Well done to everyone who ran in the London Marathon on Sunday. I take my hat off to you all and hope that your muscles are not too sore today. I was there along with some other therapists working for TouchiS, who are down there every year offering massage for competitors running on behalf of Action for Children.
It was a beautiful sunny day in London – although I heard that the there wasn’t much shade for the last ten miles – and the atmosphere in the centre of town was great, with everyone out on the street cheering on loved ones, and complete strangers. All greatly appreciated by those taking part I know – the key is to have your name on your shirt, I heard from some ladies in the taxi queue at Charing Cross on my way home.
Despite a bad start to my day’s adventure – my taxi at complete loss as to how to get me past the crowds and anywhere near the venue, the dawning realisation that I should be at Great Scotland Yard not New Scotland Yard, two bus rides (Westminster/Waterloo then Waterloo/Trafalgar Square), and all carrying a very heavy massage couch – I really enjoyed the experience.
The organisation was brilliant. Runners arrived at the Civil Service Club where they could get a shower followed by a massage and then join their family and friends downstairs for food and drinks. The atmosphere was great.
We saw a few injuries: one torn calf muscle, a medial collateral knee sprain, blisters, muscle cramps, various chaffing, some toe nails that were on the way out and some sun burnt shoulders. Yet spirits were high (endorphins anyone?) and people chatted away about the ups and downs of the race while waiting for their treatments.
After really strenuous physical activity, such as a marathon, the aim of massage is to facilitate recovery by relaxing tight muscles, relieving cramps, aiding lymphatic drainage and the removal of waste products in the muscles, as well as encouraging rehydration. Massage should be carried out within two hours of activity but not within the first twenty minutes as endorphins and opiates, produced by the body, may mask pain and disguise injuries to bone and soft tissues. Although it is not scientifically proven that massage prevents delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS), anecdotal evidence from sports people suggests that post-event massage really does aid recovery.
The feedback that we received from the runners was great and I think we all just wished that we could spend just a little more time with each of them. Many had come from far and had to get home to places like Darlington and Bristol. The majority had work in the morning (I wonder if they all made it), so again I would like to congratulate them for their commitment and sheer drive. My advice to you all is to be good to yourselves this week and to invest in a massage to soothe those aching muscles and to speed up recovery from any injuries.
Thanks again to TouchiS and Action for Children for the opportunity to get involved. Maybe I will run next year…
Photo by Mark Andrew Kent
