There has been a lot of discussion on the Internet recently about massage guns, with some arguing that they are worth the money, while others are arguing that they are an “IQ tax”. So does it work? How much does it matter?
The principle of massage gun comes from deep muscle stimulation therapy (DMS), which is an effective method for the treatment of soft tissue pain in recent years. It acts on deep muscle tissue by mechanical vibration, stimulating its proprioceptive function, and then effectively relieving muscle tension, so as to achieve the purpose of pain relief.
The correct use of a massage gun may achieve some results, but whether it is worth the cost is a matter of opinion, as there are many other ways to achieve the same effect. In addition, some body parts should not be used blindly, which will bring hidden dangers.
Gun massagers handheld deep tissue uses its special high-speed motor to drive the “gun head”, producing high-frequency vibration to the deep layer of the muscle, to reduce local tissue tension, relieve pain, promote blood circulation and other effects.
The correct use has three functions:
1. Before exercise, use the massage gun to quickly shock the muscle group to exercise, so that the temperature and blood flow of the muscle group will increase, which is helpful to achieve the effect of fast warm-up.
2. Use a massage gun between sets to reactivate tired muscles and get them ready for the next set.
3. After exercise, use the gun massagers handheld deep tissue to impact the exercised muscle groups according to the principle of pain points, so as to help metabolize lactic acid and reduce muscle tension.
The above use is based on the correct use of human anatomy, therapeutics and other people have a certain understanding of the effect. If the operation is improper, it will not only have little effect on the repair of muscles and fascia tissue, but may cause personal damage, because the mechanical vibration of massage gun is likely to cause serious injury if it acts on the superficial body surface of nerves and blood vessels.
Don’t use the three “no-go areas” :
1. Bone protrusion of upper and lower limbs
On the outside of the knee joint, there is a bulge at the upper end of the calf, called the fibula head. It is surrounded by the common peroneal nerve, which is very superficial. If it is injured, there will be foot drop, toes can not be extended back, foot sensory disorders, etc., and the massage gun cannot touch the fibula head. In front of the knee, the protrusion of the tibial tubercle, also cannot be shot with a massage gun.
The medial side of the elbow is where the ulnar nerve groove runs, and sometimes the forearm goes numb when touched. Because the ulnar nerve is very superficial here, it’s also not accessible with a massage gun. The anterolateral aspect of the shoulder joint, anatomically called the greater tubercle, is where the rotator cuff is attached, and also cannot be touched with a massage gun.
2. Around the neck
There are a lot of nerves and blood vessels passing through the side and front of the neck, and there are nerve reflex receptors, which are very sensitive and fragile, and the use of massage gun in these places is very risky.
3. Around the clavicle, under the armpit, upper arm and popliteal fossa
These places are full of brachial plexus nerve and its branches, supraclavicular artery, brachial artery and other important nerves, blood vessels, popliteal fossa refers to the fossa behind the knee joint, there are popliteal artery, nerve and so on, and the position is superficial, once the injury consequences are very serious, so these positions can not be directly hit with a massage gun.
“With a massage gun, you need to know where not to use it first, and then you need to use it scientifically, but there is no denying that a massage gun is a highly effective tool to relax deep muscles.
Post time: Aug-09-2022