Does Massage Really Offer Fitness Benefits?
May 2, 2009 by Tisha Tolar
Filed under Health and Beauty
Most people get a massage because it feels good, but do you know what types of fitness benefits massage offers? In 
addition to providing stress relief and a reduction in overall anxiety, massage helps sore muscles feel better and can have a positive effect on your capabilities of muscle-building. If you thought building a muscular body had to be all hard work, you’ll love knowing that massage can offer some pleasing benefits that aren’t as difficult to maintain in your fitness routine!
Massage Improves Circulation and Muscle Nutrition
Studies have shown that there is an increase in the interchange of substances between the tissue and blood cells of the body after a massage. This interchange increases metabolism of tissue. After exercising and working out, muscles need nutrients in order to increase their size – so by getting regular massages, you can maximize the amount of oxygen and nutrients that flow through the increase of blood flow and help your body rebuild itself.
Massage Reduces Recovery Time Needed Between Workouts
Exercise and weight training can increase waste products that build up in your muscles, including lactic and carbonic acid. When you increase the circulation of blood to these muscles, the way massage does, you are helping your body eliminate the toxins and therefore reducing the amount of time needed between workouts to recover.
Massage can also help prevent over-training your muscles, due to it’s relaxing effect on muscles and the sedative effect it has on your nervous system.
Massage Improves Muscle Flexibility and Prevents Injuries
Massage has been shown to improve the flexibility and range of motion of your muscles. Having improved range of motion will give you increased performance and help you work more efficiently to build muscles.
The massage will also stretch connective tissue between muscles, which goes a long way toward preventing injuries. It may even help you heal existing injuries quicker, since the improved circulation helps prevent or bread down adhesions and influences excretion of tissue repair fluids, like nitrogen, sulfur and phosphorous.
Massage Might Help You Lose Weight
Some research points to the possibilities of massage bursting fat capsules in tissues so that the fat is absorbed easier. With proper nutrition and exercise, massage may help boost weight loss efforts.
It’s important to note that massage is not the miracle cure for building muscles, but it does help your body enter the rebuilding phase required after every workout to influence growth of muscles. Adding a massage to your workout routine and comprehensive fitness routine (including good nutrition) might help you reach your fitness goals faster than skipping the massage – and at the very least, the massage will make you feel good!
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