Heidi Overman, Licensed Massage Therapist
The most common comment I get as a massage therapist is, “Wow, I did not realize how bad my muscles are, until you started working on them. How did that happen?”
The truth is this, humans are creatures of habit. We sleep in the same position, we get up and have our routines, we go to work and do the same thing, and our workouts, exercise, and activities tend to be the same. All these things contribute to the repetitive motions of our muscles and our muscles love it. They know exactly how to move each day. They do not need to move any more or less or in any direction they haven’t moved over and over, year after year.
Have you ever woken up with a crick in your neck? Have you twisted funny and suddenly your low back is in pain? Have you changed up your workout and suddenly your whole body is in pain? That is because you have trained your muscles so well that they have no flexibility when going out of their repetitive zone.
As you age, muscle gets less and less flexible. As you retire and try new activities, your body gets a little more achy and stiff, due to your repetitive motions from your past. Those motions get embedded in your muscle memory and they start making injury and pain more prominent.
Injuries happen due to repetitive motion and patterns imbedded in:
* Pulls and tears in muscles
* Carpal tunnel syndrome
* Low back pain
* Hip pain
* Plantar fasciitis
* Shoulder injuries
* Neck pain
* Sprains and strains
Regular massage therapy helps break those muscle patterns. It took years to imbed those patterns and memories into your body, so one massage will not take them out. However, regular massage can start teaching those muscles how to release and relax. Flexibility and proper blood flow will help in preventive maintenance. Pain will lessen as your muscles learn to release pain patterns.
Over time, your muscles will relearn how to respond appropriately when you fall, twist differently, or sleep funny. Massage will continuously keep those muscles ready and more flexible. You don’t have to have those aches and pains from aging!
If you are interested in a therapeutic massage, please call MEND for an appointment at 520-771-1514. Our website is www.mymendingplace.com and we’re located at MEND Therapeutic Massage and Restorative Skincare, 15920 N. Oracle Rd., Ste. 170, Tucson, AZ 85739 (next to the Golden Goose Thrift Shop).