<b>Do You Make Assumptions?</b>

&nbsp;

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Often I hear and see people make assumptions in our industry.</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Articles I read are so often written based on assumptions, lacking context for clarity.</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Within our academy, we discuss the idea that the body is a master of compensation. Now, this is for a variety of reasons &amp; also in a variety of ways.</span>

We use words such as those found below to describe these compensations. Words like...

&nbsp;

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Sub-clinical Muscle Spasm </span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Immobility </span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Tightness </span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Inhibition </span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Instability </span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Weakness </span>

...to name a few.

&nbsp;

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Now, MOST professionals know how to address the above with the various interventions...</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Anti spasm</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Mobilise </span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Stretch </span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Un-inhibit</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Stabilise </span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Strengthen </span>

&nbsp;

These are all techniques that are all relatively simple to do and understand, right?

&nbsp;

<b>So What's The Problem?</b>

&nbsp;

<span style="font-weight: 400;">What is it that makes these interventions so controversial, problematic and debatable, not only articles but also in practice?</span>

Why are many still making the error of assumption?

Sometimes it isn’t obvious and this makes our job tough when trying to truly objectively KNOW which problem is presenting.

In other words, the question is…

<span style="font-weight: 400;">is ‘it’ WEAK or INHIBITED?</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">is ‘it’ TIGHT or IN SPASM?</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">is ‘it’ UNSTABLE or WEAK?</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">is ‘it’ INHIBITED or TIGHT?</span>

&nbsp;

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Each of these examples can easily be mistaken for another and yet the corrective techniques could be contraindicating should the wrong one be prescribed. For example; if you try to stretch a muscle ASSUMING it is TIGHT when in fact it is inhibited or in a protective spasm, it could respond by ‘holding on’ even more.</span>

&nbsp;

<span style="font-weight: 400;">A common example might be the appearance of ‘tight’ hamstrings that are ‘held under tension’ so to speak. Quite often the sciatic nerve can be ‘tethered’ by dysfunction somewhere else, this creates nerve tension. Therefore the hamstrings ‘hold on’ to a ‘tense’ position due to their close relationship with the sciatic nerve. This is because they are trying to protect the nerve which is lacking its full capacity. </span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Now consider if you tried to 'stretch' this apparently ‘tight’ hamstring..!?</span>

&nbsp;

<b>So What Should We Do?? </b>

&nbsp;

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Obviously having a testing system that identifies which dysfunction is presenting would make absolute sense, wouldn’t it?</span>

If you do not have a testing system available to you then it is probably prudent to prescribe the least contraindicating technique first to reduce risk.

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Remember <a href="https://www.biomechanicseducation.com/ever-heard-of-occams-razor/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Occum’s Razor</a>?</span>

&nbsp;

<span style="font-weight: 400;">An example of a safe intervention would be the low grade 20% muscle energy technique researched by <a href="https://www.biomechanicseducation.com/1333-2/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ribot-Ciscar,1991</a>. This has been proven to have huge success at improving muscle function especially when something like stretching hasn’t shown any benefit.</span>

&nbsp;

<b>Your 7 Tips:</b>
<ul>
 	<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Don’t assume anything! </span></li>
 	<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Get a movement baseline before &amp; after using an intervention</span></li>
 	<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Use the least intrusive intervention first</span></li>
 	<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Discuss with your peers for new ideas and viewpoints</span></li>
 	<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Invest in learning an evidence-based objective testing system </span></li>
 	<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Monitor your client's movement progress closely using photos, video &amp; clear benchmarks.</span></li>
 	<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Learn, trust and encourage even the smallest and simplest of techniques, like low-grade anti spasms - Trust me, they can make all the difference!</span></li>
</ul>
&nbsp;

<b>What Are Your Thoughts?</b>

&nbsp;

<span style="font-weight: 400;">EMAIL ME rachel@biomechanicseducation.com</span>

&nbsp;

<span style="font-weight: 400;">If you would like to learn the evidence-based exercises we prescribe to help improve function, the safest on the planet, then simply </span><a href="https://biomechanicseducation.clickfunnels.com/biomechanics-coach" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><b>Click Here</b></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span>