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Here is how you can successfully use it at home to reduce body pain and target inflammation and swelling.

It is difficult for sports fans and spectators to find an athlete who does not have kinesiology tape on the court or on the court. However, unless you explicitly go to see a physical therapist for rehabilitation or injury, kinesiology tape may be something you haven't considered when controlling physical pain. The product, as it is called-a topical tape applied to the skin of injured or inflamed areas-is used by experts who believe in it to relieve body pain. It is very viscous, able to resist sweat, water and a lot of vigorous and fast exercise, and can withstand the test of rigorous exercise.

Physical therapists and sports medicine professionals turn to kinesiology tape for different reasons, applying elastic tape to problem areas to better improve joint movement or function. It can also be used to deal with scar tissue recovery, posture problems and improve the so-called proprioception, which is the link between your nervous system and the invisible perception of your body. Eni Kadar, PT, DPT explained that he is a Licensed orthopedic physiotherapist, he often turns to body tape in a series of clinical treatments. But more commonly, kinesiology tape can increase blood flow to the area of ​​your choice.

More research is needed to determine how fast kinesiology tape can accelerate recovery from injuries. But the current data can really confirm its ability to increase blood flow. In turn, this can help in recovery from injuries and reduce overall inflammation.

A targeted study published in the Annals of Rheumatology showed that kinesiology tape greatly improved the blood flow of women undergoing total knee arthroplasty and reduced the accumulation of lymphatic vessels; it won another in 2017. Supported by a study, the study found that kinesiology tape significantly reduces the risk of uninjured knee joint irritation by gently lifting and supporting the skin during use.

Although many experts tell patients and the public that kinesiology tape can help relieve pain, shorten injury recovery, and reduce inflammation, it is important to understand how they obtain these benefits (and why they are not fully supported by science). According to Kadar, the best kinesiology tape can peel the skin from the affected muscles or joints on a microscopic scale that is invisible to the naked eye. But this imperceptible change increases blood flow in the area.

"The way I explained to the patient was to [kinesthetic tape] desensitize the injured area to allow more freedom of movement," Kadar added. "After an injury, your brain becomes very sensitive to the sensation of pain, because it tries to protect your body. This will limit the range of motion and slow down the treatment process."

Marko explained that these pre-cut strips are the industry standard for PT treatment and can be applied to any part of the body due to their length.

Marko also offers non-cutting rolls. RockTape's excellent grip on the skin is rarely affected by water or sweat, especially for athletes.

If you are looking for uncut rolls, this best-selling product is available in a variety of colors and has received more than 6,400 five-star reviews from Amazon customers.

Kadar adds that the tape can help "turn down the volume", and then your brain's perception of pain will follow, making you feel more comfortable when you move around (it may also allow you to pass the treatment faster make a progress).

Theresa Marko, a committee-certified orthopedic physiotherapist in New York City, said that the way you bend the affected area before applying kinesiology tape may also change this result. "The idea is that if you stick your muscles or joints in the extended position, [tape] should increase blood circulation and awareness," she explained. "If you stick the joint in a shortened [relaxed] position, it should relieve pain and muscle activation."

Any chronic pain of joints or muscles that may be overused every day, as well as body pain related to posture, can be partially controlled with kinesiology tape. Since chronic injuries have caused you to feel pain for weeks or months, your nervous system and pain regulators may become more sensitive to the area and the injury itself, which is why kinesiology tape is combined with other pain control measures reason. "The most common body parts I post are shoulders, knees and lower back," Kadar told us.

Surprisingly, tape may be the key to relieving foot pain, because both Kadar and Marko use it to simulate the support of a foot orthosis. "This helps people understand what the correct foot mechanics will look like before investing in orthotics, or it helps us reduce the pressure on the painful part of the foot," Kadar said. Marko adds that it can even be used as an immediate arch support.

Posture-related issues may also prompt you to use kinesiology patches, but mainly as a way to promote better posture over time rather than treating pain alone. "I usually use [tape] on the shoulders or on the patient's feet; for the shoulders, I put the tape on people in a neutral posture," Kadar shared. "Because the tape has a one-way stretch, when they fall into a'bad posture', they will consciously or subconsciously feel the tension of the tape, reminding themselves to correct it."

She added that using tape to improve posture is not a long-term solution because you need to consciously try to correct your posture throughout the day, but if people are "recovering" their posture as part of it, it can help people with physical therapy .

Some injuries are almost impossible to bandage yourself (for example, think about the back of your thigh and hamstrings), so you may need to go to a physical therapist for bandaging. In any case, if you plan to use kinesiology tape at home for a long time, it is very helpful to ask a licensed physical therapist to demonstrate how to use kinesiology tape in person.

If you are already aware that your skin is sensitive, you should discuss the use of tape with a skin care professional in advance. Adhesives can be a problem with many pre-existing skin conditions and can cause irritation or allergic reactions in some people.

It is important to buy the right type of tape for your injury-kinesiology tape by itself will not further aggravate the injury or increase pain, but stronger strapping tape may do so because it is designed to completely restrict movement. Leukotape is an example of a popular strapping tape that works in a very different way: “It's a bit too ruthless for most applications, and it's really rough for the skin,” Kadar explains.

When buying sports tape, you may want to buy pre-cut rolls for ease of use. Marko pointed out that the edge of the pre-cut roll has been rounded, and you need to use scissors to round the edge of the tape strip to better adhere to your skin.

Here are the things you need to keep in mind when using kinesiology tape for the first time: