I am celebrating my 10th year as a Fascia Stretch Therapist! It has been a life-changing experience for me as it has for my clients. Fascia Stretch Therapy (FST) has many benefits, including pain relief, increased mobility and flexibility, and it can also improve your athletic performance. Read on to see how FST can make you a better runner.
This post is sponsored by adidas.
How Fascia Stretch Therapy Can Make You a Better Runner
As a Fascia Stretch Therapist, I know that I have made a difference in the lives of my clients, from the 70ish woman with Fibromyalgia who found relief from her symptoms to the 50-something tennis player who is working to stay flexible and on his game. Just yesterday, one of my regular clients mentioned that, at age 64, and as an avid golfer, she has no pain, which she attributes to her weekly FST sessions.
My first experience with Fascia Stretch Therapy was when, shortly after I started working at my current club, I was treated to a 30-minute session. As someone in her late 50s and a longtime runner, I experienced stiffness and back pain, especially in the morning. Well, after that half-hour session, I was hopping out of bed with no pain at all! That was when I knew that FST was the real deal and that I wanted to become a stretch therapist.
As outlined in the book, Stretch to Win, FST can enhance performance in all sports. Many therapists work for professional sports teams and work with football, hockey, basketball, and baseball players. I myself work at a country club, where I work mostly with golfers and tennis players.
As a runner, I have found a lot of relief from Fascial Stretch Therapy.
What is Fascia Stretch Therapy?
Fascia Stretch Therapy (or FST) targets not only the muscles, but also the fascia, the connective tissue that surrounds muscles, bones, and joints. FST also targets the entire joint and joint capsule, using traction to remove restrictions from movement and stimulate lubrication. A therapist will gently pull and move the arms, legs, spine, and neck in a smooth motion through varying planes of movement. There is no pain, not even discomfort. Instead, the gentle movement is stimulating and relaxing at the same time.
A Fascia Stretch Therapist will evaluate their client, looking for imbalances and the source of those imbalances. Then using breath to help with movement, the therapist will first warm up the joints and muscles with undulating stretching to maximize blood flow. Then using techniques of slow oscillating movement, as well as traction (gently pulling to create space in the joint) and modified PNF (proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation), synchronized with the breath, the therapist will stretch the entire body, following a logical anatomical order, to lengthen muscle, increase range of motion, and improve flexibility.
Read: 10 Benefits of FST
How Fascia Stretch Therapy Can Make You a Better Runner
Fascia Stretch Therapy increases functional flexibility
While static stretching can cause some gains in linear flexibility, FST uses multiple angles along the muscles-fascia lines, which translates to better overall, more functional, flexibility.
FST enhances recovery
FST can reduce muscle-fascia adhesions, relieve muscle soreness, and flush the lymphatic system. It also increases blood flow which helps speed up recovery time. Athletes in fascial stretch programs have been found to recover more quickly between training sessions and improve active range of motion compared to other stretching methods.
Fascia Stretch Therapy can help restore balance and symmetry
The FST therapist evaluates your condition and then creates a program that will restore balance and symmetry to your body. FST has been known to correct leg-length discrepancies through decompression of the joint capsule in the hip.
FST can increase your speed and quickness
Healthy fascia is fast and reactive and supports the need to move quickly. Improving range of motion and elasticity can maintain stride length and you will be better able to absorb impact.
Fascia Stretch Therapy can reduce the risk of injury
Lack of mobility can lead to compensations and increased risk of strains. Because FST focuses on the connective tissue, it can reduce these risks.
FST is designed for your specific needs
Unlike regular static stretching, a fascial stretch therapist treats both sides of your body differently, based on her assessment of your needs.
Fascia Stretch Therapy is calming, soothing, and pain-free
Running is a high-impact endeavor, and many of the treatments for running-related issues can be painful. FST calms the nervous system, relaxes the body, and is pain-free, all the while producing incredible results.
Fascia Stretch Therapy can address specific running issues and injuries
While not a medical therapy program, your FST therapist can work with physical therapists to help resolve common running issues, including plantar fasciitis, sciatica, piriformis syndrome, and other gait-related injuries.
The conclusion? That Fascia Stretch Therapy is an essential part of a runner’s performance and recovery program.
After working as a Fascia Stretch Therapist for 10 years, I have found some tools that really help with my therapy. These include two massage guns (one with a very soft head, the other with a heated head), pencils with erasers (they’re amazing for working on feet), IASTM (Instrument Assisted Soft Tissue Mobilization) muscle scrapers, and heated pads (my clients love them).
This backpack is perfect for carrying all my FST tools. It’s lightweight and makes it easier to haul everything, including my massage table, when I go to my clients’ homes.
Have you ever had a Fascia Stretch Therapy session? Have I intrigued you? If you’re interested check the Stretch to Win website for a therapist near you.
Athletes in the Coachella Valley/La Quinta area! Contact me for a special introductory rate and summer specials! You can experience FST in the privacy of your own home. Find more information about Desert Stretch here.
And Now It’s Time for the Runners Roundup!
Weekly Linkups
My weekly linkups! Please stop by and check out all of the great recipes, workouts, and information that all these awesome bloggers share every week!
Tuesday Topics with Kim and Zenaida
The Runners’ Roundup with Deborah, Lisa, Jenn, and Me!
The Weekly Run Down with Deborah and Kim
Fit Five Friday with Darlene, Michelle, Renee, Jenn, and Zenaida
Ultimate Coffee Date with Deborah and Coco
This sounds so beneficial! I wish there were more practitioners around where I live.
It’s so amazing! Real results and it feels good too.
Intriguing! I’ve been to one stretch lab and it felt really great, but I didn’t do it long term. I love being stretched by someone else, vs doing it myself, and there seem to be soooo many great benefits.
Believe it or not, this is even better than Stretch Lab! FST uses traction and therapists learn how to sense what is necessary and not just follow a step by step program. Either way, though, assisted stretching is great.