posture | Beverly Jacobs Equine Massage
Massage for Pain Relief and More
Bodies are designed to move. In modern Western society, humans and animals spend much of their time in the same static position. Horses stand in stalls or paddocks. Humans sit at desks or in cars. Children sit at desks in school.
Movement or exercise raises the level of endorphins (natural painkillers) and reduces inflammation in the body. Working muscles improves circulation and removes toxins from tissues.
Often pain will make an animal or person fearful of moving their bodies. But without movement, the body won’t get better. There is a difference between the achy soreness that is felt after a workout to get back in shape, and pain. Some soreness is normal and healthy when rebuilding muscles. Owners, trainers, and riders need to be very tuned in to their horses to protect them from re-injury.
The healing power of massage is so apparent that just about every culture in history has used massage to relieve pain. Massage faded into the background with the arrival of modern medicine, but is on the rise as a valuable tool. Massage may also change the way the brain senses pain. As Stanford neuroscientist Robert Sapolsky has said, sensations of a good massage can temporarily make the brain forget about other aches. The relief experienced after body work will help attitude and ability to focus, which can affect behavior, training, and performance.
This entry was posted in Canine, Equine, Equine Massage, Human, Pain Relief, Performance Enhancing Massage, Sports Massage, Stress Point Therapy, Structural Integration, Trigger Point Therapy and tagged circulation, endorphins, inflammation, muscle, posture on March 11, 2014 by Beverly Jacobs.	
Why Does Your Horse Need Structural Integration?
Structural Integration, also known as Rolfing, manually releases body stress and tension that prevent postural alignment and balance.
Most pain relates to muscles and joints. Muscles and joints bear the strain when bodies are overused, misused, and unbalanced. Body balance also affects circulation, digestion, and the nervous system.
The muscles and skeleton is the largest energy user of the body. When the body is under strain, the result is fatigue, pain, and reduced athletic performance.
I see my job as a massage therapist as that of a body educator. There is nothing that makes me happier than to see previously uncomfortable and suffering animals able to enjoy their jobs with a bright look on their face.
This entry was posted in Equine, Equine Massage, Injury Prevention, Myofascial Release, Pain Relief, Sports Massage, Stress Point Therapy, Structural Integration, Trigger Point Therapy and tagged circulation, digestion, joints, muscle, posture, rolfing on February 8, 2014 by Beverly Jacobs.	
A muscle that is very tight remains in a contracted position, even when at rest. Circulation to the muscle is then reduced, and as a result, the muscle loses elasticity. Gradually, the muscle becomes fixed in a shortened position. Full range of motion will no longer be possible. Reversal of this condition is highly unlikely unless the muscle fibers are released by an experienced practitioner. Rest will not change the pain and restriction of severely contracted muscles. Skilled hands can relieve the discomfort and dysfunction of constricted muscle fibers. The body worker is a detective, putting together pieces of a puzzle to rebuild proper posture , movement, and alignment.
This entry was posted in Equine, Equine Massage, Human, Injury Prevention, Myofascial Release, Performance Enhancing Massage, Sports Massage, Stress Point Therapy, Trigger Point Therapy and tagged muscle, posture on December 4, 2013 by Beverly Jacobs.	
Muscular Patterns Reveal Themselves
The more chance I have to observe a horse in action, the easier it is for me to identify where the horse might have pain or constrictions. Ideally, I have the time at a show to watch the horse in the ring, but at the very least, I need to see the horse walking away from me, towards me, and walking in a circle in each direction. Seeing the horse standing will also reveal areas of myofascial tightness, postural deviations, and other asymmetries. Once I see all that, I have to become a detective, putting together all the clues.
The majority of the time, trigger points, stress points, and other restrictions in the body manifest in patterns. For instance, a tight left shoulder might be caused by a tight right biceps femoris (muscles in the hind end). Before I ever put my hands on a horse, I often have an idea (though I also have to keep an open mind!) of what I am going to find.
It has been reported that massaging a horse before competition can result in as much as a 20% increase in the animal’s efficiency.
This entry was posted in Equine, Equine Massage, Myofascial Release, Pain Relief, Performance Enhancing Massage, Sports Massage, Stress Point Therapy, Structural Integration, Trigger Point Therapy and tagged fascia, posture on November 21, 2013 by Beverly Jacobs.	
Muscles Have a Big Job
Muscle is living tissue, requiring fuel, oxygen, temperature regulation, and waste removal. Muscles are constantly rebuilding and restructuring, responding to hard work, rest, standing, and walking. On any given day, I will find a different horse from the one I saw a week ago.
Muscles that are responsible for movement have long, elastic fibers. They act as levers to move the bone where they insert.
The muscles that are responsible for maintaining posture tend to have short, strong muscle fibers. Some of these muscles wind around joints to provide support.
Each equine discipline differs in what it requires from the muscles. A pony pulling a cart will need different adjustments to one going in a side saddle. The dressage horse will experience different muscle soreness from a racehorse. When working with a horse I also need to take into account what kind of footing it is ridden on, and whether some asymmetries might be caused by a rider hanging on a rein or sitting crookedly.
This entry was posted in Equine, Equine Massage, Myofascial Release, Stress Point Therapy, Structural Integration, Trigger Point Therapy and tagged muscle, posture on November 15, 2013 by Beverly Jacobs.	