Muscle release therapies or MRT for short has been around for thousands of years and pose many great benefits. If that’s deep tissue massage, myofascial release, acupuncture, dry needling, the list goes on and on, but they all have one core principle. They release the tension in the specific muscle being worked on. So how does this benefit you and fit into the chiropractic lifestyle?
Firstly, decreasing muscle tension helps increase ROM, therefore decreasing physical stress on the spine. Muscle tension is one of the biggest factors affecting our nervous system. MRT makes a huge difference in your overall muscular tone helping balance how those muscle pull on the spine. Less stress on the spine means less stress on our central nervous system. As chiropractors deal with the spine and nervous system, we see adjustments holding longer and people responding quicker to care plans.
This leads me to the second benefit of muscle release therapies which is quicker recovery. MRT can help reduced inflammation and increase lymphatic drainage which is well known to help both healthy and injured tissue to heal. This is the idea of circulation; it promotes the elimination of waste and flow of nutrients into and out of tissues of the body. Improved circulation also increases the body’s natural immune function as the body is able to get rid of any foreign invaders.
MRT not only increases recovery time this way but also allows muscle tension to be at a lower than before it was injured, meaning better prevention of injury in the future. Chiropractic fits in by increasing the mind body connection which allows the brain to better support the injured tissue, getting the requirements it needs.
Lastly MRT can help reduce anxiety and increase mood. It can force you to relax and distract you from the hustle and bustle of daily life. We know that chiropractic care and MRT can release endorphins which regulate mood, leaving you more happy, relaxed and full of energy.
Therefore, decreasing tension, increasing blood flow, reducing stress and anxiety, and increased immunity helps to make the muscles more elastic, improving range of motion and allowing overall better muscle and joint function. As you can see, both muscular skeletal and nervous system of the go hand in hand, combining the two means we simply get better optimum function.