Causes, Symptoms and Home Remedies for Muscle Knots

New research has shown that over 90% of individuals have experienced an incident of muscle knots at least once in their lives. Muscle knots are medically referred to as myofascial trigger points. They are small painful knots of bands of muscle or fascia that cause pain and

may impair mobility. Muscle knots may commonly be found on the neck region, the shoulders, the lower back, calves, and shins.

Classification of muscle knots.
Scientifically, muscle knots are classified into two categories, the active muscle knots that present with pain even before somebody exacts a bit of pressure on them. The latent or hidden myofascial trigger points cause pain when pressure is exacted on them. The primary symptom of muscle knots is pain at the site of formation of the muscle knot. Other symptoms include inflammation, tenderness, and impaired movement of the joint. In some scenarios, like neck muscle knots may emanate pain that may present as a headache.

Muscle knots may sometimes be confused for a swollen lymph node or a tender spot. If a muscle twitch occurs when the affected area is massaged, then that is a distinct characteristic of a muscle knot. Additionally, muscle knots are tentatively more consolidated than tender spots. As for swollen glands, they present with other symptoms that are in line with an underlying disease or infection.

Causes of muscle knots.
Bad postures may cause myofascial trigger points, muscle injury from excessive heavy lifting, emotional stress or tension, and prolonged bed rest or sitting position without muscle movement are potential causes of muscle knots. Other causative agents include fatigue, dehydration, poor diet, poor ergonomics, anxiety, depression, poor sleep patterns, and joint problems.

What are the dangers and risk factors associated with muscle knots?
Often, muscle knots are harmless and can be treated with standard home remedies; however, if left unattended for a long time, it may cause chronic pain and muscle tears that could lead to scar tissue formation. 

Some of the risk factors that increase the probability of having muscle knots include aging, diseases like fibromyalgia, and psychological stress. Also, individuals who spend long hours on computers are at a higher risk of developing muscle knots. People who lack vitamins and minerals in the diet and those with a history of joint problems are predisposed to muscle knots.

Home remedies for muscle knots.
First, it is crucial to identify the likely cause of the muscle knot. If it is due to prolonged sitting or sleeping, one is encouraged to take breaks between the working hours and walk around.

Proper home management of muscle knots consists of measures that will break down the knots and cater to the inflamed tissue. Some of the home remedies recommended include:

Stretching exercises.
Stretching your muscles for at least 30 seconds works by elongating your muscle, thus reducing the muscle tension. However, one needs to be careful to prevent muscle injury. Seek advice on the best stretching techniques from the chiropractor near LAX.

Active exercises.
Active exercises like cardio, aerobics, swimming, or jogging, especially exercises involving the shoulder and calf regions, will help prevent muscle knots. Exercises keep the muscles active and healthy. In addition, exercise helps to increase the blood supply to the affected area and facilitates the removal of toxins and the supply of oxygen and nutrients.

Exercises have been shown to have a positive impact on mood due to the release of feel-good hormones called endorphins. Endorphin release will help alleviate anxiety and depression.

Hot and cold therapy.
A mixture of hot and cold therapy is one of the effective home remedies for muscle knots. Cold therapy is done by applying an ice pack or a cold press for about ten minutes with an intermittent 15 minutes break. The cold temperatures cause vasoconstriction of blood vessels, which in turn reduces inflammation and pain.

On the other hand, hot therapy involves applying heat by placing heating pads or a cloth soaked in warm water to the affected area. The heat facilitates muscle relaxation and vasodilation of blood vessels, which in turn promotes healing. Alternate between cold therapy and hot therapy for effective treatment of muscle knots.

Massage therapy.
Massage therapy near LAX can be used to treat muscle knots. Therapeutic massages near LAX improve the blood circulation, relaxes the muscle tension, and aids in breaking up the muscle knots. There are different types of therapeutic massages near LAX available, and it is advised to visit the best chiropractor near LAX.

It is also essential to know that one requires several therapeutic massages near LAX sessions to break up the muscle knots effectively. The types of massages are:

Self-massage.
This can be done daily as it requires no assistance. Massage the sore muscle by gently applying pressure on the tensed muscles and move slowly in slow circular movements. For massage therapy for back pain, and other areas that you can not reach with your hand, you can adapt by placing a round object like a tennis ball between you and the wall and gently roll the ball while applying some pressure in the affected area. This massage therapy for back pain will help in reducing back pain associated with bad posture.

Swedish massages near LAX involves long kneading deep, circular movements, vibrations, and tapping to aid in the relaxation of the muscles. Deep tissue massage therapy near LAX uses high-pressure strokes to target the deeper layer of muscles. It is used to target the deep muscle knots or fascia knots.

The sports massages near LAX is used for athletes, and it aims at the prevention and treatment of muscle knots and other muscle injuries.

Physical therapy.
The treatment of some severe forms of myofascial trigger points requires applying pressure to the trigger points by a skilled chiropractor. It is, therefore, essential to seek the chiropractor near LAX for such services. The pressure technique applied is aimed at reducing pain, softening the muscle knots, and preventing a recurrence.

For severe muscle knots, physicians and chiropractors would recommend a more medical alternative treatment regimen, which may include acupuncture, ischemic compression, ultrasound therapy, low-level laser therapy, dry needling, electro-stimulation, and the spray and stretch techniques.

It is important to consult a physician or the best chiropractor near you for a confirmatory diagnosis of myofascial trigger points before enrolling on a medical treatment regimen.