Massage for Chronic Muscle Tension & Tightness in Bradford

Muscle tightness that never quite goes away affects how you sit, lift and sleep. It tends to settle in the neck and shoulders, the hips and the lower back, and stretching on your own only helps for an hour or two. At WellCare Medical in Bradford, our registered massage therapists (RMTs) use deep tissue massage to release long-standing tension and then show you how to keep it from building up again.

• holding one position for hours at a desk or behind the wheel
• stress, which keeps the shoulders raised and the jaw clenched
• repetitive work or training without enough recovery
• an old injury that the body is still protecting
• weak supporting muscles, which leave others doing too much

Tight muscles are often overworked rather than simply short, which is why massage works best alongside movement and strengthening.

Your massage therapist uses slow, firm pressure to reach the deeper layers of muscle and the connective tissue around them. A session may include:

• deep tissue techniques along the full length of a tight muscle
• sustained pressure on trigger points, the tender knots that refer pain elsewhere
• myofascial release to help layers of tissue glide over each other
• gentle stretching while the muscle is relaxed
• stretches and recovery habits to use at home

Pressure is always adjusted to what you find comfortable. Deep tissue massage should feel like productive pressure and should not be painful.

• Neck and shoulders: from desk work, driving and stress
• Upper and mid-back: tight between the shoulder blades
• Lower back and hips: from long sitting and stiff hips
• Legs: hamstrings, calves and the outside of the thigh in active people

Your RMT asks about your health history, where you feel tight and what you would like from the session. They check your posture and movement, then explain the treatment and ask for your consent before they begin. You undress to your level of comfort and are covered with a sheet throughout, with only the area being treated uncovered.

See a doctor before booking if you have unexplained swelling or pain in one calf, a fever, a recent injury with severe pain, or new numbness or weakness. Tell your therapist if you are pregnant, take blood thinners or have a medical condition, so they can adapt the treatment.

When tension keeps coming back to the same spot, the joint underneath is often stiff. Our chiropractor offers adjustments for back and neck stiffness, and our physiotherapists treat joint stiffness and muscle tightness with exercise. For tension driven by stress, see massage for stress and tension relief. You can also read about deep tissue massage therapy in Bradford.