3 Amazing Benefits Of Kinesiology

Kinesiology or Kinesio Tape is an adhesive applied directly to the skin. You've probably seen them on the shoulders, arms, and legs of your favorite athletes. If you’re interested in learning more about their amazing benefits, read on.

1.  Improves Posture and Habitual Movement

Proper alignment in the body is crucial in helping joints recover from activities and decrease pain. So, if you slouch a lot, or have an area in your body that's not properly aligned, the Kinesiology tape can bring it back into alignment without restricting motion, unlike traditional athletic tape. It can help you learn correct movements by guiding the motion smoothly.

The Kinesio tape supplies muscle and joint support that help correct bad posture and promote natural movements to help strengthen muscles that have lost function. It's usually applied on the knees, shoulders, back, ankles, and feet to improve that area’s function.

If applied properly, the tape can retrain muscles that have become accustomed to an improper way of working. The patients can then return to normal and correct function in their everyday life. In a 2017 study, Kinesiology tape has been shown to improve a patient's ability to walk by reducing the pressure that induces pain and fatigue at every step.

2.  Treats Swelling and Bruises

The buildup of fluid (swelling) is called Lymphedema. Patients usually experience this ailment after an injury or surgery. Bruises, on the other hand, occur when veins and capillaries under the skin break. Large bruises can be very painful at times. Kinesio tape can treat both ailments.

For swelling and inflammation, the tape works by creating a passive lift to the skin. This lifting mechanism helps drain the congested fluid as well as any other materials that may collect in the area of the injury. As a result, blood flow improves, and swelling in the injured area is reduced. Applied post-workout, the tape helps remove lactic acids that cause muscle soreness. If cut into strips and applied in a weave pattern on the affected area, Kinesio tape can also treat bruising.

3.  Reduces Pain

It’s not just athletes who are familiar with the effects of a sore body. Painful muscles and joints affect everyone at one point in their lives because of poor posture or lack of activity like sitting at a desk all day.

By changing how the body views pain and compression, Kinesiology tapes can help manage pain regardless of condition, whether it's shoulder pain, back pain, carpal tunnel syndrome, ankle sprains, tennis elbow, and more. 

Applied with gentle manual pressure on the affected area by a physical therapist, the tape works by making skin lift slightly which relieves pressure from the tissues that have sensory receptors for feeling pain, hot, cold, and other sensations.

This decompression changes how the brain reads these signals. The tape blocks the pain signals of the injured tissues from reaching the brain. The Gate Control Theory of Pain explains it as the tape sending signals to 'close the gate' and not allowing potential pain-causing signals to pass.

After applying manual therapy, an expert physical therapist can use different methods of taping depending on the injured area, such as a special taping method for bruises and swelling.

Conclusion

Many have experienced the benefits of Kinesiology Tapes which is why they are real contenders in the world of muscle and joint relief. If you’re aching and have done everything to treat it to no avail, consider trying something different.

Reach out to a physical therapist in Cumming, trained in the use of Kinesio Tapes, like APEX PT. They will explain how to best use this method to alleviate your pain, and after the assessment, they will show the tape application and ensure that it's applied correctly.