Muscle pain can be annoying. Whether that pain is from muscle soreness or an injury, stiff muscles and dull pain can slow you down. Myofascial release can be an effective option to relieve the pain and get back to life as normal. This treatment involved putting gentle pressure on specific body locations to restore range of motion and ease pain. While bigger tools, like the foam roller, are used to relax and relieve larger body areas, the Lacrosse Ball is perfect for targeting smaller painful trigger points.
What Are Trigger Points?
Trigger points are also known as myofascial points. These spots are located on specific spots on your muscle and the surrounding tissue. These trigger points are one of the most common sources of referred pain. This means that when the trigger points are pressed or activated, pain is felt somewhere else in the body. For example, you may have a trigger point in your foot that causes pain in your ankle.
Lacrosse Balls are one of the myofascial tools specifically designed to release these trigger points. By using the Lacrosse Ball to apply pressure to these points, the triggers are released, the muscles are eased and the pain alleviated. Depending on the trigger spot, the pressure may be painful at first, but after treatment the muscles will feel noticeably relaxed.
What Can A Lacrosse Ball Treat?
Lacrosse Balls are specifically good for treating shoulder, buttocks and hip pain. They also works wonderfully on smaller muscle groups like the biceps, triceps and calves. The small area of the Lacrosse Ball really allows the user the pinpoint the pain and really get in there to release the trigger points. When used before and after training, the Lacrosse Ball aids in preventing soreness as well.
Airrosti specializes in relieving pain using manual therapy and often prescribes the use of Lacrosse Balls. Our Certified Airrosti Providers thoroughly evaluate patients’ symptoms and pinpoint the cause of their pain. The Providers then use a specialized hands-on technique to quickly eliminate that pain. Airrosti Providers also take time to educate their patients on the cause of their symptoms and often prescribe at home exercises to speed recovery and prevent future pain. In many cases they show their patients how to properly use a Lacrosse Ball to target their problem areas.
To read more about the benefits of foam rolling, read our previous blog post here.
If you’re living with chronic pain or a painful injury, give Airrosti a call today to schedule your appointment to get on the fast track to recovery.
