Why DO Muscles Get “tight”?
Jun. 6
Written By Heather Buckle
Why DO muscles become “tight” and uncomfortable? The global assumption is often that muscles become tight because they are strong from lots of use but that often is not the case. Learning how to resolve that uncomfortable feeling starts with understanding the root problem and why it became that way. In rehab clinics, we often see clients come in with generalized pain and discomfort, stating they have tried countless different stretches to no avail. The common report is it feels good for a couple hours but returns to its tight and uncomfortable state fairly quickly. That statement is often a tell-all for an experienced practitioner. Let’s break it down into possible causes:
1) Repetitive Strain – whether it’s a job or sport, performing the same movements day in and day out causes strain and an abnormal muscle “tightness” – **these ones do typically respond well to stretching and mobility exercises
2) Weakness – Muscles become “tight” when they are being asked to do something that they are not strong enough to do. At the cellular level, actin and myosin fibres compensate by overlapping more and more progressively in an attempt to create an adequate contraction, however, as the fibres overlap more, there is less ability to generate force and torque and what we are left with is a tight and uncomfortable muscle lacking flexibility and at risk for injury. – **these ones will only respond to stretching for a couple hours then return to feeling tight in a couple hours or at next use. The root solution for these is to improve the strength of the muscle involved and all stabilizers associated with it.
3) Strength without Flexibility – A Muscle does indeed feel tight when we exercise it regularly and it is nice and strong, however, we are not putting it through it’s full range daily via stretching or mobility to end range exercises, hence the sensation of “tightness” and limited mobility -**these ones will typically respond well to stretching and mobility exercises
4) Irritated or Impinged Nerves – Happy nerves are mobile and free, so when one does a hamstring stretch, one should only feel the hamstring restriction. However, nerves that are irritated or impinged cause what we call “dural tension” and they do not like being on stretch when in this state. The easiest example is the sciatic nerve – when it is irritated, people feel pain and pulling down the back of their leg. When we put our shoes on or slump, it feels as though our hamstrings are “tight” however, in these cases, it is the sciatic nerve on tension creating that sensation. Over time, the hamstring does shorten and tighten for 2 reasons 1) it is protecting the body from overstretching the irritated nerve so does indeed cause resistance via compensatory mechanisms 2) the longer the body goes NOT putting the hamstring on stretch because the nerve is limiting the mobility, the muscle will indeed get shorter and “tighter” – **these ones will NOT respond to stretches and often will feel worse after stretching, possibly painful after stretching, or at minimum, will return to feeling tight immediately after stretching
How does one know which one they are? An experienced orthopedic Physiotherapist or Chiropractor can perform a comprehensive assessment and make recommendations that very same day, so that you an know what you should be doing to combat your specific “tightness” properly and to minimize risk of injury, optimize performance and feel your very best. Lakeside’s team of professionals absolutely love this stuff because it is what we call “Prophylactic Care”, which means we are catching you BEFORE an injury usually which is when it is the easiest and fastest time to correct problems.