How does massage therapy affect athlete recovery?

Abstract

Any form of intense exercise requires some sort of recovery. It is expected that the athletic market grows by 8.5% annually. It is becoming increasingly important that athletes know which forms of recovery are effective. Recovery is important to prevent burnout, reduce risk of injury, and giving athletes an overall sense of “readiness” for their next training session. Examples of recovery include sleep, stretching, diet, and a variety of therapeutic interventions. There are many forms of massage therapy such as foam rolling. Foam rollers can be seen in a variety of settings such as weight rooms, physical therapy clinics, and team locker rooms. The purpose of this synthesis is to review the literature on the effects of massage therapy on athletic recovery. After a thorough search through Brockport’s Drake Memorial Library and the EBSCO database, it was concluded that foam rolling can be an effective form of recovery through decreasing delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) and a variety of other related factors.