I haven't KQ'd, but have been close (7 seconds once), and I felt that the one time I did get a massage before a big race it hurt my performance. My coach at the time was big into massage and wanted me to do it - haven't gotten once since and set two 70.3 PR's last season.

I feel that getting good sleep and active recovery work fine for me, and they're cheaper too!

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Never got one when I qualified, or prior to that or since.

I do have a cat though, and occasionally when the stars aligned he would knead my quads for me while watching tv. I could never get him to do the other leg though and balance it out....

Stupid cats.

Cheers,

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I can pretty easily qualify for Boston and never have gotten a massage let alone routinely. Although I'd imagine it would be nice to get them :)

Qualified for and ran Boston. Never in my life have I gotten a massage. Admittedly I do have a set of compression recovery boots and while they sure feel good after a hard effort, I can't say if they truly helped me recover faster.

I get maybe two a year. I've got one next Monday with IMCanada the following Sunday. Will possibly get one after as well. But just some rolling for a day to day treatment.

Brent

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I've qualified for Boston and am trying for Kona this year, and have never had a massage. I have a pair of recovery boots I'll wear occasionally though.

I qualified twice for Boston, which I guess is pretty impressive for a former swimmer who is top-heavy, carries a few extra pounds on the waist, and has chicken legs. I never got a massage before or after training or races, though I did eat 2 Polish sausages after my first BQ in Chicago, 2005. I was so hungry and the Polish were so good, that I nearly burned my mouth on the first one. I washed those down with some nice beer (not the Mich Ultra pisswater they served at the finish).

I did have a massage once right before a swim race in college. I didn't know I was on the final relay in this December Classic meet, so I went to the table for a massage (and to have Karen, the trainer, put her hands all over me). The coaches came and got me right before the race went off, and I had time to get my suit on. I was completely relaxed, not feeling like I wanted to get cold and wet again, but, off I went on the anchor leg of the 4 x 100 FrR. For not giving a shIt about that race, I ended up with my best split ever, and the best split on my team that day. Not bad for a distance swimmer.

Karen was not around after the meet to give me another massage. :(

I qualified a few times for Boston and was getting regular massages then, I felt it helped with recovery (I was also doing bikram yoga then). I do realize that it's one of those things that may not work for everyone nor may be necessary in order to qualify, but I felt that it was helpful in my case.

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Unfortunately It didn't work out for her right before a race.

KQ'd a bunch of times and have never gotten a routine massage.

No crossfit either :)

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I know way more people who've qualified for both/either without getting regular massages than people who have, but maybe I just don't hang out in a ritzy enough crowd.

Massages aren't necessarily shown to improve performance. Especially following races, massages actually increase muscle fiber breakdown and slow the healing process.

Stories like this are why I have never gotten a massage. I mean, why tempt fate???

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I have KQ and never had a massage or use recovery boots. As for Boston you can just qualify at Kona so you can kill 2 birds with 1 stone.

Yeah, never gotten a sports massage and I've qualified for Kona. It's not necessary.

KQ as a age-grouper and professional without message. BQ as well. In fact I BQ without ever running faster than 7:30 per mile in training in the lead up.

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Maybe that's why I didn't qualify when I did IM

Multiple KQ and BQ in my 30s and very early 40s without regular massage. I have received regular massages, however, since my mid 40s and am scared to stop at 58.

I have not qualified for Kona as I haven't done any IM branded full. I have done just one IM branded 70.3, but am doing my second one in September.

Anyway, I have never been big into massages. However, after the last race, my calves hurt badly, really badly. For the last three miles, I was on the verge of cramping up. After the race, I got a massage that focused on my calves and it made a huge difference in my recovery

So on very limited experience, I see a lot of value in getting a massage to help get lactic acid out of your muscles after hard effort, but I can't imagine how a massage makes any good or bad difference before a race.

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2018 Races: IM Santa Rosa, Vineman Monte Rio, Lake Tahoe 70.3

Never

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I used to get weekly massages during my first IM build. Sport massages are so rough that sometimes I felt like I needed an extra day to recover from getting one. I don't do them anymore. Still injury free... I would be interested more in air boots or e-stim to help with recovery.

literally laughed out loud at this. Thanks

I think only you can answer that. Does your body tell you that you need them? I have qualified three times and through the heavily loaded periods I generally get one a week my body goes through phases where it feels loose and doesn't require them and I don't bother. I think it is a bit of a nice to have and may help prevent injury rather than a huge gain in performance. That being said I switched to Hokas between Konas I'd raced and get nowhere near the running soreness I did and feel I require less massage so can be a lot of factors you can change and to be considered.

If I am doing a serious build (like for a marathon), I probably go for a massage at least once a month. Certainly helps with recovery and staying healthy when you are training a lot.
My most recent BQ -20 minutes included about 4 massages along the way.