Introduction:

Active Release Techniques (ART) offers a breakthrough in treating soft tissue disorders, providing rapid and lasting relief for various conditions.

Key Takeaways:

  • Active Release Techniques (ART) is a patented massage technique targeting soft tissue problems in muscles, tendons, ligaments, fascia, and nerves.
  • Effective for treating a variety of conditions like headaches, back pain, carpal tunnel, and more, often caused by overused muscles.
  • ART sessions combine examination with targeted treatment, utilizing over 500 specific moves for tailored care.
  • Developed by Dr. P. Michael Leahy, ART’s effectiveness is based on hands-on diagnosis and treatment.

What is Active Release Techniques (ART) and how does it benefit individuals?

ART is a patented massage therapy focusing on soft tissue disorders caused by overused muscles, offering effective treatment for conditions like headaches, back pain, and sciatica. It combines diagnostic assessment with precise, movement-based treatments to alleviate pain, restore function, and improve mobility.

What is Active Release Techniques (ART) to Individuals, Athletes, and Patients?

ART is a patented, state of the art soft tissue system/movement based massage technique that treats problems with muscles, tendons, ligaments, fascia and nerves. Headaches, back pain, carpal tunnel syndrome, shin splints, shoulder pain, sciatica, plantar fasciitis, knee problems, and tennis elbow are just a few of the many conditions that can be resolved quickly and permanently with ART. These conditions all have one important thing in common: they are often a result of overused muscles.

How do overuse conditions occur?

Over-used muscles (and other soft tissues) change in three important ways:
  • acute conditions (pulls, tears, collisions, etc),
  • accumulation of small tears (micro-trauma)
  • not getting enough oxygen (hypoxia).
Each of these factors can cause your body to produce tough, dense scar tissue in the affected area. This scar tissue binds up and ties down tissues that need to move freely. As scar tissue builds up, muscles become shorter and weaker, tension on tendons causes tendonitis, and nerves can become trapped. This can cause reduced range of motion, loss of strength, and pain. If a nerve is trapped you may also feel tingling, numbness, and weakness.

ART treatments OC Wellness

What is an ART treatment like?

Every ART session is actually a combination of examination and treatment. The ART provider uses his or her hands to evaluate the texture, tightness and movement of muscles, fascia, tendons, ligaments and nerves. Abnormal tissues are treated by combining precisely directed tension with very specific patient movements. These treatment protocols – over 500 specific moves – are unique to ART. They allow providers to identify and correct the specific problems that are affecting each individual patient. ART is not a cookie-cutter approach.

What is the history of Active Release Techniques?

ART has been developed, refined, and patented by P. Michael Leahy, DC, CCSP. Dr. Leahy noticed that his patients’ symptoms seemed to be related to changes in their soft tissue that could be felt by hand. By observing how muscles, fascia, tendons, ligaments and nerves responded to different types of work, Dr. Leahy was able to consistently resolve over 90% of his patients’ problems. He now teaches and certifies health care providers all over the world to use ART.

Don’t forget to ask your chiropractor about ART and how it can benefit YOU!

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