Why Stretching Isn’t Working for Pain Relief - And why do you still feel stiff?

Have you ever wondered why your stretching program provides temporary relief - and the symptoms consistently return time after time?

Have you spent the last month, year, or even 5+ years religiously stretching your piriformis for sciatica and yet you still have pesky hip pain and tightness?!

And I’ve heard it time and time again from patients - You’ve spent countless nights stretching and rubbing your neck, shoulder, and upper trap because of persistent tightness that never fully resolves with stretching?

But aren’t all stretches good? If you just stretch daily, shouldn’t you never have to deal with stiffness?

What do you do when stretching doesn't fully resolve your symptoms or provide permanent relief?

To oversimplify it, if stretching was the answer to all stiffness and/or tightness, then Yoga would cure all. And while yes, Yoga is a fabulous activity and offers a litany of health benefits, I have had countless avid Yogis who seek out Physical Therapy because, despite daily stretching, they continue to struggle with tightness and pain. 

When stretching isn't working, you must ask yourself - WHY?

Well, as always, there are no simple answers when you really zoom in on the cause of your tightness, and thorough investigation must be performed to uncover the correct treatment approach.

And If you are saying something to the effect of - “Well, I stretch my hamstrings all the time, and I don’t have hamstring pain or back pain anymore.” - then this blog isn’t likely for you. Meaning, your symptoms may actually be mitigated/controlled with muscular stretching (which is a great thing!).

But many, many times patients have very solid daily stretching routines, and yet still seek out assistance for continued discomfort at the target muscle or region. 

So if it is not a muscle, and it sure feels like a muscle? What the heck is going on?

Let’s look a bit deeper: Other causes of the sensation of “tightness”

1. Fascial Restrictions

We spend too much time stretching “Muscle A” or “Muscle B” when conceptually speaking this isn’t how the neuromusculoskeletal system is organized.

Think of a pack of the candy, Twizzlers, in its plastic bag. The actual candy is a rough depiction of a muscle, while the plastic bag/wrapper is a rough depiction of the fascial system. Except the fascia extends from head to toe as one continuous system, and many times the restriction is within these fascial systems and not the muscle. (There are many different fascial planes in the body; however, that is a topic for a different blog)

2. Muscular Weakness

This concept is a tough one to digest at times. All too often, within the body, a weak muscle can mimic a tight muscle. This is especially notable in postural muscles or muscles responsible for joint stabilization during compound movements. This “tightness” can be attributed to muscle fatigue and weakness. 

Continuously stretching a weakened muscle will further weaken the muscle as the strength/tension relationship within the muscle is disrupted. This propagates a negative feedback loop where you may: 

Further stretching a weakened muscle → makes the muscle “longer” → making the muscle weaker → making the muscle feel tight → making you stretch more!

3. Neural/Nerve Involvement

We often associate a nerve injury as numbness, tingling, or electrical sensation along the path of the nerve; however, as the nerve traverses through the body, it repeatedly pierces muscles and the above-mentioned fascial system. 

If there is a “snag” in the neural system, then the sensation felt by you can be nerve tightness and a muscle stretch will not appropriately stretch the neural system.

4. Joint Dysfunction

There is an abundance of research that dives into “downstream” effects of central/spinal joint dysfunction. In simple terms, if you have a joint issue in the neck, then trigger points arise along the associated level - notably in the upper trap muscle and even beyond. 

So are you tired of digging into the tight shoulder/upper trap with deep tissue massage and stretching without ever getting rid of your trigger point? That's likely due to the fact that you are not treating why you have the trigger point in the first place –  And stretching the muscle won’t fix the problem.

These above reasons are just a few examples for needing a thorough, 60 minute, Fellowship-Level, Osteopractic Physical Therapy assessment for your symptoms/injury. 

Because, if you present “tightness” to a rushed provider or the wrong practitioner, then you may be incorrectly shuttled into an endless barrage of more stretches and muscular massage - providing temporary and short lived relief. But when you quickly and efficiently uncover the true cause of your tightness, then appropriate interventions can be selected.

Whether the necessary intervention being dry needling, joint-specific mobilizations, joint manipulations at the corresponding levels, and/or the corrective exercise to build strength/endurance, an Osteopractor is the specialist needed to accurately identify the cause of your tightness and select the appropriate treatment technique. 

At Flow Physical Therapy and Wellness in Lafayette, LA, our Osteopractic Physical Therapist spends 60+ minutes with you at every single session. These uninterrupted sessions are designed to deep dive into your unique presentation and are not filled with fluff, time filling stretches, or nonspecific treatment approaches. 

If you are tired of stretching the same muscle without results, click the button below and let’s get started!

Click Here to Get Started

Dr. Patrick Thompson, PT, DPT, OCS, Dip. Osteopractic, FAAOMPT

Owner of Flow Physical Therapy and Wellness

337-366-1703