Stretch Therapy

Fascia is the material surrounding all muscles in your body. Like other tissues, fascia can become tight and less mobile. The result is decreased range of motion, discomfort with stretching, and decreased ability to recover from activity.

Fascial Stretch Therapy (or FST), is a type of stretching that targets not only the muscles, but the fascia, the connective tissue that surrounds muscles, bones, and joints. FST also targets the entire joint and joint capsule, using traction to remove restrictions from movement and to stimulate lubrication, by gently pulling and moving the arms, legs, spine, and neck in a smooth motion through varying planes of movement. The gentle movement is stimulating and relaxing at the same time.

How Does It Help?

Increase joint space for increased range of motion.
Improve muscle activation and relaxation.
Reduce injuries & improve sports performance.
Improve flexibility with 1 session. Effects are cumulative with multiple session.
Improve posture and functional ability.
Relieve chronic pain.
Stretches focus on lines of muscles and fascia, not just individual muscles.
Stretches occur in multiple angles and lines of movement.
Stretches incorporate traction and movement to more effectively increase joint space and release fascial adhesions.
Stretch Therapy manipulates, lengthens, re-aligns, and re-organizes your fascia.
Stretch Therapy can eliminate painful trigger points.

Who Benefits From Stretch Therapy?

Athletes
People with physically demanding jobs
People with jobs that keep them seated for long periods of time
People with tight backs and hips that cannot find something that works for their pain

How is Stretch Therapy Incorporated Into A Bodywork Session?

I generally start each session with 10 minutes of stretching to assess how the body is moving
After 10 minutes of stretching I move onto the appropriate modality(s) (deep tissue, therapeutic, sports massage) for the remainder of the session