A Chiropractor’s View on the Link between Soft-tissue Stretches and Overall Well-being
FASCIA
Chris Oswald
DC
Soft-tissue issues are a common ailment for many patients coming to your clinic every day. You also may experience some of the discomfort attributed to sitting for long hours at work. In light of this rampant epidemic as the workforce continues to require that we sit and focus for longer stretches of time, we felt a sense of duty to guide you toward a better understanding of soft tissue to help you influence the well-being of not only your patients but also yourself.
In the field of health and wellness, a wide array of methods is employed for analysis and treatment of common maladies. Because of our medical pedagogy, we often turn to “conventional wisdom” and quick-fix solutions to alleviate symptoms. After all, very few can say they don’t feel some form of immediate relief after an adjustment. However, while this certainly plays a strong role in improving our momentary health, it offers only one aspect of a larger issue. While this is a broad-spectrum perspective of various medical practices, it’s important we tackle one of the most prevalent afflictions experienced by arguably the entire population inflammation caused by muscle tension.
Do the following sound familiar?
“For better relief, advance to Advil!”
“Aleve: All day strong. All day long.”
“Tylenol: The pain reliever hospitals use most.”
Anytime we experience a bout of back pain, general muscle soreness, or a headache, we often turn to one of these well-advertised drugs. In fact, you can purchase painkillers and NSAIDs (nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) by the hundreds at a cost that is immediately quite affordable, until you take into account the common adverse side effects, such as “nausea, dyspepsia, diarrhea, constipation, gastrointestinal ulceration/bleeding, headache, dizziness, rash, salt and fluid retention, and hypertension.”1’2 It’s worth noting that a drug designed to cure inflammation can directly contribute to it. So is it possible for us to arrive at solutions that are natural as well as engineered with the precision and manipulation of clinical knowledge, much like the VibraCussor? Thankfully, the continuous adaptation of modem science and well-educated researchers has made it a reality in numerous cases. It begins with a basic understanding of fascia.
How Does Fascia Impact Overall Well-being?
What is fascia? It’s a term that is often thrown around by
"It’s worth noting that a drug designed to cure inflammation can directly contribute to it."
massage therapists and doctors alike, but it is not well delineated for the public because it typically is limited to common issues such as plantar fasciitis. Contrary to this notion, fascia is a biological network that extends throughout the entire body and helps suspend water throughout our entire system, and is vital in assisting us to maintain our shape. Structurally it is like a harder piece of'saran wrap' with little holes that allow movement of nutrients and fluids. When your muscles become dehydrated and you experience stiffness or pain, rehydration through fascial work can rectify these common ailments. When you zoom in on a particular area, say for example your foot, it looks like a sheet of connective tissue that is primarily collagen lying just beneath the skin. This sheet attaches, stabilizes, encloses, and separates muscles and other internal organs.3 Given the complex network of fascia, it is common for people with foot pain to also experience lower-back, neck, or shoulder pain; the body is a web and the parts affect the whole.
It’s easy to think of fascia as just another system in our body (skeletal, cardiovascular, muscular, etc.), but its ability to impact our physical well-being is tremendous, and we can see this more notably from a physiological perspective, with a particular focus on how exercise impacts fascia. The average workout is broken down into compound and isolation movements, with the basic understanding that the former allows for greater muscle recruitment across various muscle groups in the body, whereas the latter places focus on specific stimulation. However, this is a result of human intervention, which allows us to conveniently designate the impact of exercise on specific muscle groups. Despite the desired emphasis on isolation movements, there is still a lesser degree of muscular recruitment of surrounding muscle tissue to engage that specific movement. Fascia works in a similar manner; there are three levels of fascia (deep, visceral, and superficial) interconnected and woven together layer upon layer, much like the composition of an orange. The movement of each stimulates and affects surrounding fascia throughout the rest of the body like a butterfly effect, determining everything from a person’s features to posture. As we recognize just how interconnected the entire muscular system is, it becomes clear why focusing on one particular area of perceived pain presents a kludge wherein we treat a specific symptom without addressing the original problem.
