Can Chiropractic Bodywork Improve a Muscle Strain? Causes, Remedies, and What to Avoid

Many people are probably curious whether chiropractic bodywork can improve a muscle strain once it occurs.

Bodywork doesn’t directly approach the muscle strain itself, but rather promotes improvement by helping recover the muscles that caused the strain.

This article details the causes of a muscle strain, improvement methods, and what to avoid.

What Is a Muscle Strain?

“Muscle strain” is a term often heard, but medically it’s called a “muscle contusion.”

This refers to a state where the muscle or the membrane surrounding it (the fascia) is injured due to sudden movement.

When strong strain is placed on a muscle during a sudden movement like a dash or jump, part of it can tear, sometimes with a sharp “snap” sound accompanied by pain.

This kind of muscular damage is called a muscle strain.

When a muscle strain occurs, the pain often makes it impossible to move from that spot.

If the affected area is sunken or discolored purplish-red, it’s a sign that part of the muscle has torn and is bleeding internally.

It can happen not just during sports but also in everyday life.

What Causes a Muscle Strain?

Causes of a muscle strain can include sudden movement, muscle fatigue, and insufficient warm-up.

In any case, the cause is moving suddenly when the body and muscles aren’t sufficiently prepared.

Here we detail the causes of a muscle strain.

Sudden Movement

A muscle strain is an injury that often occurs when sudden force is applied to a muscle.

For example, at the moment you start running, when you stop suddenly, or when landing from a jump — when a muscle trying to contract is stretched in the opposite direction, it can’t withstand the impact and becomes damaged.

This tends to especially occur in frequently used muscles like the thighs and calves.

Also, when muscle flexibility declines, greater strain is placed on it.

Muscles tend to stiffen with age, and injury risk also increases when fatigue has accumulated.

Muscle Fatigue

Accumulated muscle fatigue is also a common cause of a muscle strain.

A muscle with fatigue that hasn’t cleared remains tense and stiff, losing flexibility.

Moving forcefully in this state means the muscle can’t handle sudden movement and becomes more prone to damage.

Those doing work or exercise involving repeated same movements for long periods may accumulate muscle fatigue without realizing it.

Even if you think “I can still move, so I’m fine,” fatigue may be accumulating within the muscle, with damage progressing.

Getting proper rest and relaxing in a lukewarm bath to care for your muscles can help relieve muscle fatigue.

Insufficient Warm-Up

Suddenly performing intense movement without warming up before exercise can shock the muscles.

Cold muscles have low flexibility and are stiff.

Moving suddenly in this state becomes a cause of the muscles being unable to respond properly and getting damaged.

This is one major cause of muscle strains.

Warming up has an effect of warming the body and improving muscle movement.

Even light exercise that isn’t too tiring, like gentle stretches or walking, is sufficient.

Just a few minutes of preparatory exercise lets your muscles move more flexibly, helping prevent injury.

Those who don’t normally exercise much, or who are moving their body for the first time in a while, should be mindful of carefully doing preparatory exercise.

How Can You Improve a Muscle Strain?

To recover quickly from a muscle strain, first properly immobilizing and resting the affected area is very important.

Since the muscle has partially torn from excessive force, imagine it like having a cut on the muscle.

When you get a cut on your arm or leg, moving it forcefully delays healing, right?

The same applies to muscles — it’s important to wait for improvement without moving it forcefully.

For about 2 to 3 weeks after a muscle strain occurs, immobilize it and wait for the muscle to naturally reconnect.

However, since muscles tend to contract during repair, they can become stiff after healing.

For this reason, it’s also important to gradually incorporate stretches and light exercise while watching your condition.

Also, improving circulation helps nutrients reach the injured muscle more easily, supporting recovery.

Being mindful of correct posture, walking, and joint movement helps you move toward smooth recovery without straining your body.

Without overexerting yourself, aim for gradual recovery.

What Shouldn’t You Do If You Get a Muscle Strain?

If you get a muscle strain, avoid moving forcefully, massaging, or warming the affected area.

These may seem at first like they’d help the muscle strain recover, but they can actually worsen the symptoms.

Here we detail what not to do if you get a muscle strain.

Moving Forcefully

When you get a muscle strain, some people may think “I can move a little, so it’s fine” and move their body anyway.

But the pain is a sign that muscle fibers are damaged.

Moving forcefully can widen that damage, not only taking longer to improve but also making it more prone to recurring.

Right after onset, the damaged muscle is in a very delicate state.

If you’re busy or have things you want to do, you may feel like moving forcefully, but please rest first.

Massage

When there’s pain, you might think massaging would ease it, but massage right after a muscle strain occurs has the opposite effect.

Applying pressure to the damaged muscle fibers can worsen the damage further.

Especially avoid pressing or kneading firmly. Increased blood flow can also potentially worsen inflammation.

If you’re going to massage, it’s recommended to wait until you’ve recovered to some degree.

If you have a regular doctor at a hospital or clinic, please wait for their approval before massaging.

Warming the Affected Area

Warming the body with a bath or a heating pad is normally considered good for the body since it promotes circulation, but caution is needed right after a muscle strain.

Warming an area with inflammation can increase blood flow too much, worsening swelling and internal bleeding.

As a result, pain can intensify and healing can be delayed. In the stage right after onset, cooling is the basic approach.

Cooling with ice or a cooling sheet to calm the inflammation is the first step toward faster recovery.

Can Chiropractic Bodywork Improve a Muscle Strain?

A muscle strain occurs when the muscle or fascia is injured by forceful movement.

If mild, you may still be able to walk, and early treatment leads to smooth recovery.

Chiropractic bodywork salons provide support to ease pain, so they’re also recommended for those who want to improve a muscle strain.

It’s not a medical act, but its characteristic is that you can receive treatment matched to your symptoms.

Once the pain settles, care matched to your recovery stage is performed, like warming the area or incorporating light exercise.

The treatment period varies by symptom, but it’s generally said to be about 3 weeks to 2 months.

If you’re looking for a chiropractic bodywork salon to improve a muscle strain, please leave it to KADOMORI.

We perform treatments that fundamentally improve the pain and muscular damage from a muscle strain.

Since we treat according to each individual’s bodily condition, our characteristic is being able to aim for early improvement. Please feel free to contact us.

For who should go to chiropractic bodywork, see this article as well.

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Troubled by a Muscle Strain? Consult KADOMORI!

This article has detailed the causes of a muscle strain, improvement methods, and what to avoid.

Since a muscle strain can occur suddenly, thoroughly warming up before moving or exercising to accustom your body is important.

If you’re currently troubled by a muscle strain, please consult KADOMORI.