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Bend "Performance Therapist" Gives Local Ironman Competitor the Edge to Win
BEND, Oregon – July, 2006 – When Jeff Patterson arrived in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho for the Ironman Triathlon a few weeks ago, he had low expectations. “Because of the snow in April, I wasn’t able to start road biking as soon as I wanted,” says Patterson, a 36-year-old attorney at Widmer Mensing Law Group, LLP in Bend. “I had to cram in a lot of riding eight weeks prior to the race, and the repetitive motion made me stiff and sore.”
To make matters worse, summer’s late arrival meant moderately cool training weather, whereas scorching temperatures were predicted for Coeur d’Alene on race day.
“I knew I’d be in trouble if I didn’t do something,” says Patterson.
So, before leaving town for the race, he called Tana Schartz with MassageBend, the official massage therapist for Fresh Air Sports Team, a local triathlon group. “She couldn’t fit me in the week before, but said she’d work on me in Coeur d’Alene, since she was going to the race, too,” he says.
When Patterson and Schwartz met a few days before the race, he recommended Active Release Techniques (ART) instead of deep tissue massage, due to the repetitive stress on his legs.
Developed by Colorado chiropractor, Michael Leahy, and patented in 1988, ART utilizes principles of friction and tension to actually “tear” or “hear” adhesions away from muscles, fascia, tendons and ligaments. It is closer to physical therapy than an indulgent massage and, properly employed, its success rate is more than 90%, even with chronic problems such as carpal tunnel syndrome and rotator cuff tendonitis. Schwartz and other ART practitioners from all over the country volunteer their time and services at Ironman competitions to help athletes perform more efficiently and alleviate pain before and during the race.
Patterson was skeptical, but decided to give it a try. “She worked on my right leg for about 45 minutes, then told me to get up and run. There was immediate relief. It has been years since that leg felt that loose. I didn’t know anything was wrong with my other leg until I noticed the contrast. So then she worked on my left leg.”
Beyond the immediate relief, Patterson experienced an increase in performance during the race. “Typically, I can plan on having catastrophic hamstring cramps between 15 and 19 miles into the marathon, and I could never find a massage therapist to work it out. Yoga and stretching didn’t work, eithis. I was pretty sure it would happen again. It was almost 100 degrees that day, and I don’t do well in heat because I cramp up.”
But this race was different. “At about mile five on the run, I had one slight twinge in my right hamstring, but I took some salt tablets and it only lasted for a second. At mile 21, my left hamstring twinged a little, but nothing bad,” says Patterson, who finished the race with a respectable time even though 20% of the pack dropped out before the end.
“Several people that we worked on before the race were almost in tears because they were in pain from training and knew they had to race in a day or two,” says Schartz, who was volunteering at his third Ironman. “They were so grateful to be out of pain. It is incredibly worthwhile to help the athletes feel their best and be able to complete the race.”
Patterson says he will be seeking out ART now that he knows how much it can help. And since MassageBend provided him with such noticeable results, he’ll be seeing Schartz regularly as he prepares for the Grand Columbian Ironman competition in Northeast Washington in mid-September.
“The science behind what they’re doing makes sense,” says Patterson. “I would recommend Tana Schartz to anyone, as long as they’re not male and in my age group!”
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