Sports Chiropractic: Making the adjustment

To tell chiropractors that they should floss, on first inspection, might seem as self-evident as telling them to get adjusted.

Most of them are heavily into the game of self-preservation and prefer to practice what they preach.

However, you may not be asking your patients to floss. I know I certainly am not doing so in my practice—I am flossing for them.

First, floss is a mobility tool for immediately improving joint movement, reducing soft-tissue stiffness, and allowing athletes to access their available range of motion (ROM) more easily. This mobility is primarily facilitated through alterations in blood flow parameters as well as relative tissue glide. In every CrossFit gym across the country, as well as in most strength and conditioning facilities, floss is becoming as much a part of the warmup as stretching and foam rollers have traditionally been.

Floss is also commonly used to access new ranges of motion for sticky peripheral joints. For instance, a common problem in Olympic weight- lifting, CrossFit and general resistance training is an inability to achieve the “front rack” position, whereby each upper limb needs to achieve the ROM required to touch the thumb knuckle to the anterolateral deltoid of the ipsilateral shoulder, with the elbows pointing forward at approximately chin height.

When this ROM is not accessible by the participant, floss is often the solution to enhance flexion of the elbow, pronation or extension of the wrist, and flexion and external rotation of the glenohumeral joint.

Once these joints all achieve their full expression of end-range of motion in these directions, the goal of a properly executed front-rack position can be achieved and full-capacity training can be undertaken in these ranges.

Sports Chiropractic Articles

Instrument Assisted Soft Tissue Mobilization or IASTM is a popular treatment to help with myofascial release and to treat pain or inflammation in soft tissue.

IASTM can help ease many conditions that could plague your athletic patients such as plantar fasciits, shoulder injuries, text neck, and many more. They also help you practice longer by easing the strain on your hands but still gives your patients the benefits of fasical release.

By incorporating this type of therapy into your practice, you are greatly benefiting your patients and going beyond what just an adjustment may offer

Taping offers a safe alternative to drugs for treating chronic pain

Anyone who works with high-intensity athletes (e.g., CrossFitters) and endurance athletes (e.g., distance runners and triathletes) knows that most of them have some sort of chronic ailment. When people repeatedly push themselves to the limit, the body eventually breaks down, leading to injury and pain.

Athletes will often attempt to self-treat their injuries and pain so they can continue training. And unsurprisingly, many of these patients take either prescribed or over-the-counter (OTC) medication on a regular basis to control pain and inflammation. The use of such medications over long periods, however, does not come without risk and can have detrimental effects on health.

But if medications should not be used over extended periods, what can be done instead? One safe alternative is using kinesiology tape (k-tape) over the site of pain. In individuals with chronic low-back pain, a study found that k-tape in conjunction with usual care resulted in a better pattern of abdominal muscle recruitment compared with pre-treatment measures.

Another study found that regardless of the technique of application, k-tape was helpful in reducing pain and disability in individuals with chronic low-back pain. This effect was somewhat maintained up to eight weeks after the treatment ceased

IASTM helps running-related soreness

Paul Fisher with Discover Chiropractic in Fremont, California shares that IASTM can also provide relief for runners suffering from sore feet due to hitting the pavement or trails on a regular basis.

He goes on to say that it this particular treatment method “could and should help with shin splints” as well.

Shin splints affect approximately 10 percent of male runners and almost 17 percent of female runners, making this an issue for a high number of people who use running to get or stay in shape.⁷

Thus, offering IASTM as a form of treatment can help patients hit their fitness goals without being sidelined by pain.

IASTM can help ease or entirely eliminate a number of different conditions and these are just a few. By incorporating this type of therapy into your practice, you are greatly benefiting your patients and going beyond what just an adjustment may offer.