Sports Acupuncture Benefits Vs. Traditional Acupuncture

If you’re an athlete who trains (whether it be running, weight lifting, tennis, golfing or just casual weekend activities) on even a semi-regular basis, then looking to find an acupuncturist who specializes in Sports Acupuncture may be the right move for you. Why, you may ask?
The focus of a sports acupuncturist is the body’s movement patterns, releasing muscles that are otherwise tough to get to, as well as other training related areas. Traditional acupuncture does focus on relaxing tight muscles, but not to the extent that a Sports Acupuncturist will go, as that is their primary focus in their treatment session.

How Sports Acupuncture ‘Pin-Points’ the Issues

Instead of simply looking around for tight muscles to release them the way that a traditional acupuncturist may, sports acupuncturists will look not only to release the tight muscles but also how to improve both their functionality and flexibility.

The knowledge and ability to understand movement patterns in the body is crucial. It’s not enough to realize that muscles are tight in an area- the sports acupuncturist must understand WHY this group of muscles is tight. Their goal is to find muscle balance within the human body, so since every muscle has its own reciprocating muscle, the sports acupuncturist needs to know how to achieve this balance.

When a sports acupuncturist is treating a muscular disorder, he or she realizes that is not the only muscle that is involved- it could also involve the reciprocating muscle, or perhaps one further down the kinetic chain. For instance, a tight calf is almost never just a tight calf. The sports acupuncturist will know that they may need to then look at and treat the patient’s hip or thigh as an example, finding the area(s) that are creating the imbalance within the body.

When accounting for the entire fascial, postural, and movement chains of the body into a singular style of acupuncture, it is specifically tailored to help the athlete move, recover, train, and gain full range of motion within their body to achieve fantastic results.

Another good example is if the sports acupuncturist were to treat a patient’s tight trapezius’ (your shoulder) without factoring in any of the surrounding muscles. By only focusing on a singular muscle such as the trapezius, other muscles such as the mid- back and neck are neglected and could be easily be overlooked as the cause of the problem. Treating only one muscle rather than a collective group of muscles that contribute to the function of the movement, would be a very temporary, ‘band- aid’ fix.

The act of releasing tight muscles and their reciprocating imbalanced muscles allows the human body to recover so that it can continue to build muscle without injury. By having less or no restrictions to the function of the muscle, it can not only increase its overall performance but can increase its strength and flexibility. When you combine releasing your muscles with your strength training routine, you can achieve the best results and help to reach the goals you want to achieve.