News & Advice
Muscle Release – Relieving Pain From Poor Posture
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The human body has approximately 640 muscles which accounts for about half of your total body weight. Muscles are prone to becoming tight often due to previous injury, overuse or poor posture. Most of us have the latter in common! Therefore, I thought it would be wise to discuss how muscle release can help relieve pains or discomfort associated with poor posture.
During a typical day there will be times when we’re sat slouching for prolonged periods; whether that be whilst sitting at a desk at work or binge-watching Breaking Bad on Netflix. When you slouch the lower back flattens, the mid-back becomes more rounded, your chin pokes out and your shoulders hunch forward.
Consequently muscles, such as the back of the neck and chest, can become tight, achy and uncomfortable if your posture and its associated symptoms are not addressed.
If you are getting discomfort due to tight muscles, first of all try to address your posture. Providing additional support to your lower back in the form of a lumbar support can help to maintain the natural curve in your lower back whilst in a sitting position. This automatically places the rest of your spine in a better position too.
Physio’s can help too! Muscle release techniques can help to improve the properties of the muscle by specifically aiming to increase circulation, break down muscle adhesions, and elongate the muscle fibres. These techniques include general massage strokes (e.g. effleurage/petrissage) as well as more specialist techniques such as:
– Trigger point release
– Muscle energy techniques
– Soft tissue release
A quick postural assessment performed by a physio is important to help identify any muscles which may be predisposed to becoming tight. From that assessment, we can then choose the most appropriate soft tissue techniques or give advice on appropriate stretching exercises that will be most beneficial for each individual client that comes through our doors.
Caroline Schofield qualified as a Physiotherapist in 2013 from Manchester Metropolitan University and primarily treats at Burnley. Caroline enjoys going to the gym and training for events.