Benefits of Myofascial Release for Athletes (Recovery & Maintenance)

Benefits of Myofascial Release for Athletes
(Recovery & Maintenance)

What Is Myofascial ?

The myofascia has been defined as a dense, irregular connective tissue that surrounds and connects all muscles.

This system is thought to be responsible for facilitating the mobility, cellular circulation, and elasticity of muscle tissues. Myofascia can contract in response to injury, postural stress, or inactivity, forming adhesions and muscle tension that promote the formation of local trigger points, resulting in a myofascial pain syndrome, which can become a chronic problem.

What Is Myofascial Release ?

Myofascial release is known to be a fundamental element that most collegiate, professional, and Olympic training programs worldwide have, representing a serious value both in the training room and on the field of competition.
This therapy encompasses a set of techniques aimed, as its name suggests, at releasing fascial restrictions through the manipulation of soft tissue and application of subtle manual forces.
Myofascial release is a practical, safe, and very effective technique, which consists of applying gentle but sustained pressure on the myofascial connective tissue restrictions to eliminate pain and restore movement, giving the patient the chance to move more freely.
These techniques can be performed directly on the skin with or without oils while incorporating only hands or Instrument Assisted Soft Tissue Mobilization (IASTM) tools. Herbal oils will facilitate lubrication as well as potentially add secondary medical benefits from the ingredients in the oil. Some formulas like Athlon Rub are designed to be transdermal and are made with ingredients recognized to reduce inflammation and aid in blood circulation. Oil also helps protects the skin from irritation produced from the repeated targeted motions performed to breakup adhesions like contracted facia or scar tissue. Scanning strokes and mobility checks allow the health professional to make an accurate detection of fascial restrictions in order to apply the proper amount of sustained pressure to facilitate its release.

By concentrating on the affected area, in case of injuries, or by making a general approach, in maintenance cases, myofascial release therapy is able to produce a wide number of benefits for athletes, ⁣
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𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐥𝐮𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠: ⁣
• 𝐑𝐞𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐞𝐝 𝐦𝐮𝐬𝐜𝐥𝐞 𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧, 𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐟𝐟𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬. ⁣
• 𝐈𝐦𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐝 𝐦𝐮𝐬𝐜𝐥𝐞 𝐭𝐨𝐧𝐞, 𝐟𝐥𝐞𝐱𝐢𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐞𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐭𝐲. ⁣
• 𝐈𝐧𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐮𝐥𝐚𝐫 𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐦𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧. ⁣
• 𝐈𝐦𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐢𝐬𝐬𝐮𝐞 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠. ⁣
• 𝐄𝐧𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐥𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐜 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞. ⁣
• 𝐈𝐧𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐧𝐣𝐮𝐫𝐲 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧. ⁣
• 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐳𝐞𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐬𝐨𝐥 𝐥𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐬. ⁣
• 𝐑𝐞𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐞𝐝 𝐚𝐧𝐱𝐢𝐞𝐭𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐥𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐬. ⁣
• 𝐈𝐦𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐝 𝐦𝐨𝐨𝐝 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐥𝐞𝐫𝐭𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬. ⁣
• 𝐋𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐛𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐝 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞. ⁣
• 𝐄𝐧𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐝 𝐛𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐝 𝐟𝐥𝐨𝐰 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐨𝐝𝐲. ⁣
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For everyday people who practice sports, myofascial release is included maybe once a month, but for more serious athletes or for those that compete professionally, it is included in their daily routine to help them increase sports performance without health complications nor setbacks. ⁣
As per a specific period of time to receive this therapy, this therapeutic method is good for the body either before, during, or after athletic events, looking for different objectives in each of these stages. Depending on the athlete's sports activity, some receive daily sessions, while some others prefer to distribute the sessions throughout the week. ⁣
In addition to myofascial release, in order to obtain many more health benefits for both their locomotor system and their body in general, many athletes include other therapeutic techniques in their massage routines, such as: ⁣
• Glide / Flow Cupping: a very popular therapy between athletes that consists of applying suction cups on the body from which air is extracted, being manipulated to eliminate toxins from the blood and lymph, or to treat various conditions such as musculoskeletal pain.

With this in mind, by incorporating other types of therapeutic techniques, such as the above, myofascial release becomes one of the best methods available for athletes to naturally prevent and rehabilitate injuries, increase physical function and performance, and relieve pain symptoms. Read our future article on one of the most popular IASTM techniques Graston and it’s Gua Sha origins from Asia. .

Nery Silva
Team Therapist - Al Hilal Saudi FC

One of the best massage oils to prepare the muscles for the game, for training for any type of sports activity ... It is also very good for Recover, congratulations to @athlonrub for the good product! I

Cindy “Cin” Hernandez
-Coach Panda-

“Athlon Rub is an amazing product. I use it as a Coach and for the Andrada Muay Thai Fight team and Stretch and Recovery clients. Its super smooth to work with, warms the body amazingly well. If you haven’t tried it yet, you are missing out”