Yonemoto Physical Therapy

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Have you ever wondered why you get a muscle spasm when you’re merely turning in bed after a quiet and relaxing sleep?  Or why a simple heel-cord stretch before running sometimes produces a cramp in your calf?
A common theory holds that cramps and muscle spasms are caused by a buildup of lactic acid, a waste product resulting from heavy muscle activity.  So why would you get a muscle cramp spasm before you’ve done any heavy workouts, or even while you’re relaxed?  Another commonly held belief is that vitamin or mineral deficiencies can lead to cramps and spasms.  But if that were the overall nutritional state of an individual, why wouldn’t he be hurting all the time?
Instead of looking at muscle spasm as an evil condition causing pain and suffering, it has been suggested that muscle spasm is a protective response keeping greater harm from occurring.  Some structures in the body are more important as far as function goes than other structures, so the body has developed a hierarchy of protection.  Blood vessels are extremely important for keeping oxygen and nutrients going to all tissues of the body.  Oxygen is one thing our brains need to function.  Life cannot continue if oxygen flow is stopped for more than 3 minutes.
If you have blood vessels becoming more fragile and less flexible perhaps through smoking or poor dietary habits or taking certain medications, then it’s conceivable a simple stretch could signal danger that a blood vessel is getting close to breaking.  Triggering a muscle spasm could be the body's way of preventing a snap from occurring.  Perhaps this is why muscles go into spasm after a whiplash injury and, oftentimes, massage to the spasm triggers worse pain and a recurrence of stronger spasm.  Taking away the spasm makes the body vulnerable to more serious injury.
Even with chronically tight muscles, stretching may help temporarily, but muscles tighten up again.  Perhaps the body is using muscle spasm as a way to protect more important structures.  So, for a permanent cure, you need to heal those underlying structures.
Fortunately, there are non-invasive manual therapy techniques especially developed to address these conditions.  These techniques have their roots in osteopathic medicine but have been expanded upon and are currently being used in Integrative Manual Therapy.
The body has its ways of keeping us safe.  It communicates to us in its own language and we must learn how to understand what it's trying to say and then work with it for optimal health.  

If you have any questions, please submit them to:
Sheila Yonemoto, P.T.
Yonemoto Physical Therapy
55 S. Raymond Ave., Suite 100
Alhambra, CA 91801
PHONE:  626 576 0591
FAX: 626 576 5890
Links:
http://www.yonemoto.com/ - Yonemoto Physical Therapy home page
http://www.yonemoto.com/programs/IMT.htm - Integrative Manual Therapy, a Hands-On Approach
http://www.yonemoto.com/programs/qigong.htm - Qigong to boost the immune system

Technorati Tags: Muscle Cramps and Spasms, Physical Therapy, Alhambra CA, muscles, stretching, IMT, manual therapy techniques, blood vessels, lactic acid, integrative manual therapy, san gabriel, south pasdena, monterey park, el marino