Can a Sports Massage Improve Performance?

The pain of sports massage may begin with the cost: $45 to $150, according to this piece in the New York Times. Next comes the agony of fingers and elbows pushed hard into the body’s pressure points. So far, a sports massage sounds a lot like going to the dentist: it’s expensive, but it hurts. What then can account for the Times’ report that 20 percent of the United States population had some form of massage in the previous 12 months, compared with
8 percent in 1997?  The Times cites, among other evidence of the beneifts of massage, a study published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine showing that cyclists who received massages after intensive pedaling showed improved performance. Read more about the benefits of sports massage in the New York Times.