Many therapists recommend clients avoid strenuous outdoor hobby for at least 24 hours after a bodywork session. As muscle cells become adapted to endurance exercise. Massage seems to help this process along.
To see the effects of massage on muscles, they took muscle biopsies of both legs - before and after exercise. The brief massage affected two specific genes in the muscle cells.
The first gene decreases inflammation caused by exercise, similar to the relief you get from certain pain medications.
The second gene turned up production of mitochondria in the muscles. These are the power houses of cells.