Susan Martin Soft Tissue Therapy

13/03/2026

Today is World Sleep Day. What a lovely thought? A whole day of sleep!

If you are training for a long race or for a whole season of activity, sleep is a vital part of your training programme.
While we sleep our immune system repairs the body from the day’s work. As you train for a long race, therefore, sleep time is even more important than normal. It is commonly thought that a healthy adult should aim for 6-8 hours of sleep per night but that increases to 8-10 hours for an endurance athlete due to the increased work-load.
As it’s so easy for sleep to slip down the list of essential activities if we are trying to balance work, life and training then you need to think of it as part of your training programme. You can even log it along with your other sessions.
Having a night-time routine will help you to get to sleep. The NHS website advises the following steps:
Sleep at regular times, every day, even the weekends,
Wind down before bed but avoid screens,
Reduce caffeine intake after lunch,
Your bedroom should be dark, quiet and tidy with a steady temperature.
A large chunk of endurance training and racing is mental but when you are tired you lack concentration. This will make it more difficult to dig deep and focus on your race plan.
Sleep more, train less sounds good to me!!

11/03/2026

The Healing Process:
When your body recovers from injury or surgery it has a specific process that it follows to achieve a satisfactory outcome. This takes time, how long depends on the extent of the injury. During this time, your actions can either help or hinder the process.
The first stage of injury usually includes bleeding and inflammation. This could be internal or at the skin surface. The body forms clots to stem the flow of blood. On the skin surface, these clots become hard and form scabs. The inflammation is caused by the body sending fluid to the area. This fluid contains the nutrients and specialist cells required to start the healing process. Ice is often used to reduce swelling (inflammation) but should be used sparingly so as not to impede this process. This stage usually takes a few days.
Try not to pick at scabs or soak them so they fall off. A scab is nature’s plaster and keeps out infection. If the scab falls off, healing will slow while it is re-formed.
The second stage is where the repair and remodelling starts. This is when hands on therapy may be helpful. The length of time this stage takes depends on the location and severity of the injury. It is likely to be a number of weeks. Areas with a reduced blood flow often take longer to heal. This reduction could be due to location of the injury or the overall health of the client. Scar tissue will start to form during this stage. Gentle massage and stretching can help the body to heal in a more effective way.
Stage three involves remodelling and rehabilitation of the injured area. Scar tissue is great at plugging gaps and stopping us bleed to death, but it is invariably weaker and inferior to the tissue it has replaced. Scars on the skin are thinner and dry out easier. They have no sweat glands or hair follicles. Internal scars can cause layers of the body to stick together and will disrupt the usual gliding process of connective tissues. This all has to be taken into account when rehabilitating after an injury or surgery. Your body will not perform the same as it did before.
However, bodies are amazing. They adapt to perform the tasks that you want them to. They may do it in a slightly different way, but they will still do it. The remodelling process will be lifelong. This is because your body is always adapting to the stresses and strains put upon it by your life actions.
Rehabilitation after an injury or surgery should be slow and steady. A properly managed plan will enable you to return to full fitness without re-injury. Harnessing the body’s ability to adapt means that we can recover and carry on with our activities.
If you need any help or advice about caring for your scarring or about managing yourself back to fitness after an injury, please get in touch.

09/03/2026

Stiff lower back?
Many of us suffer from stiffness and aching in the lower back. This could be caused by too much sitting or some unexpected manual labour around the home and garden. Sometimes we just need some gentle exercises to wake the muscles up in the morning or stretch them out after a hard day.
These four can do both of those things:
1. Lie on a comfortable surface and pull your knees towards your chest. You should feel a stretch from mid to low part of your back. If you roll around a bit, top to bottom and side to side, you are also massaging the muscles that run up either side of your spine.
2. Still laying down, release your knees so that you can put your feet on the ground. Roll your knees from side to side, as far as is possible. Everyone will be able to twist different amounts. You will get your knees closer to the ground the more practice you have. This will mobilize your lower back and stretch your side muscles.
3. This is called the Cat stretch in Yoga. On all fours, tuck your tail bone in and arch your spine up like a frightened cat. Slow and steady on this one, please. Try to feel each vertebrae moving.
4. The Cow stretch is the opposite of the Cat. Slowly untuck your tail bone and drop your lower back towards the floor, You will get this dip in your back. Again, try to feel each of the bones in your back moving.
Imagine a Mexican Wave up and down your spine. That is the effect we are aiming for.
I hope this all makes sense and gives you some ideas of what you can do to keep your lower back flexible and strong. Any questions or comments, please get in touch.

07/03/2026

How do muscles work?

Muscles work by shortening or “contracting”. They cannot lengthen by themselves. In this way our skeletal muscles can pull on our bones to enable movement. Muscles are “told” to contract by our brain, via our nerves. They contract when they receive an impulse from a motor nerve. These nerve impulses only stimulate a limited number of muscle fibres so that we can control the strength and extent of the muscle contraction. This bundle of fibres, served by a motor nerve is called a motor unit. Without these units, our nerves would stimulate the whole muscle and every move we made would be “all or nothing” to our muscles. This would make our movements jerky and exhausting.

04/03/2026

Surgeries are just injuries done on purpose, no matter how necessary and beneficial a procedure may have been.
So, even after the initial (surface) healing is complete, your body will be adapting to the changes made to it for many months to come.

