A number of people have spoken to me about the differences between Sports Massage vs other massage therapies. As I haven't been trained in other massage therapies, it's difficult to judge the difference, however, I can tell you that sports massage is about locating areas of your body which may feel like they aren't performing as well as they could.
This could be due to sitting at a desk all day (postural), playing sport (strength training/exercise) or through injury (overtraining/going too big, too fast). Sports massage aims to identify any areas of your body which may benefit from deep tissue massage to reduce discomfort in the body.
As part of a sports massage, the first visit will involve a 30 minute assessment. This is where the Sport Massage Therapist (SMT) will ask you questions about your body, note down what you say, assess your body and then talk you through the results of the assessment before any massage commences. If you are happy to proceed, the SMT will proceed to massage the areas of your body indicated in the treatment plan.
Once the massage has been delivered, the SMT may suggest stretches/post care regarding the area they have treated. They may also suggest further treatments in the future, if they feel that is necessary.