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Health

Physiotherapy at the Sports Injury Clinic

Somerset ASA's previous medical advisor, Dr. Harriet Collins, has attended our Talent Development Camps and given advice and information to swimmers and parents alike.

Dr. Collins produced a number of factsheets that you or your club may find useful, which you will find below.  


What is Sports Massage?

A discipline of using massage for the specific benefit of all sports and exercise participants. It covers the management, manipulation and rehabilitation of the soft tissues of the body e.g. muscles, ligaments and tendons.
 

Benefits of Sports Massage:

  • Improve Circulation and Lymphatic Flow
  • Sedate or Stimulate Nerve Endings
  • Increase or Decrease Muscle Length
  • Assist in Mental Preparation for Sporting Participation
  • Assist in the Removal of Metabolic Waste
  • Increase or Decrease Muscle Tone
  • Remodel Scar Tissue when Required


Sports Massage can be Beneficial at Various Stages of Participation:

  • The conditioning/ Training Phase
  • Inter Competition
  • Post Travel
  • Injury Recovery
  • Pre Competition
  • Post Competition
  • Injury Prevention (Sports Massage Association).


Pre Event Sports Massage:

  • Provides competitors with the feelings of: Invigoration and Readiness for the Event.
  • It will warm and loosen up the muscular system, as well as sharpen the neurological system.
  • This part of the massage will last usually between 3-10 minutes for each competitor.
  • This session plays a vital role in the psychological preparation for the event by concentrating the mind on a state of readiness.


Post Event Sports Massage:

  • Helps the athlete recover from the event.
  • Massage will: release and loosen muscle tissues: speed up the removal of lactic acid (waste products): help alleviate the effects of muscle soreness.
  • This session will last usually around 10 minutes for each competitor.


Days After the Event:

  • Hourly sessions at a fixed price are available in the comfort of your own home (See Sports Massage page).
  • A Sports Massage Session will: Reduce aches and pains: remove DOMS; remove swelling; help prevent injuries; and relaxation.

Nutrition

Swim England has a duty of care to advise members that we don’t recommend supplements be taken without proper consultation.

Download Swim England statement regarding nutritional supplement use in athletes under 18 years of age.

Download IOC consensus statement: dietary supplements and the high-performance athlete

As part of its commitment to protecting the health of the athlete while helping them to achieve their career goals, the Medical and Scientific Commission of the International Olympic Committee now offers distance learning programs in Sports Nutrition, Sports Medicine, Sports Physical Therapies, Mental Health in Elite Sport and Drugs in Sport. A new program, the IOC Certificate Safeguarding Officer in Sport, will begin in 2021. sportsoracle is responsible for the delivery of these IOC programs. Successful students will graduate with an IOC Diploma/Certificate

Health Benefits of Aquatic Immersion and Activity

Download

We Are Undefeatable: Meena’s Story

Meena used to do activities where she was on her feet for longer, but the pain in her knees from her arthritis gradually made them less enjoyable. That’s part of why she’s found swimming so helpful.

Concussion Guidance

A concussion is a brain injury caused by a blow to the head, neck or face. Symptoms may start immediately but, in some cases, can be delayed in onset for a few minutes up to hours after the trauma.View guidance from Swim England.

Fact Sheets on Supporting Swimmers

Active Ageing

Active Ageing Bristol has launched the Physical Activity Directory for Older People with over 200 free or low-cost physical activity and sport sessions that are welcoming and inclusive.

Good Boost

Good Boost feedback screen

Swim England has worked with Good Boost to provide an exercise rehabilitation app that can be used at home during periods of lockdown or other times when you can’t get to your local pool! To find out more and access the app, visit the Good Boost website. Are you an exercise professionals or physiotherapist? Download the Good Boost flyer on how to 'Transform any Space into a Therapeutic Exercise Place'.

Mental Health Helplines

Mindline Somerset Emotional support and mental health helpline 01823 276 892 is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Mindline is a confidential listening service which provides a safe place to talk if you, or someone you know, is in distress. Mindline can also give basic information about mental health and local support services. Listeners treat all callers, regardless of background, in a non-judgmental way with dignity and respect. When Mindline Somerset  lines are busy, or closed, its switchboard can connect you to its sister service, the Samaritans.

BelievePerform and Mind’s physical activity team have teamed up to develop a range of infographics that include information on mental health helplines and support services for the sport community.

Download all the infographics here.

Dementia-Friendly Swimming

 

Dementia friendly swimming sessions are quieter sessions at swimming pools with trained staff and appropriate facilities. View information on sessions at Bristol swimming pools which have them.

Download the Dementia-friendly sport and physical activity guide, a free resource from the Alzheimer's Society full of tips and advice for any organisation or individual that delivers physical activity

Download overview of and key findings from The Swim England Dementia Friendly Swimming Project