On the 7thOctober I spent 5 hours at the Plymouth 10k providing pre and post massages to the competitors. This allowed me to gain both confidence and experience.
| Reflective Summary
Once I had arrived at the guildhall I was briefed on what I had to do and I was paired up with someone who was more experienced at massage than me so they could act as a mentor. Before the event I carried out some pre-race massages where the aim of the massage was to increase the blood flow and prepare the muscles for exercise. Once the event was finished we had to deal with a larger number of competitors that wanted a post-race massage. A massage after the race is important because it releases stress and tension in the muscles and allows lactic acid to be removed. Before I started the treatment, I wiped down the bed, asked the client if they had any contraindications and then applied the lotion. When performing any massage, I started off with effleurage to warm the tissues up before starting any deep tissue work. The technique also allowed me to identify any potential injuries. As well as effleurage I used the petrissage technique including kneading and wringing to decrease the tension and increase flexibility. Areas for further improvement Overall as a team I believe we could have been more organised as we felt quite rushed especially as we were only given 3 minutes to massage each participant. To improve for next time, we could have even more beds set up so more people can have a massage at one time. This will mean they can last for longer and it avoids clients waiting around. As a personal improvement I need to learn more massage techniques that will allow me to get deeper into the muscles so my massages can be even more effective and will also give me more knowledge. Things to Remember:
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