Daily Maestroism

DM #173

Saturday, November 12th, 2016

DM #173: Things just don't get and stay tight for no reason.
One of the biggest things I see missed when it comes to treatment is getting the system “back online” after you do that lovely, non-bruise-inducing soft tissue work. I know I preach a lot about the power of movement, but there is ABSOLUTELY benefit to soft tissue/joint work when it comes to treating pain and dysfunction. The caveat is that you gotta activate tissues after all that work. “Releasing” stuff is just half the work. NKT preaches this. FRC preaches this. Common sense (once you take a step back and look at the bigger picture) preaches this. I hate using words like turning muscles “on” and “off” because I think that creates confusion and thought viruses. Suffice to say that when we “inhibit” or “turn off” a muscle we decrease the neural drive to it, or its connection with the nervous system. When we “activate/facilitate/turn on” a muscle we are improving its connection with the nervous system and increasing the neural drive.
Often times in the presence of pain and movement dysfunction these relationships have gotten skewed. Our job as providers is to figure out what needs what, and intervene accordingly. Sometimes it's the same tissue. Sometimes it's the painful area. Sometimes it's somewhere completely separate. How do you know what needs what? That's the fun part.
For those of you who are immediately going to shout NKT as the answer, I'll agree. But I'd be remiss if I didn't say that skilled guesswork with some trial and error couldn't also get the job done, or at least get you on the right track. More than one way to skin a cat.
Take home point: Don't do half the work. Activate after you release.
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