Journals / Yalova Üniversitesi Spor Bilimleri Dergisi / 2026 / Cilt: 5 Sayı: 1

Acute and Chronic Effects of Massage on Recovery and Performance in Athletes

Masajın Sporcularda Toparlanma ve Performans Üzerine Akut ve Kronik Etkileri

Pages
107–120
Publication Date
2026-03-19
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AI Summary & Key Takeaways

AI Insight
⚡ TL;DR(Too Long; Didn't Read)

In this context, it should be noted that massage applications should be tailored to the needs of each athlete and that combining them with other recovery methods will yield greater benefits.

📌 3 Key Takeaways

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Objective & Hypothesis:Objective: The aim of this review study was to examine the acute and chronic effects of massage applications on recovery and performance in athletes.
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Key Findings & Data:Materials and Methods: To examine the contribution of massage, a manual therapy method, to recovery and performance in athletes, the Google Scholar, PubMed, and Web of Science databases were searched.
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Conclusion & Impact:In this context, it should be noted that massage applications should be tailored to the needs of each athlete and that combining them with other recovery methods will yield greater benefits.
🔬Design:Review & Systematic Survey
📍Scope:2015 Verileri
⚙️Variables:Masaj · Spor Masajı · Toparlanma

Abstract

Objective: The aim of this review study was to examine the acute and chronic effects of massage applications on recovery and performance in athletes. Materials and Methods: To examine the contribution of massage, a manual therapy method, to recovery and performance in athletes, the Google Scholar, PubMed, and Web of Science databases were searched. The identified keywords were entered into the search field and combined to conduct the search. In this review study, all studies from 2015 to the present were examined in detail. Findings: This review study revealed that massage applications have positive effects on athletes in terms of physical, mental, cardiovascular, and neuromuscular structures, and that they have positive effects on recovery and performance in both the acute and chronic periods. Conclusion: The contribution of massage therapy to short-term performance enhancement in athletes remains a subject of debate. However, long-term benefits include increased muscle flexibility and improved mobility. Regular massage has been shown to reduce the risk of injury and accelerate the muscle repair process. The recovery process has been found to reduce delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) in the short term, accelerates blood flow to eliminate lactic acid from the body, eliminates muscle tension and provides psychological relaxation. In the long term, it has been observed to reduce chronic pain, increase tissue flexibility, accelerate muscle repair processes and contribute positively to performance. In this context, it should be noted that massage applications should be tailored to the needs of each athlete and that combining them with other recovery methods will yield greater benefits.

Özet

Amaç: Bu derleme çalışmasının amacı, masaj uygulamalarının sporcularda toparlanma ve performans üzerine olan akut ve kronik etkilerini incelemeyi amaçlamıştır. Gereç ve Yöntem: Bir manuel terapi yöntemi olan masajın sporcular üzerindeki toparlanma ve performansa olan katkısını incelemek için Google Scholar, PubMed ve Web of Science veri tabanları tarandı. Belirlenen anahtar kelimeler uygun şekilde arama bölümüne yazılarak ve kombine edilerek araştırıldı. Yapılan bu derleme çalışmamızda 2015 yılından günümüze kadar olan tüm çalışmalar detaylı bir şekilde incelendi. Bulgular: Yapılan bu derleme çalışmasında masaj uygulamalarının sporcular üzerinde fiziksel, ruhsal, kardiyovasküler, nöromüsküler gibi yapılarda olumlu yönde etkiler meydana getirdiği, akut ve kronik dönemde ise toparlanma ve performansa pozitif yönde etkiler sağladığı görülmüştür. Sonuç: Masaj uygulamalarının, sporcularda kısa dönemde performans artışında katkısı halen tartışılmakta olup ama uzun dönemde kaslarda esneklik artışı ve mobilite gelişimi, düzenli masajın yaralanma riskini azaltabileceği ve kas onarım sürecini hızlandırdığı görülmüştür. Toparlanma sürecinin ise hem kısa dönemde gecikmiş başlangıçlı kas ağrısı olan (DOMS)’u azalttığı, kan akışını hızlandırarak laktik asidin vücuttan atılmasını sağladığı, kas gerginliğini ortadan kaldırdığı ve psikolojik rahatlama sağladığı, hem de uzun dönemde kronik ağrılarını azalttığı, doku esnekliğinde artış sağladığı, kas onarım süreçlerini hızlandırarak performansa olumlu katkılar verdiği görülmüştür. Bu kapsamda masaj uygulamalarının her sporcunun ihtiyacına yönelik uygulanması gerektiği, aynı zamanda diğer toparlanma yöntemleriyle birlikte uygulanması yönünde daha çok fayda sağlayacağı göz önünde bulundurulmalıdır.

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Cite This Article

Özen, A. A., Kabasakal, S. A. (2026). Acute and Chronic Effects of Massage on Recovery and Performance in Athletes. Yalova Üniversitesi Spor Bilimleri Dergisi, Cilt: 5 Sayı: 1, 107–120. https://doi.org/10.70007/yalovaspor.1796543

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