Any time is a good time for a massage, right? Well, not so fast. Contrary to what you may think, timing your HydroMassage correctly could be the difference between soreness, and deep relaxation.
What Is HydroMassage?
You have probably noticed either private rooms containing black beds, or a lounge with several large black chairs and a television screen. These are HydroMassage beds. HydroMassage beds are customizable massage beds that shoot jets of water up and down your body. The beds are made with a waterproof covering that keeps the water safe and sound inside of the bed keeping you completely dry. You can use the remote or screen (depending on the style of your bed) to keep the jets in an area that needs a little more care or allow the water to run up and down your entire body. These beds are great to use on a rest day, or before or after you finish exercising. We love this amenity because it allows you to enjoy a therapeutic massage while remaining fully-clothed, playing games on the tablet-like device on your HydroMassage bed, listening to music, reading, or enjoying the television screens depending on your gym’s location.
Benefits of HydroMassage Before a Workout
Enjoying a HydroMassage before a workout can be great if you go about it in the correct way. A HydroMassage before you exercise allows you to get warmed up and can help aid in flexibility by stretching your tight muscles, ligaments, and tendons. Similarly, the stress and tension reduction can help you to be more relaxed and focused on the workout ahead of you. Pre-exercise massages should be more gentle, though. Deep massages before you exercise could cause muscle soreness and poor performance. So, keep your HydroMassage bed on a lower pressure and allow the soothing movements to help with light stretching.
Though a light massage does help to stretch out your muscles, you should still work through a dynamic stretching sequence to make sure that you are fully prepared for the workout ahead. This massage does not take the place of the stretch in general but instead helps to get things moving along.
Benefits of HydroMassage After A Workout
The benefits of HydroMassage therapy after a workout seem to outweigh pre-exercise massage. If you head to the HydroMassage directly after a workout, it will aid in reducing muscle soreness, reduce inflammation, and will help speed up recovery so that you have less downtime in between exercises. Better yet, after a workout, you can handle a deep tissue massage. So, feel free to turn up your pressure and allow the deep-tissue massage to take place, really focusing on the areas that you just worked out. After working out, lactic acid builds up within the muscles. This build-up causes soreness because of decreased oxygen in any given area. By getting a post-workout massage, you will help to improve the blood circulation in your body delivering oxygen to your muscles and increasing the flow of oxygen to the affected areas. Improving your body’s circulation also reduces the toxins that your body produced while exercising.
So, Should You HydroMassage Before Or After Your Workout?
The best answer is—both. Do what sounds useful to you. If you come into the gym and are a little ‘ho-hum’ about getting started, try motivating yourself with a light (remember, light massage is key!) HydroMassage. The pre-workout massage can help to boost your confidence and will make you feel fantastic enough to face your workout head-on.
If you are ready to get your workout in right when you enter the gym, then tackle that before you head to the HydroMassage lounge. After you workout, you can enjoy a deep-tissue, therapeutic water massage.
Interested in trying out HydroMassage for yourself? Come on in and visit a HydroMassage lounge at a Vaniado. Find a nearby location in the list below.
This article first appeard on chuze
