ASPHO5 Strength and Conditioning Assignment 2

Exercise Recovery Strategies In Sport:

Foam Rolling vs Sports Massage
By Frazer Marriott
When skeletal muscle is damaged through trauma or unaccustomed exercise, pain
is felt, and the ability to perform even the most basic daily tasks is reduced. This is
due to the soreness that occurs within the muscles. This is known as Delayed Onset
of Muscle Soreness (DOMS). (Tiidus, 2008). Sports massage is a flexible way of
treating athletes, and can be conducted before, during and after training to aid
performance, promote recovery from the DOMS acquired from training and
competition. (Forsdyke et al, 2011). The goal of sports massage is to assist the
athlete in achieving and maintaining peak performance, and support the healing of
injuries. According to Fritz (2005), massage can stimulate the fibroblasts to repair
injured collagen, introduce mechanical forces to realign collagen back to parallel,
lengthen shortened tissue and increase pliability, stimulate fluid distribution and
create controlled focussed inflammation to increase collagen proliferation. Sports
massage can not only improve recovery, but improve performance by increasing
tissue permeability, which opens up the skins pores. This enables fluid and nutrients
to pass through, thus the removal waste products such as lactic acid occurs, and this
also aids the uptake of oxygen to the muscles. (Heidi, 2014).
Massage also stimulates the Central Nervous System (CNS), the Peripheral Nervous
System (PNS), and the Endocrine System by producing effects through a
combination of neural, chemical, mechanical and psychological factors, which are
important for the wellbeing of the athlete. (Fritz, 2013). As well as relief from muscle
soreness, sports Massage has also been known to relieve symptoms accumulated
from training and competition such as headaches, anxiety, digestive problems and
muscular discomfort, as well as its improvements on sleep, and depression.
Massage alleviates symptoms such as these by stimulating nerve receptors in the
tissues that control tissue tension. (Findlay, 2008). This theory is backed up by Dixon
(2006), who believes that neural responses to trauma and pain can be manipulated
by changing the input to sensory receptors with touch, pressure or stretch (Sports
Massage).
Applying direct pressure on an area alters the amount of stretch or tension perceived
by the muscle spindles or Golgi Tendon Organs. This sense of stretch stimulates the
transmission of data instructing motor neurons to effect relaxation, and a muscle in
spasm can be helped to relax by applying direct pressure to the GTOs. The
responses of mechanoreceptors to touch, pressure, and warmth are also stimulated,
and this leads to further relaxation of the tissues and reduction in pain.
On the contrary to this background research on sports massage as a method of
recovery, some believe this information is false and that sports massage is
unnecessary for the promotion of recovery for athletes. Vanderbilt (2003) gathered
research addressing myths within sports therapy, and massage. It is quoted by this
author that lactic acid levels will return to homeostasis quickly post-exercise without
assistance from a sports massage, and that massage will have the biggest effect on
venous blood, and lactic acid would have already left the muscle by the time
massage is administered.
According to a study conducted by Tiitus & Shoemaker (1995); Vanderbilt (2003),
effleurage (a sports massage technique driving both hands up the body) does not
increase local blood flow. However this study was only quoted by this author, and
does not give details as to whom the subjects were or the methods in which these
results were founded upon. This affects the internal validity of this study, and is
flawed because of the lack of detail within this description.
Another method of exercise recovery for athletes is foam rolling. A foam roller is
simply a cylindrical piece of extruded hard-celled foam. (Boyle, 2006). Foam rolling is
a recent phenomenon that aims to promote recovery through self-myofascial
release, using a foam roller. Self-myofascial release is the self-massaging to relieve
muscle tightness and trigger points by applying pressure to specific points, which is
said to aid in the recovery of muscles and promote flexibility, mobility, fluid
distribution and waste removal. (Kuhland, 2014).



