Post-Isometric Stretching Therapy
Studies have shown that this kind of therapy — which is used to treat muscles involved in walking, sitting, and standing, including those in the neck, the base of the head, the mid-back, and the chest — reduces both chronic and acute pain by as much as 94%. In other words, post-isometric stretching therapy is more effective than simple stretching.
More about Post-Isometric Stretching Therapy
Post-isometric stretching therapy is recommended for the postural muscles in particular – generally speaking, those that keep us upright and properly aligned in spite of gravity and our 12-pound heads. These muscles tend to become shortened. Post-isometric stretching therapy also is used to treat muscles in the lower body, including the hamstrings; the rectus femoris muscles that make up the quadriceps; and the adductors, along the inner thigh.
What’s the difference between post-isometric stretching and standard stretching? The former is safer and more effective in the way it closely regulates the process to avoid over-stretching while the latter often gets overdone to the point of being counterproductive. Take your stretching too far and you trigger the stretch reflex, a protective rebound response that causes the over-elongated muscle to contract. Post-isometric stretching relaxes tight muscles without waking up the stretch reflex, so it’s more helpful in easing spasms and increasing range of motion. One study found that 39 of 40 subjects who had tight hamstrings had increased flexibility with post-isometric stretching, which proceeds in stairstep stages. More-elastic hamstrings help prevent the common injury of straining that muscle and are helpful in easing sciatica.
What’s the difference between post-isometric stretching and standard stretching? The former is safer and more effective in the way it closely regulates the process to avoid over-stretching while the latter often gets overdone to the point of being counterproductive. Take your stretching too far and you trigger the stretch reflex, a protective rebound response that causes the over-elongated muscle to contract. Post-isometric stretching relaxes tight muscles without waking up the stretch reflex, so it’s more helpful in easing spasms and increasing range of motion. One study found that 39 of 40 subjects who had tight hamstrings had increased flexibility with post-isometric stretching, which proceeds in stairstep stages. More-elastic hamstrings help prevent the common injury of straining that muscle and are helpful in easing sciatica.
Other treatments we offer include
Subluxation Correction
Flexion-Distraction Therapy
Moist-Heat Therapy
EMG/NCV Testing
Post-Isometric Stretching Therapy
Home-Health Aides
Therapeutic Exercise
Need an Appointment?
First-time visitors must provide background information, medical history, and injury or condition particulars so that we can provide the best possible care, tailored to your specific circumstances.- (585) 444-4040