If there are any additional factors slowing down the healing process such as underlying ill health, Chemotherapy, Infection or Age of patient, then progress may seem slow and frustrations can set in as you want to get back to “normal” life as quickly as possible.
Take your time with your rest and recuperation.
Specialist help from Physio and Complimentary therapists can guide and advise you on how to look after yourself and build a stronger body which can cope with any future stresses and strains.
Check out my website to see how Scarwork™ therapy can help. https://sportsmassageearley.co.uk

After surgery, there is often still a neurologic and emotional aftermath that must be addressed. A positive attitude will aid healing so talk through any issues with your medical team or a local support group.
Exercising with friends, a healthy diet and plenty of sleep will all help you on the journey to full recovery

02/03/2026

Now that March is here and Spring is just around the corner, thoughts turn to our Mothers. Their special day is on March 15th this year.
Whilst breakfast in bed is a great treat and a huge bunch of flowers is a lovely present, nothing says " I love and appreciate you " more that getting her aches and pains sorted out.
Soft Tissue Therapy and Sports massage can help us all, young and old, fit or not. We all get tight muscles from sitting at a desk, driving, housework, lifting the children, doing it all!!
If you would like to find out more about how I can help your Mum or the Mother of your children then please get in touch.

28/02/2026

Some children are sporty and some are not, but in my experience of coaching, I find that those that enjoy sport tend to do a lot. This could be multiple sports or playing the same sport in a variety of teams. As parents and coaches, it is important that we are aware of the potential for overuse injuries in these young athletes and help them to manage their training, nutrition and competitions so as to avoid them developing problems later in life.
Here is a link to an article on my website which covers this topic and some common overuse injuries to watch out for. If you have any questions or need some advice, please get in touch.

Whilst they are still growing, young athletes are at greater risk of injury than adults and the consequences can be long term.

25/02/2026

A Mastectomy is the medical name for the surgical removal of one or both breasts. It is usually performed as a treatment or preventative measure for breast cancer in both women and men. A Mastectomy is recommended when the tumour is large or there are multiple tumours throughout the breast. The operation usually involves removing most of the breast tissue and skin, although sometimes some skin can be saved. During the operation, the patient’s lymph nodes are usually checked to see if the cancer has spread. Different treatment options are available after the Mastectomy depending on the outcome of these checks.
When a Mastectomy is planned, the medical team will discuss it’s physical and mental impacts with the patient. The patient may wish for the breast to be re-constructed after the operation. This re-construction can be made with tissue from elsewhere on the patient’s body or with an artificial implant. This procedure may be done immediately after the removal of the original breast or during a second operation.
After surgery, the patient will need to stay in hospital for a day or so depending on how they feel and the extent of the surgery. They will feel more tired than usual for a few weeks and will have limited arm strength, so will need a good support system at home.
This procedure and any subsequent reconstruction surgery are major operations and the patient’s range of movement in their arm and shoulder will be affected. They will be given an exercise routine to help regain this movement and may need assistance from a Physiotherapist. There will be extensive scarring from the Mastectomy and reconstruction and care should be taken to mobilise these scars as soon as they are healed using gentle self-massage and stretching. Massage can help to keep the scar supple and flexible. If you use an unperfumed lotion it can also help to keep the site moist and reduce itching. If your wounds are taking a long time to heal or you are concerned about the impact of the scars then, please, discuss with your medical team.

23/02/2026

There are many quick and simple ways to feel better during your day. Here is a list of 10 such things that can boost mood in less than 15 minutes:

1. Get Outside – Various studies have shown that a few minutes spent outside each day can really improve mental health and sleep.
2. Go for a walk – Combine with number 1 for a bonus half hour. Maybe at lunch time or after work.
3. Turn on some music – Music can easily improve our mood, boost energy and conjure up great memories of places or friends.
4. Stretch – Releasing tensions in your muscles will refresh your body.
5. Laugh out loud – Smiling and laughing are infectious and boost everyone around us.
6. Eat a healthy and filling snack – Try to maintain blood sugar levels throughout the day.
7. Check a job off your to-do list – Achieving something, however small, during a difficult day can make all the difference to how you feel.
8. Clear your mind – Getting rid of the clutter and being “in the moment” can calm your mind.
9. Give yourself a pep talk or a compliment – In many ways we are what we think we are. Your self-beliefs directly influence your mental health.
10. Be kind – Connect with someone new, wish someone well or do a good deed. You will both feel better for it.

21/02/2026

Best of luck to anyone running or helping out at The Wokingham Half Marathon tomorrow. Let's hope all your training pays off and you achieve the desired result. If you feel the need for a post race massage, please get in touch and mention this post for a 10% discount.

18/02/2026

Kintsugi is the Japanese art of putting broken pottery pieces back together with gold resin and is built on the idea that by embracing flaws and imperfections, you can create a stronger and more beautiful piece of art.
When we expect everything and everyone to be perfect, including ourselves, we create a world where people’s positive qualities are overlooked in favour of their perceived flaws and our standards become impossibly limiting and unhealthy.
This 400 year - old technique highlights the "scars" as a part of the design. It shows us that when repairing things that have broken, we can create something that is unique and magnificent. This is true of people as well as pottery.

If you wish to discuss how I can help you to manage any scars that are causing you discomfort or restricting your movement, please get in touch.

16/02/2026

Osteoporosis is a condition that weakens bones, making them fragile and more likely to break. It is sometimes called “Brittle Bone Disease”. Osteoporosis usually develops slowly and is often only diagnosed when a fall or sudden impact causes a bone to break.

If you have been diagnosed with this condition, manual therapy pressure needs to be adjusted, so please let your therapist know before treatment.

Bone density is built up through our childhood and as young adults. After that, it naturally declines. Weight bearing exercise and a healthy diet can help to reduce the decline and keep your bones stronger, for longer.

This infographic from the Royal Osteoporosis Society explains the basics. If you would like more information, please read my blog using this link.

https://sportsmassageearley.co.uk/blog/lifestyle/osteoporosis