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Gear Review: Self Massage for Athletes By MBT Staff The $20 Gift No Mountain Biker Should Be Without | ||
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Our next “top gift” entry took the MBT offices by surprise as it arrived with little to no marketing hype. Self-Massage for Athletes by Rich Poley is a book that every athlete, regardless of skill level, needs to seriously consider. As the title implies, the focus of this book is to teach self-message techniques that can be applied by anyone at any time. However, the step by step techniques and accompanying photography are only the beginning of the realms explored by the author. We found the sections that touch upon acupressure points and trigger-point release techniques to be very beneficial as well. Rich Poley does a commendable job integrating a very upbeat approach to explaining detailed techniques with a healthy dose of humor thrown in for good measure. As an attorney with no prior training in anatomy, the author makes certain the practices contained within are easily understood and possible to perform by just about anyone. Since our own area of expertise happens to revolve around mountain biking, we’ll cut to the chase with our own experiences in applying the book’s techniques. We passed our copy of Self-Massage for Athletes around to three of our test riders and asked that each of them perform a different technique from the book after a long ride. The results were surprisingly positive as each tester reported having been able to relieve muscle soreness, cramping, and stiff joints after applying the techniques as well as a faster recovery period between hard rides. The book served as an awakening for our test riders as well, clarifying popular myths and misconceptions about the workout process and what is involved in proper recovery. We have the nasty habit of overtraining for an upcoming ride or big event but the author reminds us that each time we exercise we actually cause micro-injuries to the muscles and that it is the period following the workout that allows the tissue to rebuild and grow stronger. We’re confident that athletes of any skill level will benefit by having Rich Poley’s excellent work in their collection. The results of applying the techniques contained within are immediate. We personally don’t know of any riders who wouldn’t benefit from a message and this book empowers readers with the ability to sooth their own muscles be it in a hot bath, while sitting in traffic, or trail-side during an epic ride. Bottom Line: Advice is only good advice if it’s put to use. Rich Poley turns complicated subjects into advice anyone can put to use. MSRP: $19.95
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