RSM-SPM-S005
Written by Hironori Ikeda, MSc Sports Medicine
RSM International Academy · Chiang Mai, Thailand
Sports Massage clinical guides → Sports Massage Session: What Should You Assess and Treat?
A concise decision log makes a massage session easier to explain and review. It should show why contact was selected and what happened afterward, rather than only listing techniques.
In This Article
- In This Article
- 1. Recording the Goal, Contact and Matched Re-Test
- Before Contact
- During the Session
- After Contact
- At the Next Check-In
- 2. Connect the Baseline Task to the Contact Choice
- 3. What to Keep in the Re-Test
- Related RSM Clinical Blogs
- Study Sports Massage at RSM
1. Recording the Goal, Contact and Matched Re-Test
Before Contact
Write the client’s goal in their words and choose one suitable baseline task. Record the conditions that matter: support, position, load, range and the familiar symptom. Note consent and any reason to defer treatment.
During the Session
Record the region, support, joint positions, approximate duration and the palpable finding that led to contact. Describe the intended tissue layer and pressure direction in relation to the anatomy, including inward, lengthwise or crosswise components, rather than only writing “deep pressure” or the stroke name. Record hand travel and tissue movement separately: a stroke can travel toward the hip while its load angles inward or across the thigh. Add tolerance, any active movement used and the reason you changed the contact. This lets the next session test the same decision instead of merely repeating a technique.
After Contact
Repeat the original task under matching conditions. Record symptom intensity, range or difficulty as separate outcomes. “No immediate change” is a useful result and should not be hidden behind an account of tissue release.
At the Next Check-In
Ask whether the relevant daily or training task changed and whether there was an unwanted later response. The log supports learning and continuity; it does not prove that one technique caused all subsequent improvement. Keep identifying client information in an appropriately protected clinical record, not a public teaching article.
2. Connect the Baseline Task to the Contact Choice
A useful log distinguishes the presenting goal from the chosen contact. For example, record discomfort during the lowering phase of a familiar squat, the support and depth used, the region selected and the reason for that choice. A list of techniques alone does not show clinical reasoning.
3. What to Keep in the Re-Test
At the next visit, ask whether the same daily or sporting task changed and what load occurred between sessions. If the task improved only after training was reduced, document the combined context rather than crediting the manual contact alone.
Related RSM Clinical Blogs
▷ Sports Massage Session: What Should You Assess and Treat? — Sports Massage · Explore the full symptom assessment and treatment decisions.
▷ Pain Is Gone: Can the Athlete Play? Return-to-Sport Criteria — Sports Medicine Massage · Compare a related clinical question from another assessment angle.
▷ Low Back Pain: Muscle, Joint or Nerve? — Remedial Massage · Connect the contact finding with movement and load.
Study Sports Massage at RSM
Develop the anatomical comparison, contact control and re-assessment skills behind this note. View Sports Massage course details. Explore the clinical guide. Check the official course schedule.
For the landmark and clinical palpation foundation, explore the Trigger Point Therapy course.
About the Author
Hironori Ikeda, MSc Sports Medicine is the lead instructor at RSM International Academy. His teaching connects functional anatomy, clinical palpation, treatment decisions and re-assessment.