-
Recent Posts
- Confusing the benefits of salty and non-salty baths
- “I’ve tried to interpret the findings of the best physiologists and translate them into sound practices. That’s made me a radical.”
- Dr. Tim Taylor has contributed a new chapter to my book, Save Yourself from Trigger Points & Myofascial Pain Syndrome!
- And again! More muscle knot squishing science, different experiment, same results
- (Newer than new) evidence that squishing trigger points works
- Jedi mind trick turns a muscle relaxant drug into a stimulant
- Wishful thinking does not get much more wishful than this
- A trigger point is almost mistaken for a tumor
- WARNING! Traumeel contains .00000000000000001% pure death!
- The three most common words in massage therapy are pointless
Categories
- acupuncture
- anatomy
- business
- contrast hydrotherapy
- debunkery
- detoxification
- diagnosis
- epsom
- evidence-based medicine
- exercise
- fatigue
- finding help
- frozen shoulder
- headache
- health care
- humour
- hydrotherapy
- injury
- insomnia
- low back pain
- manual therapy
- massage
- massage therapy
- massage tools
- medical factors
- medications
- meta
- muscle physiology
- neck pain
- neurology
- New Category
- nutrition
- pain
- perpetuating factors
- personal
- placebo
- platelet-rich plasma
- pro
- product review
- quackery
- quote
- reason
- regulation
- rehabilitation
- research
- science
- self-massage
- self-treatment
- strain
- stretching
- structuralism
- therapy
- tips
- traumeel
- treatment
- trigger points
- ultrasound
- Uncategorized
Archives
-
RSS Links
Category Archives: massage
(Newer than new) evidence that squishing trigger points works
An upcoming issue of Journal of Bodywork & Movement Therapies will include a new study of trigger point squishing. I was lucky to get a look at a final draft, thanks to connections at The Pressure Positive Company, the massage tool manufacturer that supplied the tools.
This experiment has the simple elegance of a good science-fair [...]
Also posted in massage therapy, massage tools, research, self-massage, self-treatment, therapy, treatment, trigger points Leave a comment
The three most common words in massage therapy are pointless
The pointless words are: “You’re really tight!” A simple science experiment published in Journal of Pain clearly shows (finally!) that muscle hardness correlates (very!) badly with muscle sensitivity. Read the article.
Also posted in debunkery, massage therapy Leave a comment
New article: Should You Drink Water After Massage?
After getting this question from a reader for about the bazillionth time, I decided it was finally time to write an article about it. A little salamander sass is included at no extra charge, as usual.
Should You Drink Water After Massage? Only if you’re thirsty!
Also posted in debunkery, detoxification, hydrotherapy, massage therapy, nutrition, self-massage Leave a comment
“Perfect” spots? Not hardly: an uncomfortable legacy
Many years ago I set out to write about the “perfect spots” for massage, and I began a series of articles. Some of those became the most visited and popular articles on this website. They are alarmingly close to becoming my “legacy.” I have probably received more positive feedback about them than anything else I [...]
Also posted in massage therapy, self-massage, self-treatment Leave a comment
New directory of trigger point therapy and muscle pain resources
I have finally published a list of resources relevant to trigger point therapy and muscle pain. I avoided this for many years, because I am generally not impressed by what’s available (to both patients and professionals), especially online resources. I remember a slightly testy conversation with someone from an American organization a couple years ago [...]
Also posted in finding help, manual therapy, massage therapy, massage tools, pain, regulation, trigger points Leave a comment
Science experiment shows that massage actually interferes with lactic acid removal
One of the classic claims of massage therapy is that it can help you by flushing “toxins” and metabolic wastes from your muscles, especially the most famous one: lactic acid. This is not a difficult thing to test — the principle is science-fair simple, just compare metabolic waste products with and without massage involved — [...]
Also posted in debunkery, massage therapy, research Leave a comment
New short article about “psoas work”
Manipulation of the psoas major muscle is over-rated: it just isn’t needed for most people, most of the time.
Psoas, So What? Massage therapy for the psoas major and iliacus (iliopsoas) muscles is not that big a deal
Also posted in anatomy, debunkery, low back pain, manual therapy, treatment Leave a comment
And again! More muscle knot squishing science, different experiment, same results