Every time you go to a massage therapist, they give you water after the session. Ever wonder why?
It's to help keep your fascia hydrated so your muscles stay loose and don't lock up again. Fascia is basically the negative space in your body. It's everywhere! Around each individual muscle spindle, around each muscle cluster, your skin and so much more. You may have heard, "The average adult human body is 50-65% water, averaging around 57-60%." You also know gravity makes things fall down. So, what's holding the water up? It's your fascia. When your fascia tightens, it dehydrates causing the space between our muscles to tighten. This is why massage and myofascial release (like foam rolling or the lovely and wonderful stick) are so important. But it's even more important to hydrate after.
Myofascial release is really a fancy word for self massage. You're probably familiar with the foam roller. This is a great way to target large muscle groups for release. The stick is amazing, and tends to serve the same purpose as the roller. However, the nice thing about the stick is someone else can use it on you. Small balls target smaller areas for more specific release. However, it's important to remember, everything in the body is connected, especially your fascia.
Just like massage, after using any form of fascia release, you must rehydrate your body to prevent the muscle spindles from simply shriveling back up.
