The Muscle Tension Conspiracy - Don’t always believe what they’re telling you
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Why is stretching not relieving my tight muscles?
Well first, we have to ask what we mean by tight. Is there an actual limitation in range of movement associated with reduced muscle length? Or do we have this feeling of tension despite our range of movement being really good? Think being able to easily touch the floor despite your hamstrings feeling tighter than that friend who never buys a drink on a night out. A feeling of tightness doesn’t always mean that the muscle length is inadequate. It is very common for people to experience this feeling of tension when in fact their muscle length is just fine. In these cases, even hours of stretching will be ineffective in making lasting change in the symptoms.
Why is stretching not relieving my tight muscles?
Well first, we have to ask what we mean by tight. Is there an actual limitation in range of movement associated with reduced muscle length? Or do we have this feeling of tension despite our range of movement being really good? Think being able to easily touch the floor despite your hamstrings feeling tighter than that friend who never buys a drink on a night out. A feeling of tightness doesn’t always mean that the muscle length is inadequate. It is very common for people to experience this feeling of tension when in fact their muscle length is just fine. In these cases, even hours of stretching will be ineffective in making lasting change in the symptoms.
Tension, like pain is a sensation that the brain provides to us in order to alert us to something. To tell us to change something perhaps. So what would the feeling of tension be trying to alert us in these cases? Quite often it is a sign of excessive workload and thus fatigue in a certain muscle group or possibly a lack of blood flow to certain muscles.
This makes a bit more sense when we take a common example that most people will have experienced at some time in their lives. The trapezius muscles which lie between shoulder and neck are much maligned for the feelings of stiffness they produce, particularly after a long and stressful day. Quite often however, despite these symptoms the person will have full neck range of movement and the feeling of stiffness persists despite stretching to the point of near decapitation. If episodes like this are a common occurrence, we need to look at what else might be going on that the brain is trying to alert us to.
When we are sat at a desk for hours on end without taking adequate breaks and or positional/postural changes we are placing quite a bit of load on the same structures. Certain muscles are placed under a load that exceeds their capacity (meaning they become fatigued). Further, if they are not allowed to relax and move through range they can be deprived of adequate blood flow. That discomfort or feeling of tightness is often trying to draw our attention to one, or both of these issues.
So what can we do?
When someone’s aggravating activities are work related (such as long hours behind a desk), reducing this load can be difficult because there is a certain obligation of working hours to be met. On top of this we’re all addicted to our smartphones and best of luck reducing your scrolling time, I certainly don’t have the answer for that. Ultimately even with regular breaks and appropriate desk station set up, the way we live our lives right now is pretty taxing on certain muscles (particularly in the neck and shoulders) and the best way to prevent them from being a pain is to make them strong enough to manage the load we place on them. Thankfully we know some simple exercises that are really effective at increasing the strength of these muscles and reducing neck pain.
A 2018 study carried out on Brisbane office workers found that those who completed the three exercises shown below reported a significant reduction in neck pain at work compared with those who did not. You might remember seeing some news articles about it too – it’s about as box office as physio gets:
(We’ve added a link above to the exercises demonstrated by our physio Paul. )
It is recommended that you complete between 10 and 15 repetitions and 3 sets of each exercise 3-4 times a week. To notice real benefits you’ll have to continue this for at least 10 weeks, as unfortunately strengthening doesn’t happen overnight. You should also steadily progress the load. This can be done by increasing the weight of the dumbbell or grade of resistance band, increasing repetitions or reducing rest periods between sets.
Although there has been a strong focus here on the neck, this principle is no different throughout the rest of body. If you’re struggling to shake that tense feeling, getting yourself a bit stronger in the right areas is a good place to start. If your symptoms have been persistent for a long time, or if you are concerned about anything, it’s a good idea to get in to see your physiotherapist so that they can rule out other sources of symptoms and identify the specific areas you need to work on and give you the appropriate treatment and exercises to address your needs.
By APA Physiotherapist Paul Keating