Muscle Knots Treatment: Muscle knots usually resolve on their own within one or two weeks, but some methods can speed up this process.
The Conversation quotes Zachary Gillen, a sports physiologist who studies the effects of exercise on various body systems, including the muscular, cardiovascular, respiratory, and nervous systems, explaining the reason for muscle knots and how pressure on muscles affects them, as well as methods to release these knots.
Muscle Knots Treatment: What Is A Muscle Knot?
Muscle Knots Treatment, The knots you feel in your muscles, ranging in size from a marble to a golf ball, are known as “myofascial trigger points.” The fascia is a thin layer of connective tissue that surrounds the muscle.
When your muscle is injured—even slightly—it can lead to inflammation in the muscle fibers and the fascia layer above them, and this lump is essentially inflamed tissue. These small lumps are often sensitive to touch and can limit your range of motion or cause pain with different movements. Muscle knots cannot be detected on medical imaging scans, and researchers are still working to uncover the exact physiological mechanisms within the muscle that cause this reaction.
Muscle Knots Treatment, Myofascial trigger points occur when the muscle is stimulated by a new or more intense repetitive movement than usual. For example, they can form in muscles that have been under the most stress throughout the day. However, these knots are not only caused by intense physical exercise; even prolonged sitting at a desk can put pressure on the muscles and lead to this condition.
How To Get Rid Of These Knots?
Muscle Knots Treatment, If you have muscle knots, one of the simplest things to do is to wait. Muscles need time to adjust to the new movement. Muscle knots usually resolve on their own within one or two weeks.
However, you can speed up the healing process with some strategies. Some options include massage, dry needling (inserting a very thin needle into the trigger point to break up some of the tissue and increase blood flow to the area), and even electrical stimulation. The goal of all these techniques is to reduce fascial and muscle tension in the area and increase blood flow. Blood flow brings more nutrients and oxygen to the injured tissue, speeding up recovery.
Muscle Knots Treatment, More affordable methods include doing stretching exercises. Range of motion exercises for muscles that have been under constant pressure and tension for several hours are very beneficial. For example, after sitting for a while, a few simple shoulder and neck rotations can somewhat reduce tension in those muscles and help prevent or reduce the accumulation of muscle knots.
Another method you can try at home is called myofascial release. For this, you can massage the knot area using a foam roller, a hard ball, or even a small PVC pipe. For example, if you have knots in the quadriceps muscles in the front of your thigh, you can lie on a foam roller and gently roll your leg back and forth on it.
Muscle Knots Treatment, While muscle knots are painful, they are not considered a cause for concern. Remember that staying active and moving throughout the day can help prevent muscle knots from forming.
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