Weekend Warrior Syndrome
Living in Thompson Falls Montana, the massage therapists at Cherry Creek Myotherapy are very familiar with how the sunshine brings about the reoccurring injuries sustained by the “Weekend Warrior”. Unlike the athletes or sporting enthusiasts that stay active all year, the weekend warrior is ready to spring into action without getting their body ready for the event to come. It’s important to get your body ready, and to warm up your muscles before heading out for any strenuous activity. Of course it’s really perfect if you have time to work up to the level of stress you are going to place on your body. However, for those of us who don’t keep ourselves in shape over the winter, or think we can tackle pruning the entire orchard in one weekend, we know we are going to feel those muscles screaming… But thankfully massage can help!
After you have had an injury, massage is a great option to help restore your muscular tissue to its optimum health. Working the injured area with massage soon after injury can speed the recovery process. Massage stimulates the lymphatic system to quickly and more efficiently remove the toxic buildup from the area as well as the debris from the damaged tissue. Working with the lymphatic system helps decrease swelling in injured areas as excess fluids are “pushed” away.
Another factor that contributes to the soreness of a new workout or strenuous event such as yard work can be related to scar tissue. As we overstretch our muscles, small microtears can form in the muscle tissue. These small injuries can compound themselves over time, causing adhesions and scarring to form in the muscle. Specific techniques in massage deal with the removal of scar tissue and adhesions.
One muscular discomfort we are all familiar with is having a muscle cramp or “charley horse”. Think of your first reaction to a cramp… you intuitively rub it to put pressure directly on it to help it relax. This is a basic example of what massage therapists do to stop the cramping and spasms in an injured muscle. There are many other techniques massage therapists can utilize to help you deal with muscles that have been used and moved beyond their comfort zone. And all this lends itself to helping you recover faster from your episode of “weekend warrior” mode and getting on to the next adventure of your life.
When faced with a physical activity, whether for work or for play, that you may be pushing yourself past the edge for, take care of yourself. And if you find you have pushed beyond your limits… don’t wait to call and schedule a massage. The sooner we see you, the sooner you feel better. Let us help you move beyond the pain to the full life of adventure you deserve.
