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All about The StickThe Stick is an easily used self massage tool which will help alleviate a lot of muscle problems and ensures you maintain good flexibility, mobility and soft tissue health. A simple device which stretches and compresses soft tissue, the Stick will increase blood flow, remove muscle trigger points and allows the muscle to operate in their full range of motion. Whether you are an athlete looking to optimise performance, or you are just wishing to maintain flexibility and mobility, the Stick will help you. Common conditions where using The Stick will help include Tight muscles - particularly tight calf muscles is a common condition easily treated. The Stick will force a relaxation of the muscle promoting new blood flow and the removal of any trigger points (muscle knots) will allow the muscle to regain flexibility. Recovery from exercise - all athletes know that in order to improve from training, proper recovery is critical and will dictate future performance. Using the Stick after exercise promotes new blood flow, returning nutrients to the muscle to ensure the muscles and connective tissue regenerate, providing the optimum adaptation from the training stimulus. Strength and power based athletes, such as Crossfit devotees, need to ensure recovery and repair are prioritised in their training regime, so muscle soreness and injury do not disrupt future sessions. Trigger point therapy - we all develop trigger points in our soft tissue just from our normal day to day activities. These trigger points may not necessarily hinder your day to day activities, but they are a precursor to future injury or may present pain symptoms in areas of the body distant from the actual trigger point. Pain in the knee for instance, often comes from trigger points in the quad muscles. Treatment to de-activate those trigger points is often very effective in eliminating knee pain and alleviating thoughts of much more serious treatment options. Regular use of The Stick will both identify the location of the trigger points and then remove them by its simple therapeutic action. Refer to our 'links' page for more information on trigger points. Injury prevention and rehabilitation - regular use of The Stick will remove barrier trigger points which are often the reason injury occurs. Should injury be sustained, The Stick will assist the natural healing process in much the same way as a visit to a physio or massage therapist will help you. The muscle will be warmed, compressed and stretched promoting new and improved blood flow to the damaged tissue enhancing its healing and rejuvenation. Achilles Tendonitis - damage to the achilles can be debilitating in that it is very slow healing. Using The Stick to improve flexibility in the calves and promote blood flow to the general area of the achilles will assist in the healing process. Used in conjunction with a good stretching program (such as Alfredson's protocol) The Stick will assist in returning you to full pain free movement. Plantar Fascia - like the achilles, damage or pain in the plantar fascia can be difficult to treat because of its 'gristly' nature. That means blood flow is restricted and healing is a slow process. Using The Stick and a product like the Footwheel will help your recovery by breaking down any trigger points. Check our 'links' page for more information.
What is the Stick Made of, how long will it last? Stick products are made of a space-age plastic that allows the necessary flexibility of the tool (the flexible nature means it will contour to the muscle greatly increasing effectiveness and comfort) and provide maximum compression of the muscle. The Stick contains no rubber or wood. The centre rod of the Stick is surrounded by spindles which roll independently over the muscle. The handles provide maximum comfort in the grip. The Stick comes with a 90-day satisfaction guarantee, and a 1 year manufacturer's warranty against defects. With proper use, The Stick should last a lifetime. Medical Talk: In order to understand non-compliant or unhealthy muscle it is necessary to discuss compliant or healthy muscle. Compliant muscle can be stretched, shortened, twisted or compressed without restriction or pain. It exhibits good circulation, flexibility, strength and endurance. On the other hand non-compliant tissue is stiff, tender, and sore with a feeling of painful knots or tight bands in the muscle. It exhibits poor circulation, reduced flexibility, weakness and easily fatigues. Non-compliant muscle is susceptible to injury in the same way a worn tyre invites a blowout. Non-compliant muscle creates barriers that hasten fatigue and restricts peak performance. The key to achieving peak work performance is to remove these barriers. The Stick converts non-compliant muscle to compliant muscle by performing what Dr. Travell (author of The Trigger Point Manual) calls stripping massage. In fact, this noted medical physician relates that, "deep stripping massage of the tender spot in the muscle was generally the treatment of choice for muscular rheumatism (myofascial trigger points) long before the turn of this century, and for fibrositis afterwards." The Stick allows people to self-perform general as well as segmental therapeutic procedures with a high degree of precision. These procedures remove the barriers to peak physical performance. It is the unassisted rolling, stretching, twisting and compressing of the muscle that diffuses barrier trigger points and converts non-compliant muscle to compliant muscle. |
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