I have a problem with a tendon in my backside. Not my glute, nor my hammy, and impossible to stretch. It tightens up when I run but weirdly reacts incredibly well to massage. I've been to the physio with a couple of tweaks during the course of my training and, as usual, the only real treatment to allow it to fully recover is rest. Not what I want to hear.
And so I have turned to sports massage. Probably one of the most painful experiences of my life to date but in a satisfying way. It is incredible the amount of pain that one can inflict with their elbow. But for those of you that have received plenty of physio treatment over the years there is good pain and bad pain. By picking pressure points in the muscles the masseure is able to relieve pressure and tension. Whilst it is agonising when they first hit the pressure point, the pain begins to fade which, apparently, is a good thing. Something to do with nerves and a lot of technical words that I don't understand. I felt sore afterwards and will no doubt feel it tomorrow but in the face of a relaxed evening at Chelsea Flower Show I will drink plenty of water (and maybe some Pimm's) and looking forward to a tough weekend of training ahead.
I have booked in for another hour next week and will report further updates here. Like an hour sprinting or TT session on the bike, I will need to mentally prepare for this next sports massage. This should have become one of the key parts of my training schedule weeks ago but it has now become an essential part going forwards. A word of warning - don't get a one off massage, especially in the run up to a competition or big training session. It leaves you sore, even bruised, and you need to give your body time to recover afterwards. A minimum of a couple of hours but, ideally, a couple of days.
14 weeks to go to BW.
No comments:
Post a Comment