Iron Game
Veteran
About Deep-Tissue Massage
Dennis Wolf, Dexter Jackson, Justin Compton and Guy Cisternino reply to the following question. How important is therapy like chiropractic and deep-tissue massage? How often do you do those and what benefits do you notice?
Dennis Wolf
I think therapy treatments in general are very important for high-level bodybuilders, due to the way we train and the strain we put on our bodies. Deep-tissue massage is something that I do at least once a week. I have problem areas like my shoulders where there is some pain, and just tightness from having a lot of muscle mass and training with heavy weights all this time. If I have a little injury or just an area that’s giving me pain, I will schedule massages more often. I find that during prep, I need two massages a week. It opens up the muscle tissue that gets stuck together so you have better blood flow. A lot of times, I am sore from massages for a couple of days after, but I notice my pumps are always better at those times, too. I don’t see the chiropractor very often— about once every two months or so. My spine feels OK. If it didn’t, I would go more often. These things are individual. I know some guys who never get massages or chiropractic adjustments, and they have no problems. I know from past experience that if I go more than a week or two without deep-tissue massage, things don’t feel right and my training isn’t as productive.
Dexter Jackson
I always get a deep-tissue massage every week, but closer to a show I will go in for two or three sessions every week. I wouldn’t do that if I didn’t see multiple benefits from it. First, it relaxes me. It’s the one thing I can look forward to in the final weeks of prep when I’m tired and drained. The massages are a tremendous stress reliever for me. They loosen up the bound tissue and help with growth, too. Most guys only look at them in terms of treating pain or injuries. I also have massage therapists that stretch me out, which is important because I’m terrible about doing that on my own. So that helps me stay flexible and keeps everything loose.
As for a chiropractor, I normally get adjusted once a week. If my lower back is giving me trouble, I might go as often as two to three times a week. I definitely do that in the last few weeks of prep, or other times when I need to. As I get older, I find that standing or walking for many hours at a time, such as at an expo, is very tough on my back and throws it out of whack. Luckily, I know now that my chiropractor can help me get it all back in alignment and feeling right again. These bones aren’t getting any younger, but as long as I take good care of them, I’m doing okay.
Justin Compton
Chiropractic and deep-tissue work is very beneficial for bodybuilding. When the spine is 100 percent in line, the body is going to function better, period. As bodybuilders, we can't afford to function any less than 100 percent, so it is a “must” to keep yourself in check. I typically try to go in once a month for routine chiropractic work to get adjusted, to check my spine and hips. If I have something aggravated, I will go as often as needed. The spinal cord controls pretty much everything in the body, and is something we can't overlook.
As for massage therapy, it definitely has a strong place in this sport as well. I use both ART [active release techniques] and deep-tissue. ART is great for tendonitis and other miscellaneous pains, along with improving mobility. Having the muscles function at their full capacity is very crucial to growth as well as injury prevention. Deep-tissue is great to implement to remove any scar tissue or adhesions that our bodies may have. With constant strain and tension on your muscles, along with the lack of stretching, it is highly likely that you will build up very small adhesions in the muscle. Deep-tissue work, along with the Graston Technique, is great to fix these problems.
Guy Cisternino
In my opinion, both are EXTREMELY important. I always went to a chiropractor and a massage therapist just for general wellness. When I got into my bad accident back in 2011, I got pretty banged up, so I see my chiropractor twice a week and get a massage usually once per week. To me, these little things go a long way and definitely make you feel much better, overall. After all the compression the spine gets from training heavy, deep-tissue work breaks up knotted-up tissues and adhesions— and doing so will allow for maximal muscle growth and blood flow to those muscles. So I think a chiropractor and a massage therapist are a MUST
Dennis Wolf, Dexter Jackson, Justin Compton and Guy Cisternino reply to the following question. How important is therapy like chiropractic and deep-tissue massage? How often do you do those and what benefits do you notice?
Dennis Wolf
I think therapy treatments in general are very important for high-level bodybuilders, due to the way we train and the strain we put on our bodies. Deep-tissue massage is something that I do at least once a week. I have problem areas like my shoulders where there is some pain, and just tightness from having a lot of muscle mass and training with heavy weights all this time. If I have a little injury or just an area that’s giving me pain, I will schedule massages more often. I find that during prep, I need two massages a week. It opens up the muscle tissue that gets stuck together so you have better blood flow. A lot of times, I am sore from massages for a couple of days after, but I notice my pumps are always better at those times, too. I don’t see the chiropractor very often— about once every two months or so. My spine feels OK. If it didn’t, I would go more often. These things are individual. I know some guys who never get massages or chiropractic adjustments, and they have no problems. I know from past experience that if I go more than a week or two without deep-tissue massage, things don’t feel right and my training isn’t as productive.
Dexter Jackson
I always get a deep-tissue massage every week, but closer to a show I will go in for two or three sessions every week. I wouldn’t do that if I didn’t see multiple benefits from it. First, it relaxes me. It’s the one thing I can look forward to in the final weeks of prep when I’m tired and drained. The massages are a tremendous stress reliever for me. They loosen up the bound tissue and help with growth, too. Most guys only look at them in terms of treating pain or injuries. I also have massage therapists that stretch me out, which is important because I’m terrible about doing that on my own. So that helps me stay flexible and keeps everything loose.
As for a chiropractor, I normally get adjusted once a week. If my lower back is giving me trouble, I might go as often as two to three times a week. I definitely do that in the last few weeks of prep, or other times when I need to. As I get older, I find that standing or walking for many hours at a time, such as at an expo, is very tough on my back and throws it out of whack. Luckily, I know now that my chiropractor can help me get it all back in alignment and feeling right again. These bones aren’t getting any younger, but as long as I take good care of them, I’m doing okay.
Justin Compton
Chiropractic and deep-tissue work is very beneficial for bodybuilding. When the spine is 100 percent in line, the body is going to function better, period. As bodybuilders, we can't afford to function any less than 100 percent, so it is a “must” to keep yourself in check. I typically try to go in once a month for routine chiropractic work to get adjusted, to check my spine and hips. If I have something aggravated, I will go as often as needed. The spinal cord controls pretty much everything in the body, and is something we can't overlook.
As for massage therapy, it definitely has a strong place in this sport as well. I use both ART [active release techniques] and deep-tissue. ART is great for tendonitis and other miscellaneous pains, along with improving mobility. Having the muscles function at their full capacity is very crucial to growth as well as injury prevention. Deep-tissue is great to implement to remove any scar tissue or adhesions that our bodies may have. With constant strain and tension on your muscles, along with the lack of stretching, it is highly likely that you will build up very small adhesions in the muscle. Deep-tissue work, along with the Graston Technique, is great to fix these problems.
Guy Cisternino
In my opinion, both are EXTREMELY important. I always went to a chiropractor and a massage therapist just for general wellness. When I got into my bad accident back in 2011, I got pretty banged up, so I see my chiropractor twice a week and get a massage usually once per week. To me, these little things go a long way and definitely make you feel much better, overall. After all the compression the spine gets from training heavy, deep-tissue work breaks up knotted-up tissues and adhesions— and doing so will allow for maximal muscle growth and blood flow to those muscles. So I think a chiropractor and a massage therapist are a MUST