A study was conducted by Macdonald et al (2014) who used twenty male subjects,
randomly selected into the control (n=10) or the Foam Rolling group (n=10). Subjects
performed 1RM Back squat and 10x10 squats. Control group did not use foam roller
after exercise, as opposed to the intervention group (Foam Roller group) who did.
Results from this study shows that foam rolling substantially reduced muscle
soreness and improved subjects Range Of Motion.
Foam rolling also improved relaxation, and electromechanical delay (EMD) as well
as improving vertical jump height, muscle activation and also reducing perceived
muscular pain in comparison to the control group. This author also states that these
responses are primarily acquired through neural responses and connective tissue.
Boyle (2006) argues for the sports massage when comparing these two recovery
promoting strategies. The reasons behind this argument are the neurological
benefits gained from a massage, which include mental relaxation and stress relief. In
addition that, this author argues that the sports massage is more beneficial to an
athlete and can promote recovery more efficiently is because of the ability to change
depth, pressure, pin point and apply pressure to the deeper, smaller muscles using
fingers. This author adds a downside to regular massages, and that downside is the
cost of them.
A foam roller is more economical, but not as effective, whereas regular massages
can be expensive but extremely effective when promoting recovery in athletes. Berry
(2013) argues for the foam roller because of its economic benefits and low cost, as
well as its ability to promote local blood flow, increase ROM, improve flexibility, break
up knots, release trigger points and enhance overall recovery time from gaining all of
these benefits at the same time.
In conclusion to this report, it is evident that both the foam-roller, and the sports
massage have their benefits, and drawbacks. The sports massage contains an array
of physiological, and neurological benefits, such as the stimulation the fibroblasts to
repair injured collagen, introduce mechanical forces to realign collagen back to
parallel, lengthen shortened tissue and increase pliability, stimulate fluid distribution
and create controlled focussed inflammation to increase collagen proliferation.

Sports massage can not only improve recovery, but improve performance by
increasing tissue permeability, which opens up the skins pores and enables fluid
and nutrients to pass through, and remove waste products such as lactic acid and
this also aids the uptake of oxygen to the muscles. When compared to the foam
roller, the sports massage has been deemed as expensive but worth it, and the foam
roller is cheap but effective. They both possess some of the same benefits, and both
of these recovery methods are extremely beneficial and important for an athlete and
coach to have.

















Reference List
Berry C. (2013). Foam Rolling vs Massage. Chatham Chiropractic
Boyle M (2006). Foam Rolling. Fitlife: Human Performance Center
Dixon M (2006). Myo-fascial Massage. USA: Lippincott Williams &
Wilkins. 46-47.
Findlay S (2008). Sports Massage. USA: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins
Forsdyke P, Gledhill A, Mackay N, & Randerson K (2011). Foundations
In Sports Therapy. UK: Heinemann. 37-38.
Fritz S (2005). Sports & Exercise Massage: Comprehensive Care In
Athletics, Fitness & Rehabilitation. Canada: Mosby. Inc. 44-45.
Fritz S (2013). Sports & Exercise Massage: Comprehensive Care In
Athletics, Fitness & Rehabilitation. Canada: Mosby. Inc. 2
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Heidi L. (2014). Benefits and Effects of Massage. Sports-Injury Clinic.
Kuhland J. (2014). What Is a Foam Roller How Do I Use It, and Why
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Macdonald GZ1, Button DC, Drinkwater EJ, Behm DG. (2014). Foam
rolling as a Recovery Tool after an intense bout of physical activity.
Pub Med. 1 (46), 131-142.
Tiidus P (2008). Skeletal Muscle Damage and Repair. USA: Human
Kinetics 3-4.
Vanderbilt S. (2003). Sports Massage & Recovery Time Re-examining
the Role of Lactic Acid. Massage Therapy.
Weintraub W (2003). Tendon & Ligament Healing A New Approach To
Sports And Overuse Injury. USA: Library Of Congress. Cataloguing.
179-180.