Since my &#*@ psoas muscle is still annoying me, I have decided to look into some different treatments aside from the prescribed: “take Motrin 3 times a day” courtesy of my general practitioner. I have heard about active release technique (ART) before, but have never actually tried the therapy.
When I was pregnant with my youngest son, I had back pain that was alleviated by chiropractic care, so I am familiar with some of the manipulation techniques. Active release technique is composed of 500 different treatment moves.
Practitioners certified in ART have completed a program that teaches them how to “shorten the tissue, apply a contact tension and lengthen the tissue or make it slide relative to the adjacent tissue.”
Active release technique is supposed to be great for overuse injuries–a category into which I am sure that my recent hip flexor injury falls. The founder of ART, P. Michael Leahy, DC, CCSP, developed the technique after seeing many overuse injuries in his practice. He claims to have been able to resolve 90% of his patients’ issues with ART.
I have to say that seeing the 90% figure really piqued my interest. I am all about alternative medicine, and I am very curious to see if ART can help me. Since I am quite sure that my insurance will not cover the cost of active release therapy, I am going to call the provider that is listed in Providence (they have a searchable directory on www.activerelease.com) and see if they can tell me approximately how much I will have to pay out of pocket.
Hopefully, I don’t get sticker shock and it’s something I can try out. I’m sure my hip flexor will thank me!
Have you ever tried ART?
oh. I. Have. And OH it changed my life!!!!!
Love Airrosti too.
Awesome- so excited to try it!!
my husband is a chiropractor & he practices a.r.t. oh my gosh – let me just say that i am beyond spoiled to have live-in a.r.t. access! it’s pretty freaking awesome.
i hope you can try it out – it really helps with so so so many different problems.
I just scheduled my first appt. for tomorrow morning. I am SO jealous you have a live in chiropractor!! 😉
No, I’ve never tried ART, but sounds like something worth looking into! Thanks for the info! Can’t wait to hear how it helps you
Good luck with the ART Appointment tomorrow. I have never tried it but I know a few people who have and loved it.
Thanks, I can’t wait to go! 🙂
Never tried it, but I’ve read a lot about it, and it sounds very promising. Hope it works for you! And sorry that this is giving you so much trouble – stubborn injuries suck!!!!! Are you able to run at all, or resting it a little longer?
I can’t wait to hear how it goes for you. My PT does an ultrasound treatment on my hip and it works really well. I wish I had one at home to do myself. 🙂 Good luck with your appointment!
Thanks Robin–have you ever had it done? I have heard and read a lot of great things about it. I can’t wait to get my hip back to normal, so I can get my running fix in! 😉
I have awful back pain which comes and goes. Chiropractic care has alleviates the pain for awhile but it always comes back. Can’t wait to hear how it goes!
Ugh, back pain is the worst! 🙁 I will be doing a post on my experience–hopefully it will be able to help others too!
My chiropractor practices ART. Pretty sure that’s what he used on my calf. I can run without pain now, so I’m gonna call it a success. And my insurance covers a certain number of chiro appointments, so you may be covered.
Good luck!
Yay! I love hearing stories like that! I actually did talk to the office, and I think my insurance will cover it! Double yay! 🙂
Looking forward to your report back on the Active Release Technique. I too have injury problems that I would love to be able to treat with ART.
Ellie
I will be posting about it on Monday Ellie 🙂
I have been seeing a sports chiropractor that specializes in ART for a little over a year and it has been AMAZING for my treatment of overuse injuries. I was able to keep training through all the rehab of my injuries. Definitely worth it!
I came across this blog while looking for current ART articles. I’m glad to hear that so many of you have found success with ART. LWC of Penn Hills offers ART and ultrasound, along with impulse adjusting and manual adjusting. It really is about treating both muscle and alignment! Best of luck to all of you runners, and if you ever get near Pittsburgh, stop by the office.
I am a huge believer in ART and have been getting it done by my sports doc for several years. I hope it helps you!
Kim
I had ART done last summer and it helped decrease the pain temporarily, but once I started running again, the pain came back (because I still hadn’t resolved my issues with muscular imbalances and weaknesses). I still think it was helpful though!