Arbor Wellness is the premier location for sports massage in Ann Arbor. Every day, our therapists work with athletes of all levels, from recreational runners to Olympic gold medalists. Our clients include many University of Michigan teams, power lifters, Olympic figure skaters, and professional track & field athletes.
To be a value to our athletes as sports massage therapists, we apply these 4 areas of knowledge to the athlete’s situation:
- The basic biomechanics of the sport our athlete is participating, to know
the common areas of myofascial strain they will encounter in training and competition - Exercise physiology, to know what techniques can be used before, during and after competition
- The healing process of the body, to know what techniques can be used in what stages of injury
- Functional assessment techniques, so we can identify soft tissue structures that are not functioning properly (either short, long, or weak)
As an athlete coming to Arbor Wellness for a sports massage, please consider the following advice:
- Unless you commonly receive massage, we do not recommend sports massage 24 hours prior to competition. If your body is not familiar with the pressure, it may leave you feeling sore and sluggish the next day.
- We recommend 2-3 days prior to competition for a sports massage. This allows us to use any technique to ensure you are ready to perform your best.
- If you are tight prior to a competition, please schedule a 30-minute active isolated stretching session with us instead. The dynamic stretching will help release the tight tissue without the risk of soreness the following day.
- For a lower body sports massage, bring shorts with you to your appointment. This makes it easy for us to incorporate therapeutic stretching techniques into your massage for maximum benefit.
We take great pride in the fact so many elite athletes trust their bodies to us. We love what we do and work to be the best sports massage therapists in the Ann Arbor area.
