Feeling some stiffness or dealing with pain can hinder doing the things you love. You may not even be aware of how much your range of motion is restricted until you try and do something and find yourself struggling. Fortunately, chiropractic care can help improve your range of motion so that you can move more freely and without pain.
What is chiropractic care?
Chiropractic care is a holistic approach to your health that focuses on restoring the proper function and alignment of your body. The goal of chiropractic treatment is to reduce pain, improve mobility, promote relaxation and help you heal faster from injuries or illnesses.
Getting treatment from a professional chiropractor can help improve your range of motion and make you feel better overall. Chiropractors use various techniques to help restore proper alignment and function to the spine, including massage, manual manipulation, and adjustments.
If you are looking for a natural way to improve your range of motion, consider chiropractic care.
Our professionals at Finlayson Family Chiropractic can provide you with an individualized treatment plan that will help get you moving more freely again!
What is Range Of Motion?
Your range of motion (ROM), is the distance and direction your joints can move. The mobility of your joints can be determined by various factors, including age, health conditions, joint structure, or injuries. These all can affect the health and range of motion for your joints. When you have a reduced range of motion, it can make everyday activities difficult and painful.
What Can Cause Reduced Range of Motion?
There are many reasons why you may have a reduced range of motion. Some common causes include:
Limited Activity
Poor posture and limited activity can hurt your joints more than you know. Many of us sit all day, working on computers in the same position can lead to tightness in your shoulders and neck. Without relaxing those muscles it can limit your range of motion and be uncomfortable.
When your joints don’t get to move freely they can become stuck. Tightness and soreness can be more than just uncomfortable, you’re more at risk for certain conditions such as arthritis if you consistently have limited activity, especially in one joint. It can eventually result in joint wear and tear.
Injury or trauma to the joint
These are common causes of reduced range of motion. If you have an accident or fall where damage occurs in one specific area, then the chances are high that there will be some sort of limited ROM. It can also result from sprains, strains, dislocations, and fractures when joints become overstretched during movement.
Arthritis
1 in 4 adults have some form of arthritis. The most common are osteoarthritis, it’s when your cartilage; a protective layer in your joints is worn down leaving bones to rub against each other.
It causes painful and stiff joints. Joints become stiff and inflamed making it hard to move freely. The inflammation and swelling can limit the flexibility and ease of motion.
Aging
As we age, our tissues become less flexible and more brittle. Stiff and painful joints are common and there can be many reasons. This is due to a decrease in the production of synovial fluid, natural protection, wearing down cartilage, and bones can grind against each other, which results in pain and a reduced range of motion.
How to Keep Healthy Joints
There are lots of ways to keep your joints healthy. Some of them are incredibly simple that you can do daily at home! Here are some things to regain or maintain the best joint health and your max range of motion. Here are some other effective ways to increase and retain your range of motion.
Movement
Exercising can be beneficial for your whole body and your range of motion, but simply moving your body in different ways can still make a huge impact on your joint health! Moving joints is the best way to retain your range of motion and prevent pain. Use it or lose it is really the best motto. Continuing to move your joints daily is the best way to prevent loss of range of motion and decrease injuries.
It strengthens muscles around joints which helps support those areas better. This can ensure better joint stability and support for your body. Exercises are also good because they increase blood flow throughout your body which helps reduce inflammation and swelling in joints that have been overused or injured. Even light exercise can weld benefits, especially as you age.
There are so many injuries and conditions that can be prevented to keep your joint health and range of motion at its best simply by light exercise!
Stretching
Along with exercise, stretching is something you can do in your own home! Simple stretches can make a world of difference as you age to keep your joints healthy with the best range of motion possible.
Chiropractors
Chiropractors are experts when it comes to improving joint mobility and reducing pain. They use specific adjustments or manipulations to help restore proper alignment within the spine and pelvis. This, in turn, takes the pressure off of sensitive nerves and muscles around these areas, which alleviates pain and restores movement.
The longer you wait between stretching the tighter muscles tend to become. Simple light stretching can prevent serious injuries and keep your body feeling young. Moving and using joints lubricates the tissue and keeps them relaxed and healthy. Simple regular stretching can prevent and treat arthritis!
Massage therapy
Massage therapy is a great way to relax and relieve tension in your muscles. It can also help improve your range of motion by helping to reduce pain, stiffness, and inflammation in joints that have been overused or injured.
Massage therapists use their hands with pressure on specific areas of the body where there is tightness or soreness. They may also apply heat or ice packs to reduce inflammation and pain, a practice you can do at your very own home!
Physical therapy
Physical therapy can be beneficial after an injury or noticeable loss of range of motion. They can help you strengthen muscles around joints which helps support those areas better to reduce pain. This improves joint stability which can heal and prevent further injury.
They are extremely good at finding a specialized workout for you and what your body needs.
A physical therapist will teach you how to do these exercises properly with proper form and technique, which is crucial for avoiding injury while increasing strength, reducing pain, and regaining your range of motion
How chiropractic care can help
If you are experiencing a reduced range of motion, consider scheduling a consultation with a professional chiropractor. At Finlayson Family Chiropractic, we offer a variety of treatments to help improve your ROM, including massage, exercises, and physical therapy.
We will work with you one-on-one to come up with a treatment plan that fits your specific needs and goals. Our chiropractors will assess your condition and create a treatment plan that will help get you moving more freely again.
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