The continuously emerging information on the function of fascia begs the question: How can we expect to properly treat the underlying cause of a specific health problem if we don’t take
“There are a few ways to begin correcting this problem, and it begins with resetting muscles. JJ
die whole picture into account? There are a few ways to begin correcting this problem, and it begins with resetting muscles.
Manipulating and resetting muscles have therapeutic effects beyond the treatment of inflammation. Not only does resetting muscles and fascia help offload the spine, allowing any adjustment to hold longer, but increasing research suggests that fascia may be able to uncover and deal with trauma because of stored memories that aren’t exclusively processed neurologically, highlighting that fascia is a living tissue that is extensively connected to the nervous system. “Many bodyworkers, at some point in their practice, have experienced phenomena that may be interpreted as representing a release of memory traces when working on dysfunctional tissues. This feeling may be accompanied by some type of sensory experience, for the therapist and/or the patient. In some cases, early traumatic experiences may be recalled. When this happens, the potency of the memory may be erased or eased, along with restoration of tissue function.”4 The simple act of resetting muscles can quite literally increase mood, productivity, mental health, and perspective because of improved physical and cerebral function.
Why Does Integration Matter?
Having grown up in a household with a father who was heavily entrenched in the chiropractic field, I learned early on about the necessity of an integrated approach and that the most effective treatments included application to more than just the tissue found at the isolated location of pain.
While it is common for many who’ve seen a chiropractor to appreciate the power of an adjustment, as a DC, you might notice that more doctors and massage therapists are beginning to spend more tune on soft-tissue and fascial release techniques. Why is this?
Over time, the longer our nervous system is compromised or aggravated the more the nerves tell the muscles and the fascia to contract. This then signals the holes in the saran wrap-like structure to become smaller and thus restricting the flow of vital nutrients and fluids to enter the muscle. It is this process that triggers us to experience the pain associated with inflammation and it is what I refer to as rust or adhesions. This results in minimized flexibility of our muscle tone that leads us toward becoming hypertonic. This state, in conjunction with the building of adhesions, means that an adjustment simply can’t be as effective; we need to seek the root of the problem, which is the reduced joint mobility, and the way to do this is through soft-tissue and fascial release stretches and a enriching lifestyle.
Why is integrative so much more successful? Scientifically,
we know our nervous system connects, and so does the tissue covering us from head to toe—fascia.
How to Practice Integrative Treatments Effectively
There are two very effective ways to help reset muscles, and when used in tandem, they produce broad-spectrum results: topical application and stretching routines. Topical anti-inflammatories can greatly help site-reduce concentrated inflamed muscles. While there are a few popular options available on die market, it’s important to avoid products that incorporate parabens, dyes, waxes, and coloring agents, as these can be bioaccumulative and in some cases inhibit absorption of the primary medical ingredient, as well as potentially produce undesirable hormonal changes. As a safer alternative, mineral-based treatment options, such as magnesium heptahydrate, have been shown to reduce pain, inflammation, and muscle tension by permeating the superficial fascia, muscle and joints to assist in the healing process with great bioavailability and tuned release.
Where magnesium helps relieve pinpoint locations of inflammation, a well-constructed stretching routine complements the effort by helping tackle larger bands of surrounding tissue. Common issues, such as prolonged periods of sitting, have been demonstrated to significantly reduce longevity. Stretching can help counteract these effects by improving the contraction of hip flexors, circulation in the legs, and improved heart rhythm to push blood flow through static muscle tissues. Desk work directly contributes to neck pains and headaches, which affect
60% of the global population. Not surprisingly, it is also the fourth leading global cause of disability.
