Kinesio Taping Method is a rehabilitative taping technique designed to assist your body’s natural healing processes while supporting muscles and joints without restricting range of motion. Furthermore, this tape improves circulation while decreasing inflammation as well as excess chemical buildup in your body.
KT tape stands out from traditional athletic tape in that its elastic polymer strands are woven into 100% cotton fibers for increased skin movement. Water resistance ensures wearability over multiple days.
Reduces Pain and Stiffness
Kinesio Taping (KT), created by chiropractor Dr. Kenzo Kase in the 1970s, is an effective technique designed to alleviate pain and stiffness while improving joint motion, supporting muscles more freely while protecting them, and providing support. Kinesio Taping has become widely utilized among athletes looking for ways to boost performance, reduce joint stress and increase flexibility without restricting movement.
KT can be applied directly to the skin and shaped into various configurations depending on where it is most needed. A physical therapist or sports medicine provider can apply it in patterns that mimic muscle and other soft tissue movement; or used as lifters that relieve pressure while increasing circulation and lymphatic drainage – aiding with swelling caused by injury or overuse.
When applied correctly, KT can stretch between 100-180% of its original length, providing it the flexibility to contour to different body parts while creating a “recoil” effect that pulls skin away from where it attaches – creating an “uplift or decompression effect that allows muscles, joints and tendons more room for contraction and stretch.
Combining Kinesio Taping (KT) with other rehabilitation techniques can provide a highly efficient approach to treating many injuries. One study that examined how well each approach performed found that patients who combined exercise and KT experienced greater improvements in pain, range of motion (ROM), strength and functional abilities than those who only performed exercises alone.
KT can also be utilized on the feet to align and support arches and provide extra foot support. In individuals with flat feet, their navicular bone may sit lower than usual due to low arches; using KT, we can lift this bone up which then helps with arch support and alignment.
KT can be beneficial in treating various injuries and ailments that affect the body. A comprehensive assessment should be performed prior to choosing the most effective application of KT and results, including manual muscle testing, range of motion testing, gait assessment as well as any orthopedic tests that may be deemed necessary.
Strengthens Muscles
Kinesiology tape can help improve muscle function, stabilize joints and prevent muscles from contracting or stretching too much during exercise or athletic activities, as well as everyday tasks, to avoid injuries or accelerate healing processes. It’s a useful tool that should be included as part of everyday tasks in order to prevent injuries or accelerate healing processes.
Kinesio Taping stands apart from standard athletic tape in that it’s tailored specifically to support parts of the body that need extra care and support. It features a porous cotton top for skin breathing and water-resistant medical-grade adhesive on its underside for secure adhesion.
Kinesiology techniques used to make this tape so helpful relieve pressure from specific muscles and joints, helping improve circulation to injured areas and bring oxygen and nutrients more directly. This increased circulation can strengthen overused muscles for quicker healing times.
Tape therapy also aids the body’s healing by relieving pressure that builds up on injured areas and draining any fluid build-up, such as lactic acid that builds up over time. By decreasing pressure, your body can speed healing by decreasing swelling, pain and discomfort faster.
Physical therapists have found kinesiology tape particularly beneficial in re-training muscles that have lost their normal range of motion or have grown accustomed to less healthy work patterns. A 2017 study shows how using Kinesiology tape on the head and neck can help patients improve their posture, while another showed it can aid stroke victims recover their gait more rapidly.
Certified Kinesio Taping Practitioners use specialized forms of Kinesio Tape to apply it in various forms and applications. Some methods include applying it in Y, I or U shapes or fan formation. Your physical therapist will determine which application will work best for your condition.
Kinesiology tape can provide a lift or decompression that pulls skin away from an affected area, helping reduce inflammation while simultaneously increasing blood flow to its site of injury. When applied properly, this method may reduce pain while increasing circulation to where injury has taken place.
Though research on Kinesiology Tape (KT) remains inconclusive, a recent meta-analysis did demonstrate its benefits by showing how facilitatory applications of KT increased muscle strength and functional performance (distance in single leg hop test and vertical jump height) among individuals living with disabilities or chronic musculoskeletal conditions.
Increases Range of Motion
Kinesio taping is a method of applying elastic tape to muscles and joints for support, with evidence that it improves range of motion, increases muscle contraction, eases pain and swelling relief and can even enhance physical therapy sessions. Although not used as a replacement to traditional physical therapy treatments, kinesio tape may still enhance healing processes when worn alongside physical therapy sessions to accelerate healing processes and injuries recover quicker. Kinesio tape has even been seen being worn by athletes at local tracks, basketball courts or swimming pools, helping them reach peak performances – something traditional physical therapy simply cannot do!
KT tape is made of breathable cotton fabric with a special weave designed to allow body’s natural moisture to pass through it, and has the elasticity that stretches with muscles, tendons and ligaments, providing lift or decompression effect that relieves pressure off muscles and joints. Its lifting action distinguishes KT from other tapes and accounts for much of its effectiveness.
Tape can be applied in numerous ways and is designed to assist muscles and joints to move freely. Dr. Kenzo Kase of Japan created the Kinesio Taping method in 1979 based on his research in Kinesiology (musculoskeletal movement science).
Researchers conducted one study that investigated the effects of Kinesio Tape (KT) on an athlete’s vertical jump test. 31 healthy adults were tested prior to and following (with and without Kinesio Tape) jumping. Participants were randomly assigned into groups who received either Kinesio or Mplacebo tape application on their lower legs; researchers observed greater vertical ground reaction force (VGRF) and EMG activity of medial gastrocnemius muscle activity during jumping with Kinesio Tape application than with Mplacebo taping.
Results demonstrated that KT significantly increased both VGRF and EMG activity of the medial gastrocnemius while improving jumping height. According to authors of this study, differences among elastic tapes could likely be attributable to their individual structures and degrees of elasticity.
Increases Flexibility
Kinesio tape applies a light pressure that supports and encourages muscle contraction. This allows them to feel stronger while moving through their full range of motion without restriction or restriction from unstable joints, helping prevent injury or compensatory patterns from developing. Additionally, it may provide support for unstable joints by giving an impression of security for them as they move freely through their range of motion without restrictions or injuries occurring due to instability.
Kinesio taping has long been used by athletes and sports medicine practitioners alike to improve performance. Unlike elastic support bandages, this tape adheres directly to the skin for maximum comfort during physical activity – this method has proven successful among triathletes, marathon runners, cyclists and members of the US women’s national soccer team alike.
Kinesio tape can help increase range of motion for affected joints and muscles while simultaneously increasing flexibility. Crafted with stretchy medical-grade material that lifts skin slightly to create space underneath tissues for increased blood flow to help restore and maintain normal muscle function, this tape also makes an effective aid to increasing flexibility.
Studies conducted recently showed that Kinesiology tape significantly enhanced knee joint function and range of motion in participants with chronic degenerative knee arthritis, while also decreasing pain, stiffness, and fatigue levels in their legs and hips.
Research was performed by a certified kinesiology taping practitioner; therefore it’s essential to look for such credentials when selecting your practitioner. They will assess your condition, pinpointing areas of dysfunction and selecting an application tailored specifically to target them – for instance someone suffering from patellofemoral pain syndrome may require different tape applications than someone experiencing shoulder instability or low back pain.
Practitioners then cut and apply an appropriate piece of tape directly onto the skin, rounding its corners to protect its adhesive surface from lifting up. They will then adjust tension accordingly: light tensions for sensitive reactions; moderate tensions for muscle stimulation or joint corrections or mechanical purposes; or high tensions as necessary for joint correction or other mechanical purposes.