Active Release Technique
Tension held on a named muscle while you move the joint through range, aimed at the adhesions limiting glide.
Muscles are supposed to slide over each other. When they stop, the whole area behaves as one stiff block and the joint takes the difference. ART holds tension at a specific point while you actively move the limb through range, which is what makes it different from static massage.
It is not a relaxing modality and it is not meant to be. Sessions are short and specific, and they end with loading through the range we just freed up.
What it changes
- ✦Targets a named muscle rather than a general area
- ✦Restores glide between tissue layers
- ✦Short sessions, specific to the complaint
Questions
How is this different from a sports massage?+
It is a specific protocol on a named structure with you moving through range, and it runs about 25 minutes rather than an hour.
Safety & what to expect
It can be uncomfortable during, and a day of soreness afterwards is normal. Tell the clinician to back off at any point; more pressure is not more progress.
More in Soft Tissue & Myofascial
Instrument-Assisted Soft Tissue
Stainless steel instruments used along the muscle and fascia to find and work the restricted areas, commonly known by the Graston protocol.
Dry Needling
A thin monofilament needle placed into a taut band of muscle to release a trigger point, used for the knots that keep reforming after hands-on work.
Cupping
Suction cups applied over a muscle group, sometimes moved through range, to lift and decompress tissue that has become dense and sticky.