“We don’t stop hiking because we grow old – We grow old because we stop hiking.” – Finis Mitchel
Being Active Sometimes Means Being in Pain
Anyone who regularly works out or runs knows the discomfort and pain that occurs after a session where he or she has pushed too hard or overdid it. The pain often diminishes over a brief period of time. However, athletes and other active types can also injure themselves while working out.
Are exercise-related injuries common?
According to an Insurance Information Institute overview of sports injury caused by exercise or equipment:
Under 5 7,103
5 to 14 54,407
14 to 24 110,072
25 to 64 282,716
Over 65 72,052
Total 526,350
However, many sports injuries don’t always become apparent until long after they’ve occurred.
Unfortunately, athletes and others will often “push through” the pain of these injuries. This is unfortunate because it can cause injuries to actually become worse over time. Both the brain and the body will adapt to injuries, but often by incomplete healing around an injury, which can cause more harm in the long run.
It is known that the brain and body will adapt to the impact that injuries have on our movement. Although the human body will usually heal over time, if an injury is left untreated it can cause chronic muscle pain in other areas as a result of muscle compensation.
A common activity that often presents this muscle compensation dysfunction is walking.
Simply put, a compensation pattern or dysfunction can be seen as an alternate neuromuscular movement that the body employs when normal neuromuscular movement is no longer possible or is too painful. Sometimes this alternate movement pattern is quite apparent.
Walking after suffering an ankle sprain, for example, can present as a compensation pattern. The body will alter its normal gait mechanics by employing an alternate movement pattern that minimizes the amount of weight placed on the injured ankle.
However, muscle compensation patterns can be far more subtle and more difficult to identify.
A Look at Muscle Pain and NeuroKinetic Therapy™
NeuroKinetic Therapy™, or NKT™, is a technique that was co-developed by David Weinstock in the mid-1980s, and it has since been used to treat a variety of disorders.
Essentially, NeuroKinetic Therapy™ is a technique that has been proven to restore the body back to its proper movement and balance. Dysfunctional movement patterns are identified and readjusted with NKT™ so that functional movement is restored. By testing various muscles, using NeuroKinetic Therapy™, we can identify which ones are compensating for other muscles.
Once a compensation pattern is defined, we can then manipulate the compensator muscle so that it is released and then re-train it neurologically to work correctly throughout the proper range of motion repeatedly.
Applying NeuroKinetic Therapy™
While that may sound good in general terms, you may be wondering how it actually works?
NeuroKinetic Therapy™ techniques assess any coordination system dysfunction that has occurred because of overuse, repetitive stress, and positioning, intense training, postural misalignment, or even from traumatic injury and surgery.
The therapy operates through communicating with what Weinstock calls the “Motor Control Center” (MCC) in the cerebellum portion of the brain.
The cerebellum or, more specifically, the MCC is responsible for coordinating proper voluntary movements and dysfunctional movements, as well. This is accomplished as movement is stored in the MCC as a pattern, not as specific muscle functions. In other words, if muscles that are supposed to perform a prescribed movement are not available due to compensations or coordination system dysfunctions, other muscles – called compensators – are used to execute the task.
The problem is that long-term use of compensators by the body can lead to tightness, stiffness, pain, and further dysfunctions. NeuroKinetic Therapy™ is effective in these situations since it addresses the cause of the pain instead of addressing symptoms. And the actual cause is the dysfunctional movement patterns stored in the brain.
This process allows Neurokinetic Therapy to yield fast and lasting results.
In fact, as one of the principal founders of this manual therapy, David Weinstock has described NeuroKinetic Therapy™ as a “quick, cost-effective treatment for permanent injury rehabilitation.”
Chronic Foot Pain Relief with Pain and Performance Solutions and NKT™
At your first appointment, we will learn about your present pain as well as any history of discomfort. This is because treating and relieving your foot pain starts when we understand where and how your pain started.
A full examination will help us determine which form of treatment technique, such as NeuroKinetic Therapy™, to get you back on the road to recovery. Because the human body will compensate for pain to allow us to function during our day, the pain can shift around and lead to other forms of pain.
Ultimately, getting your body healthy and working properly is the only way to achieve total recovery. In the process, your trust in us is key, as is your honesty. So, don’t hesitate to reach out. We are here to help and will answer any questions that you may have.
Our goal is to work through the sequence of pain and dysfunction to get your body healthy and working properly and to achieve total recovery. Don’t hesitate to reach out. We are here to help and will answer any questions that you may have. You can reach us at (707) 636-4404 or by filling out our online contact form.