What is the Mind-Muscle Connection and How does it help with Plantar fasciitis?
We have all heard the saying “Mind Over Matter”, but when it comes to healing your plantar fasciitis, can you really use your mind to overcome the pain?
The short answer is YES!
The mind-muscle connection is a practice aimed at honing in on each muscle used during physical exercise. It enables a person to target specific muscles to help create better stability and aid in injury prevention.
For example, focusing on the correct muscles for plantar fasciitis can help reduce pain associated with the condition.
Mind-muscle connection involves concentrating more on the targeted area of your body as you move so you become aware of exactly what the muscle is doing.
With time, this increased level of awareness allows you to engage and enhance those particular muscles far more effectively than with a conventional strategy alone.
You can use the mind-muscle connection to help heal your plantar fasciitis by focusing your attention on the full movement of the muscle as you move from heel strike, to midstance, to toe off, which is the full range of motion of the foot during gait.
Concentration of the muscle as it goes through movement will:
- Increase electric activity through muscle
- Increase muscle strength
- Increase effectiveness of muscle
- Reduce pain by increasing efficiency of each contraction
- Reduce pain and inflammation by concentrating on full range of motion of the muscle, or increasing in effect the muscle’s flexibility.
Now THAT is being Mindful! Happy concentrating!