Backpacks and Muscle Tone
Imagine going on a long hike, mile after mile up the side of a mountain. Now imagine that same hike with an 60-pound pack on your back. While you may still be able to complete the hike with the 60-pound pack, it will be more difficult, your muscles will be more sore and your joints are more likely to ache. I commonly use this analogy with clients who have recurring planter fasciitis, IT-Band Syndrome, or some forms of knee pain. Often these patients have previously worked with other physical therapists and experienced good, albeit temporary, results. These symptoms keep returning, despite the best efforts of other physical therapists, because the root cause has not been addressed. In other words, the 60-pound pack has not been removed.
Nerves activate muscles. This means, if a nerve sends a message to a muscle, that muscle gets tight. The more messages being sent, the tighter the muscle gets (more on this topic here). There are a number of ways to cause a nerve to send messages to muscles. You can consciously do so, as when tossing a ball for your dog. You can also do so subconsciously with “sympathetic tone”, as when you are stressed and your shoulders get tight and creep up towards your ears. You can also do so with electricity as in the “Tens Unit Challenge,” which has several YouTube videos you can watch. Another way is by physically irritating a nerve. This happens when you hit your “funny bone” aka your Ulnar Nerve. And, in this we find the most common root-cause for recurring planter fasciitis, IT-Band Syndrome, and some forms of knee pain.
The location of this root-cause is often, but not always, in the low back or pelvis. Typically, these individuals will have difficulty stabilizing a segment or two in their lower back or their SI Joint. The resulting ‘wiggle’ irritates a nerve, resulting in the innervated muscles being constantly held a little tight. Normally, this increased tone is not noticed by the person unless it’s pointed out. Though, sometimes these people will talk about tension in their calves, hamstrings, or IT-Bands. Regardless, this increased tone is akin to walking around with a 60-pound pack on - tissues end up working extra hard and, if too much demand is placed on these tissues, they start to break down and hurt. This pain can be easily relieved with simple stretches found with a brief online search. However, if you want a plan that addresses the root cause, providing long-term relief, I suggest you contact Own Your Health Physiotherapy, where our healthcare focus is on quality results instead of quantity of treatments. You can also learn more by contacting us or reading our next blog series. The first one is titled: Heed the Warning: Chronic stretching part 1.
