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How to Strengthen your Core Muscles
What is Massage?
As well as pain relief, massage therapy provides so many benefits to help improve your health and wellbeing.
The following list details the many benefits of massage:
- Massage helps promote blood flow and lymph flow which brings healthy nutrients and oxygen to the injured site and assists in the removal of wastes and toxins in the blood
- helps improve elasticity in muscles and soft tissues
- can help relax muscles and improve sleep
- can help benefit sports performers by increasing flexibility in muscles and soft tissue as well as reducing recovery time of injuries
- can also help to prevent injury as a tight muscle is more likely to become torn
- can help to relieve symptoms of PMS or headaches
- can help increase range of motion in soft tissue structures for those living with osteoarthritis
- can help those suffering pain during pregnancy
- can also help relieve people of postural tension.
What is Myotherapy?
Clinical Myotherapists primarily use Massage as their main tool however have also got the skills and knowledge to apply wide variety of other techniques when necessary to further assist you back to optimal health.
Some of the other techniques used by Myotherapists along side massage are:
Dry Needling or trigger point therapy– when pressure or a needle is applied to a ‘knot’ in the muscle. This aids in the release of these trigger points reducing pain and increasing ROM. Even though the same needles are used dry needling is used for different purposes to acupuncture.
Spinal mobilization- another technique that works well with massage. Spinal mobilization uses a ballistic type action on joints of the spine, which increases the movement between each joint. Often the joints in the neck become stiff and can contribute to nerve impingements and muscle guarding which causes tension headaches/ migraines.
Myofascial Release: another very effective technique when applied with massage. Myofascial release aims to release the fascia that surrounds all muscles.
What is fascia you ask?
Fascia is a thick tissue that surrounds all your muscles and bones. Fascia runs from your head to your toes, hence damage in one area can affect other areas distant from the cause of the problem.
Myofascia when in a healthy state is relaxed and soft, it has the ability to move and be stretched without restriction. When healthy it helps to maintain good posture, range of motion and flexibility.
Heat therapy: Heat is used to increase blood flow to an area by opening up the blood vessels. Heat offers a similar effect to massage in that it helps to promote blood flow and lymph flow which brings healthy nutrients and oxygen to the injured site and assists in the removal of wastes and toxins in the blood.
This helps reduce pain and muscle spasm. Applying superficial heat to the body can increase the soft tissues flexibilities.
Cryotherapy: Can be used in inflammation or acute injuries when massage may be contraindicated.Cold does the opposite to heat and slows down the blood flow to an injured site, which helps reduce pain, spasm and inflammation. Hence it is very effective for areas that are swollen or bruised.
TENS therapy and electro-needling: TENS is the abbreviation for transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation. Which is when Pads or needles are inserted onto or into muscles. It works by sending a current through the body to help reduce pain. It is useful with acute and chronic conditions.
Cupping: Cups are placed onto the skin either via heat or a suction gun. The cups, like massage increase the blood flow to the area aiding in healing the tissues. Cupping is also used for a range of other medical conditions by other health professionals.
Corrective exercises: Exercises that may be given to you to stretch or strengthen muscles and soft tissue- a vital element to the recovery of a lot of conditions.
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http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/arthritis/in-depth/arthritis/art-20046440
Everyday routines
Do some gentle exercise in the evening; you'll feel less stiff in the morning. When you're sitting still, either watching TV, reading or working at your desk, be sure to:
- Adjust your position frequently.
- Periodically tilt your neck from side to side, change the position of your hands, and bend and stretch your legs.
- Pace yourself. Take breaks so that you don't overuse a single joint and cause more pain.
- Stand and walk around every half-hour or so.
In addition, lifestyle changes are important for easing pain.
- Manage weight. Being overweight can increase complications of arthritis and contribute to arthritis pain. Making incremental, permanent lifestyle changes resulting in gradual weight loss is often the most effective method of weight management.
- Quit smoking. Smoking causes stress on connective tissues, which leads to more arthritis pain.
http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/arthritis/in-depth/arthritis/art-20046440
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Myofascial release. Myofascial release (or MFR) is an alternative medicine therapy that claims to treat skeletal muscle immobility and pain by relaxing contracted muscles, improving blood and lymphatic circulation, and stimulating the stretch reflex in muscles.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Myofascial_release
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