Sort of a what if question..

[celticprincess]

First of all, I'm not sure what catagory this would fall under, so bear with me. I'm a Licensed massage therapist who is also nationally certified and I had an idea about going to various skating competitions and giving pre performance or even post performance massage to competitiors. I'm thinking massages would be about 15 minutes long and would consist of passive stretching, rocking, basic..yet light swedish and energy work(mostly for the nerves and mind). The cost would be minimal..maybe 10 dollars per massage and it would be fully clothed. Is this something that would be of interest to most skaters? I've heard of it being done at dance competitions, yet not so much with skating. Any thoughts or feelings on this idea?

Your response is greatly appreciated!

[Skate@Delaware]

I wouldn't be much good for a massage before a competition, but after i would be ok with a chair massage. Especially if I have to drive 2 hours to compete then hang around for hours-my neck/shoulders get really tense! That's me not sure how everyone else feels about it (I could use a massage right now but I also need a new pillow).

[herniated]

I don't know either if I would want a pre- like right before I skated massage. But after that would be NICE. Usually I get SO tight after I compete because I don't stretch like I usually do, lol and the next day - holy you know what! I'm a mess. I like the idea especially the cost.

[RachelSk8er]

There are actually certain massage techniques that are helpful and could be done as little as a few hours before skating (along with passive stretching and other things that are helpful, particularly if you have injuries or soreness in certain areas). One of my friends is a PT and she was doing all kinds of tricks on some of us at ANs last year that actually really helped. I pulled something in my lower back at practice and whatever she did made it bearable when I competed.

[doubletoe]

A massage the night before competition would be great. I've done that before. :)

[Mrs Redboots]

A massage after competition might well help with the adrenaline crash. I competed on Sunday, and yesterday I could really, really, really have used a massage - I was so stiff I could barely get out of bed! A very long, very hot shower helped a bit, but still!

[kayskate]

Pre-comp you might be massaging a lot of parents and coaches. ;>)

Kay