The Role of Acupuncture in Athletic Performance Enhancement
Unlocking Potential: Acupuncture for Strength Training
Acupuncture
is most often utilized when it comes to pain relief because of the specific systemic effects like natural pain killer production i.e. beta-endorphins and the promotion of blood circulation to injured areas. Most people, however, are not aware of the role acupuncture may play in benefitting athletes.
Because of the same systemic effects mentioned athletes may recover more quickly post-sporting events and during the training process. Although this is very important, acupuncture in combination with a physical therapy regimen would help athletic performance tremendously.
Synergistic Benefits of Acupuncture and Physical Therapy
The main goal of using acupuncture for athletes is to enable the muscles to function properly. Both physical therapy and acupuncture share this same goal. Acupuncture does it by assessing which muscles are weaker and treating the appropriate point regions to strengthen these muscles. The effects can be rather immediate sometimes needing only 10-15 seconds of stimulation.
When muscles test weak, they are, in most cases, in a partially contracted state. A partially contracted muscle is never at optimal strength because the muscle cannot fully contract. This is called muscular inhibition and may lead to diminished athletic performance.
Acupuncture at the motor point regions where the nerves and muscles meet will reset the muscle fibers, so they can both relax and contract properly. This is essential for athletic performance because it enables the muscles to perform at full strength.
Sometimes athletes undergo strength training routines but are unable to strengthen the appropriate muscles because of muscular inhibition. In these cases, treating the motor point regions will enable an athlete to push beyond physical barriers that are impeding their performance.
