a professional. Self-massage is for people who care enough about their physical performance to take matters into their own hands.

Massage therapy is part of the popular culture, it appeals to millions of people. Self-massage is a little edgier, it’s practiced by a relative hand full of athletes and active people who want more from their massage. It’s for people who want a massage more than once a week, who regularly test their bodies, and for people who want to take better care of themselves as they grow older. Self-massage is an intoxicant for people who are passionate about their health.

Massage therapy is for people who care enough about their body to schedule and keep an appointment. Self-massage is for people who care enough about their bodies to learn a skill set. It’s the difference between buying vegetables and growing them, both are good for you. One is active, the other is passive. One requires learning technique, the other a wallet. Both require a commitment to well being. The difference is largely a matter of degree.

People who want the best massage experience will choose both a massage therapist and self-massage. Even if both were free, a person truly interested in improving health and athletic performance would choose both forms of massage because they satisfy different needs.

Massage therapy is dining out; self-massage is home cooking. They’re both good. The problem is not in deciding which of two excellent choices to make. The problem is that most people choose neither, leaving their bodies troubled by injury, soreness, and premature aging.

The Perfect Massage

You don’t need a perfect massage. If you’re an athlete you don’t really want one. A perfect massage implies that massage was the goal. A perfect massage takes place in Tahiti, Hawaii or a spa in some well lighted corner of your mind. If you’re an active person you need something real, something immediate. What you need is something to relieve muscle soreness when you get it. That’s where self-massage comes in handy.

Massage for athletes is a means to a better workout, a better performance, less muscle pain, a faster recovery. The only thing you can say about a perfect massage is that you’ve never had one, and you’ll probably never get one. With self-massage you get the massage you need when you need it.

Put Self-Massage to Work for You

Most active people suffer unnecessary muscle pain and soreness from exercise. Massage is famous for reducing that soreness. You’ve probably experienced its healing effects. If you’re like most of us, you don’t get a massage every time you need one, and for good reason: You need one way too often, pretty much every time you workout. So unless you’re living with a massage therapist, you’re out of luck.

About seven years ago, while training for my first Ironman distance triathlon, I decided that I needed a daily massage and sometimes a twice daily massage to relieve the muscle soreness that was cropping up everywhere. I needed to be able to recover more quickly between workouts, and I wanted to stay injury free, and healthy enough to run, bike, and swim for six months.

I decided literally to take matters into my own hands, and learn massage, self-massage anyway. How difficult could that be, I thought. It’s really just a matter of learning a few simple strokes and applying them. I was right too. It wasn’t difficult to learn. And it was so effective I continued practicing it after the triathlon was over. I noticed my health and mood had improved with regular massage. I was so impressed, I decided to write a book on the subject because there weren’t any. How difficult could that be? In a word, very: It took almost five years of studying, experimenting, and doing workshops and finally I came up with a system of massage, called "self-massage-for athletes," that is extremely effective and easy to learn. At least, I think it is, and most everyone that tries it agrees.

Anyway I’d like to see what you think of the idea. So let me know. As an athlete or an active person in general, have you used self-massage to relieve muscle pain and soreness? Or to recover between workouts? Or to improve your health? If so what have you discovered? If you haven’t tried it, why not?

Body Magic: Inaugural Post

This blog is intended to help you keep your body tuned, to move, delight, inform, amuse, and entertain you. 

Its subjects are the human body, health, happiness, massage, self-massage, athletes, activity, sports, fitness, movement, action, running, yoga, Pilates, cycling, swimming, triathlon, dancing, flying, endorphin cocktails, and anything else that's worthy of your attention.

It's written for active people who want to be healthier, happier, and smarter--in other words you.

Stay tuned!