The Internet world and sporting world is a buzz with Kinesio tape.
If you’ve watched any of the Olympics, you’ve probably seen it. It’s the black tape on shoulders of athletes like volleyballer Kerri Walsh. And no, it’s not a tattoo, but it may have helped her and her teammate, Misty May-Treanor win some gold. You may have also seen it various pink or blue colors on a LOT of other athletes as well. Do only Olympic athletes use this mystical, magical tape? No. A lot of other superstar athletes have used it including Lance Armstrong, Serena Williams, and whole slew of others. Sure, the makers of the tape say it’s good for athletes, but it’s also good for the everyday athlete and more run of the mill things.
So, what is the magical tape good for other than winning gold medals and Tour de France? Basically, you could think of it as athletic tape on steroids (and from the planet Krypton). Normal athletic tape is used for taping up weak joints and muscles to get someone moving again. It’s not very stretchy, it’s not the nicest to remove from body hair, but it does do it’s job.
This is where Kinesio tape takes the cake. It is significantly stretchier than normal tape–the makers claim it can stretch up to 130-140% of it’s normal length. Try that athletic tape! Plus, their some sort of sticky magic, I’ve seen it applied to a (hairy) forearm, and removed without even the slightest grimace. It’s stretchy nature also allows for two types of applications–stretched and unstretched. The way you use it depends on whether you looking to increase fluid flow to an area to aid healing, or if there is a musculoskeletal injury you’re trying to support. So, it can be used to help support injured joints and muscles to (according to the manufacturer) relieve pain and speed healing. This is of obvious benefit as a palliative measure to anyone whose had these issues but still needed to make full use that area–so pretty much everyone. Some of the athletes are using it in post-surgery situations to help protect them as they get back to their activities.
Another advantage over normal athletic tape is it’s width. This allows the Kinesio tape to be cut into those fun shapes you’re seeing all over the Olympics. The shapes are designed to follow the natural path of the muscles across the body. I’ve only ever seen athletic tape really used to help shore up joints by wrapping them tightly in place, usually adding support at the expense of mobility. As the name “Kinesio tape” evokes, it allows the wearer to still move with the tape in place.
The tape is also water resistant, which is why some swimmers/water polo players are wearing it, which I don’t think I’ve ever seen happen with any from of normal athletic tape.
It’s an interesting product, and I’m curious if it would be any supporting benefit to the Rolfing process. The added lymph flow would definitely be an assist in any area that has a lot of fascial adhesions that have just been broken up to help get the re-released toxins out of the area.
Filed under: Anatomy, Sports
Posted August 22, 2008
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Well, the 2008 Olympics have been going on for awhile now. If you haven’t watched, then you’re missing out on some prime examples of functional bodies and motions.
Primarily, if you watch the gymnasts and swimmers warming up. If you see them swinging their arms around, you might notice that there is a LOT of motion in their arms. You might even think it looks like fatty tissue moving around–which seems odd since you don’t normally see any fat on the atheletes’ bodies.
Well, what you’re looking at is relaxed muscle tissue. When muscles and the associated fascia are at a properly lengthened and toned state, they should feel like a gel and you should be able to gently press though the entire muscle belly to the tissue/bone beneath it. It is tight, restricted muscles that get the “hard muscle” feel that many associate with strength. Actually, the relaxed muscles will be stronger. When you contract that muscle, the gel turns into that “hard muscle” that you expect. If the muscle is always in that state, it’s wasting energy by being partially contracted (or resisting being pulled apart) all the time.
So, if you feel like you have these tight muscles and not the gel like ones, what can you do? Well, a great idea is to stretch. Yes, it is always said, but who actually does enough? Frankly, EVERYONE can benefit from some more stretching. Animals do it instinctively when they get up after sleeping or laying down for awhile. Take a few minutes and stretch when you wake up in the morning or after getting up from sitting for a long time.
For those with Restless Leg Symdrome, some leg strecthing before going to bed can be beneficial as well. While not as direct as doing Rolfing, it does provide some benefit. And stretching is a excellent adjust to furthering your Rolfing progress as well.
And most importantly, after doing anything “athletic” (even if you define that as house work), take those few minutes and give your body some breathing room.
Filed under: Anatomy, Daily Tips, Sports
Posted August 19, 2008
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Make sure you get a drop to drink. It’s hot out there in Portland and the surrounding area right now. Make sure you stay hydrated.
Water is one of the most important building blocks of life. The human body is essentially a mobile bag of salt water. If you don’t have enough water in you, the basic processes of life are limited and you just won’t function as well. Plus, chronic dehydration can set up the situation for your body to create fascial adhesions easier. These adhesions can be thought of simply as dehydrated laters of fascia that end up sticking together and then limiting motion.
So….get those glasses of water in. A helpful tip to drink more water can be to add some flavoring. Add a nice lemon wedge or something similar. Just that little bit of flavor encourages us to drink more just “plain, boring” water does.
