Kinesiology Taping: How It Can Benefit You
Kinesiology tape is a non-invasive, drug-free method that chiropractors use to relieve muscle pain and relax a patient’s body. You can sleep and shower with kinesiology tape on, and it doesn’t restrain your movement because it closely matches the elasticity of your skin. Often, you will see athletes on TV wearing the colorful tape, especially with professional volleyball players or marathon runners whose uniforms show a lot of skin. Even if you’re not an athlete, kinesiology tape may still help your pain! Before your next chiropractor appointment, learn about kinesiology taping and how it can benefit you.
Athletes
Even if you are just a recreational athlete or a workout hobbyist, kinesiology tape can help alleviate the common soreness that comes with being active. The major perk of kinesiology tape is that it increases blood and fluid circulation wherever you apply it. Increased blood flow during activity means there is more oxygen moving through your body, which leads to healthier muscles and a lower likelihood of injuring yourself with torn ligaments or sprains. Kinesiology tape will also add space to joints, which will reduce soreness and irritation.
After an Injury
Chiropractors and physical therapists alike use kinesiology tape on patients to help them recover after an injury. They may also add kinesiology tape to a treatment to relieve pain and sometimes speed up the healing process. It’s also been used on stroke patients to retrain muscles and regain function. You should never use kinesiology tape on open wounds, but you can use it to assist with bruise recovery and reducing swelling.
Pregnancy Pain
Kinesiology tape provides gentle, safe pain relief for new mothers both during and after pregnancy. During pregnancy, expectant mothers can apply kinesiology tape to the lower back and abdomen. Excruciating back pain is common in pregnant women, but applying tape to the lower back provides extra support during active hours and while asleep.
Applying tape to the belly will also add support for the extra weight added by the baby. It can also help reduce pressure on the pelvic floor and relieve pain. The flexibility of kinesiology tape means that it can stretch in any direction to provide relief for many different types of pregnancy pains. After pregnancy, a chiropractor can use kinesiology tape to repair and retrain a mother’s abdominal wall for diastasis recti, or the separation of the large abdominal muscles.
Kinesiology taping can provide pain relief to many other health conditions, from arthritis to neck pain. Contact a Garden State Spinal Care chiropractor in Montclair, NJ, to learn more about kinesiology taping and how it can benefit you personally.
