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To massage the shin, follow the same stroking routine to warm the area, then grip the front of your leg with the hand of the same side and tucking your fingers around the shin bone gently rub the muscle with the pad of your thumb in a circular motion up the leg. Finally shake the calf loosely. Shins are an area where massage is really important. They have a low blood supply and injuries sustained here seem to hurt much more than they would in other areas. Massage gently to avoid a persistent lump on a bruised area. Use flushing strokes towards the body, one hand following the other. Use friction movements in little circles with your thumbs to reduce remaining swelling after a bruise. Massage of the calves is particularly important for runners. You will have noticed how sore they get when you run a new, longer distance or over uneven ground if you are not used to it. You may also have experienced ‘shinsplints’, the painful condition of the muscle that runs up the outside of the shin, when you have been running on very hard ground. Injuries you can treat Shinsplints - massage - flushing and circular movements with the pad of your thumb. It takes several days to pass and the pain level makes you think you have done something more serious than run too far over hard ground. Twisted ankle - if mild, pretty soon afterwards, use flushing strokes and rub around the ankle bones at each side with little circular movements. If more severe use only flushing at first once it is possible to touch in comfort, until the swelling has gone down. You may not be able to touch the injured area at first, in this case massage above the injury as this helps circulation of the injured area. It is particularly important to massage injured ankles. The tendons to numerous muscles pass across and around the area, sometimes through narrow channels that cause restricted movement once the tendons have swollen after injury. Massage is instrumental in reducing the swelling, removing damaged cells and opening the channel again for normal movement. Long tendons are particularly vulnerable to damage as they weave over bones in exposed areas where they get struck if you fall; they also swell if strained. | ||
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CATHERINE HOLLAND Tel: 0701 7415310 Email: catherine@catherineholland.co.uk | |
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