Filed under: Daily Tips
Posted August 15, 2008
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Do you sit? Chances are that if you’re an American (or any modern culture), sitting is an activity that people do more than they think. People use to squat a lot during work or other activities, but not much anymore. We live in an increasingly sedentary culture and sit for longer and longer periods of time.
How should we sit? That is a complicated question. Most people sit passively. Or in other words, they just plop into their chairs and stay however is comfortable. While it might feel good, it’s not the best for our structure. The easiest way to start sitting better without worry about mechanics is to sit actively–sense how your body feels and reacts as you sit and move around. Are you even moving around? Can you feel breath moving through your entire lungs and even through the rest of your body?
Most furniture isn’t designed for proper ergonomic sitting. It tends to encourage rounding of the back and rolling backwards off of our sit bones. This tends to make up sit on our tailbones. Have you ever seen an animal sit on their tail? Your seat should allow your hit joint to be at least slightly higher than your knee. If you can image a drop of water being able to roll down your thigh, you’ve found a good height. For non-adjustable chairs, you can think about sitting on a folded-up blanket or some other semi-firm material to get you higher. On stackable chairs, try stacking one atop the other to get a different height. If it is already too high, find something to place next to the chair so your feet are able to contact a firm surface.
Lumbar support if often counterproductive as well. Try putting some support behind your sacrum (the back part of the pelvis at the base of the spine), and see how that works for you. Chances are that it will help you feel more upright with less effort.
Finally, the sitz bones themselves are very important to place correctly. The sit bones (or ischial tuberosities) are the knobby bones you can feel where your legs merge with your butt. You should have one on each side. A good sitting position will have your pelvis rotated so that you are sitting just on the front edge of the sit bones, almost like you are sitting on top of the back of your thigh.
These are just a few tips on how to sit. Sitting can be a very involved activity, and there are a lot of places to focus on sitting to support your structure and prevent soreness and pain. Often, just trying different positions can help you narrow down what feels best for your own body. Remember, sitting should be active.
Filed under: Application, sitting
Posted May 23, 2008
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The annual children’s clinic went well this year. It was my second year in attendance. There were four Rolfers present this year, and we were able to help 8-10 kids (you try counting when they are running all over the place).
Even though children’s bodies are still developing, Rolfing can be extremely beneficial for them. Kids are still learning how to use their bodies, and the earlier to help them find and use different options for movement, the better off they will be in the long run. It can also be surprising how much tension can be found in kid’s bodies, so Rolfing can help in that regard as well. Also, children getting therapeutic touch now (as well as loving touch and contact from their families) sets them up for much more emotional/psychological success in the future.
However, kids can’t process as much neurological input as an adult would, so sessions then to be shorter. It is also important the child want to receive the work, and not just the parent wanting them to get it. Just like any session, the client should be involved and want to be there.
Filed under: Local, Rolfing® Structural Integration
Posted April 20, 2008
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Several Rolfer’s from the Portland area, myself included, will be sponsoring the annual Rolfer’s Childrens Clinic. It will be held on Saturday, April 19th, 2008 from 9-11AM. Generally, the mini-sessions will be 10-30 minutes in length. And, did I mention that it’s totally FREE!!! The treatments can be for concerns such as scoliosis, growing pains, pigeon toes, etc. You could even use it as a trial run to see if your child would be interested in getting more sessions outside of the free clinic.
The location is to be announced, but it should be located on the near eastside of town. If you want to make a reservation for your child, please call Karin Edwards at 503-230-0087 to schedule a time.
Filed under: Local, North Star Integration, Rolfing® Structural Integration
Posted April 13, 2008
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Many people like to get a massage and just zone out completely. I’ll agree…it feels nice. But you don’t learn much about yourself.
This is just one way that Rolfing is different from massage. Rolfing is essentially a participatory team sport. It is all about learning how to move differently and use your body in different, and often totally new, ways. You work in concert with your Rolfer during a session and by yourself outside of the sessions to practice this new skill. Laying on a table and having someone “go to town” of your tissue might feel good and definitely has benefits, but participation and learning are where the real power for growth and change exist.
Rolfing often does help people enter a more meditative state of mind. While it may seem like normal “zoning out”, you are still able to interact with me and do the movements of the session. Of course, sometimes people drift a little deeper, but that is usually what is needed in the moment so it’s OK.
Filed under: Rolfing® Structural Integration
Posted April 3, 2008
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It took a while to get the theme worked out to match the rest of the site and to make some technical decisions, but the site is up and running. The layout is still a work in progress, so if the blog isn’t working, it should be working shortly. And if you’re using IE5 or IE6 as your main browser, the theme may look a little wrong, but the text should still work.
Thanks for bearing with me.
Filed under: North Star Integration
Posted March 31, 2008
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I started this blog to keep people up to date on the going ons of North Star Integration. Please forgive the look of the page for awhile as I’m still integrating the blogging software into the website. Stay tuned for more content such as tips, anatomy fun, places where Rolfing® and structural integration show up in the media, and maybe even general news about Portland.
Filed under: North Star Integration
Posted January 8, 2008
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