A Holistic View: How Soft-tissue Stretches can Impact Hormones and Women
Endometriosis and associated gynecological issues are often a result of nervous system overstimulation, and as such disrupts homeostasis in the biochemical chain. When there is disruption through the spinal alignment, it leads to chronic dysfunction beyond basic pathological problems. This spreads to the surrounding muscles—hip flexors, pelvic floor, sacroiliac joint, and lower back. In fact, inflammation prevents healthy ovulation, overstimulates estrogen receptors and impairs disposal, blocks GABA receptors, impairs estrogen clearance, and inhibits and reduces progesterone. On top of unpleasant periods, this also reduces sex hormones.
A daily 12-minute stretching routine can serve as a solid foundation for maintaining a female patient’s health. Static stretches from 30 to 60 seconds can help reset muscles by emphasizing eccentric lengthening until the muscle adapts back to its normal state. For example, prolonged periods of stationary sitting cause hip flexors to tighten due to their integration with the pelvic floor. As an unfortunate consequence, this can lead to exacerbated menstrual cramping.5 If we consider the joint nature of our hormonal and nervous systems, reducing hip-flexor tension directly correlates to reduced intensity,
duration, and frequency of menstrual cramping.
An integrated approach, including magnesium and supporting minerals, further increases bioavailability in tackling menstrual issues. Supplementing with vitamin B6 and zinc can reduce the severity of menstrual cramping. In addition, amino acid supplementation, vitamin A, vitamin E, and minerals such as manganese and selenium help your liver metabolize and dispose of estrogen, testosterone, and endocrine disruptors found in common everyday products. This helps maintain hormonal balance by preventing micronutrient deficiencies and eliminating waste products from the body.6
Things to Keep in Mind
The advancement of our digital age comes with conveniences, but unfortunately, this means we don’t get simple repetitive stress or strain anymore; we get super tendinitis or super fasciitis. This means that we develop incredible tension in the fascia, which leads to reduced blood flow and ultimately lower nutrient content in the muscles, eventually causing quicker onset of connective tissue adhesions. Stretching helps minimize tension as well as lessen the accumulation of rust which improves the flow of fuel and water supply to our muscles. The end result is less stress on the spinal joints, nervous system, and an overall reduction in chronic pain. As chiropractors, this is what we are here to do!
Works cited:
1. Rossi, S, ed. (2013). Australian Medicines Handbook (2013 ed.). Adelaide: The Australian Medicines Handbook Unit Trust.
2. Castellsague, Dr Jordi; Riera-Guardia, Nuria; Calingaert, Brian; Varas-Lorenzo, Cristina; Fourrier-Reglat, Annie; Nicotra, Federica; Sturkenboom, Miriam; Perez-Gutthann, Susana; Project, Safety of Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs (SOS) (2012-12-13). “IndividualNSAIDs and Upper Gastrointestinal Complications’’. Drug Safety. 35 (12): 1127-1146.
3. Marieb, Elaine Nicpon; Hoehn, Katja. (2007). Human Anatomy and Physiology. Pearson Education, p. 133.
4. Tozzi, Paolo. Journal of Bodywork and Movement Therapies. 2014 Apr;18(2):259-65.
5. Bertone-Johnson, el al. (2014), Association of inflammation markers with menstrual symptom severity and premenstrual syndrome in young women. Human Reproduction 29 no. 9, 1987-1994.
6. Aronstam, Lauren. “PMS is Not Normal. ” Web blogpost. Body and Soul Sustenance. 31 Aug. 2016. Web. 31 May 2017. http:// bodyandsoulsustenance.com/pms-is-not-normal/
Dr. Chris Oswald is the founder and CEO of The Centre for Fitness, Health, and Performance in Toronto, Canada, and has over 29 years of clinical experience treating muscle, joint, and back pain, performed over 1 million adjustments, and treated over 20,000 patients. The Canadian Chiropractic Association has recognized him as one of the nation’s top 20 leaders under the age of 40. Recognizing the fundamental need for a safer alternative to NSAIDs, he pioneered the formulation of an all-natural, three time scientifically backed topical pain relief product, MuscleCare, helping people from professional athletes to the average sufferer minimize their pain. He recently developed the Massage Envy Total Stretch protocol that will be used at all 1500franchise locations.
