* Cyclists have shortened hip flexors (the muscles in the area where the thigh meets the torso that bend and raise the knee) and often tight necks.
* Jujitsu fighters have short hip flexors plus contracted abdominals.
* Kick boxers develop contractions in the muscles at the side of the buttocks, as well as lower-back pain.
* Tennis players are vulnerable to tennis elbow, shoulder injuries, and lower- back pain.
* Contact sports (e.g., wrestling, football, hockey, and basketball) are particularly destructive. They cause bruising when players crash into each other and cause overstretch injuries when they react to each other’s moves. Wrestlers who lift and throw opponents torque their backs and wind up with back pain.
We all have tight muscles from time to time... but did you know about Facia?
What is FASCIA
Fascia is a part of the connective tissue system to which relatively little attention has been given in the past.
Fascia is a part of the connective tissue system to which relatively little attention has been given in the past.
Whenever there’s an injury, the fascia adheres to itself and to other soft tissues, and administering a sudden twist can cause all these tissues to tear. But in order to make the kind of changes in the body structure that can really heal an injury, the fascia must be actively stretched.
There are tremendous benefits of fully functioning fascia for both performance and injury prevention.The fascia unites all the structures of the body. It’s the one tissue that touches every single organ, nerve, joint, and blood vessel. That’s why whatever your problem is—arthritis, worn cartilage in your knee, stiff neck—stretching the fascia helps. The fact that the fascia connects all the parts of the body explains why the stretches often focus on an area far from where you feel pain.remember: no matter what injury your sport may cause, stretching and massage can prevent or fix it.
Myofascial release treatments is a whole body approach to treatment. A good example is the chronic low back pain client; although the low back is the primary area of injury, the client may also have significant discomfort in the neck. This is due to the gradual tightening of the muscles and especially of the fascia as the tightness creeps its way up the back, eventually creating neck and head pain. Experience shows that optimal resolution of the low back pain requires release of the fascia of both the head and neck. If the neck tightness is not also released, it will continue to apply a downward drag until fascial restriction and pain returns to the low back.
Muscle provides the greatest bulk of our body's soft tissue. Because all muscle is enveloped by and ingrained with fascia, myofascial release is the term that has been given to the techniques that are used to relieve soft tissue from the abnormal grip of tight fascia.
The collagenous fibers of fascia are extremely tough and resistant to stretch. In fact, it is estimated that fascia has a tensile strength of as much as 2000 pounds per square inch. No wonder it causes pain when it tightens!
Thai Stretch Massage can help and this awesome treatment will leave you feeling
longer and taller than ever!
Be well and stretch every day:)
Coach Shanon
