There is an overlapping of what massage and stretching do for you when you suffer an injury. If you suffer a sports injury and will have to undergo rehabilitative treatment, stretching exercises applied by a stretching therapist to the injury site, ahead of massage treatment, plays an important role in your recovery. Stretching therapy and massage therapy promotes healthy muscles and nerves.

Benefits of Stretching Exercises

Stretching applications by a therapist strengthens your muscles and makes the muscles less likely to be injured in the future. Stretching your muscles increases flexibility and enables you to improve your performance when you engage in physical activities. Blood flow to your muscles also increases. Even your posture improves with stretching exercises. Your range of motion benefits from the exercises, which also lowers your stress levels and prevents back pain while also calming you down.

What Are the Benefits of Massages?

Massages relax muscles and will get rid of toxins in your body. Like its counterpart stretching therapy, massages increase blood circulation. The massages will make you feel good by releasing internal hormones that make you feel happy. Massages also help you to develop better flexibility. Considering the fact that there are shared similarities in both massage and stretching therapies, stretching can only enhance the capabilities of your massage treatment.

Stretches You Can Practice Ahead of a Massage Appointment

You can practice hamstring stretches, hip flexors, chest stretches and back stretches. You can also do daily stretching exercises depending upon your medical condition. Check with your primary care physician, however, if you have cardiac or blood pressure problems before launching your own stretching therapy.

How Stretching and Massage Therapy Work Together

When you get into the habit of doing daily stretching, your flexibility will increase. A massage will contribute to your flexibility as well. If you from time to time experience muscle spasms, a massage can expel the muscle spasms. Your muscles and soft tissue can benefit from that approach. You can discuss your concerns with your massage therapist about what stretching exercises are best combined with massages if you're experiencing muscle stiffness.

Stretching After Massages

Did you know that you can benefit from another session of stretching after a massage? When you do some stretching following your massage, that activity actually enhances all the benefits you acquired from the massage. Stretching improves the elasticity of your muscles after a massage. Ask your massage therapist if the facility has an after massage stretching service.

To learn more about your options, contact local assisted stretch therapists.