massage

You have been waiting for this all year, and it’s FINALLY time.  Golf season is here! You have prepared by cleaning your golf shoes, wiping down your clubs, and restocking your bag with a fresh supply of balls.  You’ve gathered a few pals and are ready to OWN your tee time.  However, have you made sure your body is primed and ready golf season?  If you haven’t given thought to preparing your back, knees, and arms for handling your power swing, now’s the time. Over 80% of professional golfers and 60% amateur golfers sustain an injury at one point in their career (bruised egos aside).  Here’s the kicker: these injuries caused wanna-be-players to be out of commission for an average of 5 weeks.  Yikes – that’s a huge chunk of golf season to be kept off the green. Luckily for you, there are a few things you can do to help prepare your body for golf season, lower your risk for injury, and enjoy as much time as possible on the course.

1. Make an appointment at Elements Massage^® now, and then schedule a few more sessions throughout the summer. If you haven’t put massage on your short list of things to do before golfing, you definitely should. One study found that of golfers who sustained an injury while golfing, over a third reported a hurt lower back, and another third reported a hurt elbow.  Getting regular massages can increase the range of motion and improve the flexibility of your muscles. Massage also promotes healthy circulation, which can improve the fluidity of your muscles. And, if you’ve got an injury from last year’s golf season, it’s especially important to get any residual knots and kinks worked out. When strained, muscles tend to bunch up to “protect” an injured area. Making sure your back and joints are in their best possible form before you hit

A new study looked at the use of Complementary Alternative Medicine (CAM)—specifically, acupuncture, aromatherapy, art therapy, guided imagery, healthy food, humor therapy, massage therapy, music therapy, pet therapy, reiki and stress management—among U.S. hospital inpatients. The study of attitudes toward CAM therapies took place in the University of California, San Diego, Healthcare System, with 100 patients participating. Both male and female subjects were enrolled in the study, with ages ranging from 19 to 95. Most Helpful CAM Therapies “Inpatients were asked which CAM therapies they perceived as being potentially the most helpful, their willingness to pay for those therapies, and their perceived beliefs regarding the use of those therapies,” stated an article titled “Inpatients’ Preferences, Beliefs, and Stated Willingness to Pay for Complementary and Alternative Medicine Treatments,” published in January in The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine. Results showed that hospital inpatients view healthy food (85 percent), massage therapy (82 percent) and humor therapy (70 percent) to be the most helpful. The therapies the patients said they are most willing to pay for, according to the article, are healthy food (71 percent), massage therapy (70 percent) and stress management (48 percent). When asked about the benefits they thought they would receive from CAM treatments and therapies, subjects identified relaxation (88 percent), increased well-being (86 percent) and increased overall satisfaction with their stay in the hospital (85 percent). “This study suggests that CAM services may be a beneficial addition to hospitals, as demonstrated by inpatients’ interest and stated willingness to pay for these services,” the authors noted. “These findings may help organizational leaders when making choices regarding the development of CAM services within hospitals, particularly