No Pain, No Gain

Burning, searing, mind-numbing pain- No, I'm not talking about the bike, or the swim or even the run...I'm referring to the deep tissue massage I had this morning. Although I knew full well what I was getting myself into before we started, I was still caught off guard by just how deep and painful releasing my toxins would be. I sit here in my office woozy and on some sort of strange body high, chugging water and already feeling my muscles ache from the deep pressure.

Debbie (my newfound masseuse and personal pain guru) told me I'd need to ice tonight and treat myself as though I had an intense workout. Massage = Workout- Now that sounds pretty good, but trust me, it's most definitely a workout! Don't let the relaxing Yanni music or aromatic essential oils fool you...my body is hurting! Despite all my complaining, I've already made an appointment to see her again in 2 weeks. After all the pain comes the glorious release of all that tight tension in my muscles. Plus, she kept calling me an athlete- I like the sound of that ;)

If I haven't convinced any of you out there yet that A) you should go get a massage and B) do it on a regular basis, here's some more info on why it's so important!

• Loosens muscles, elevates pain, and increases mobility – all significant benefits for an athlete
• Stimulates circulation and increases blood flow
• Breaks up scar tissue and thereby restores normal movement to muscles
• Improves posture, especially for those who sit at a desk all day
• Sufferers of chronic pain, fibromyalgia, edema, muscle cramping, and even carpal tunnel syndrome may find significant relief!

As Debbie stated to me today in the midst of working out my piriformis muscle- No pain, no gain!! (Ouch!)