What are chiropractors doing here...

[tweakxc03]

So, let's say a chiropractor says the "switched off" or "inhibited" term, which has been well discussed as bullshit on this board. The chiropractor then does one of those resistance tests on me where he lifts my leg up straight and rotates my foot out say 30-45 degrees, then puts downward pressure on my ankle, telling me to push back.

Almost immediately, my quad cramps up and I can't hold the position against really any pressure. He then says my hip flexor, rectus femoris are "inhibited" and other muscles elsewhere are picking up the slack. He then smashes the crap out of a trigger point spot somewhere between my quad and IT band (vastus lateralis?) for a few minutes and it hurts like hell, but it eventually seemed to release. Then he does the test again, and I can hold it much better.

I know that the "inhibition" or "not firing" thing is bullshit, but what is actually going on here in this "test"? Is that just an illusion/placebo? Secondly, if it works (regardless of whether or not its real) is it worth doing?

[Mark Rippetoe]

I don't know. I've never seen it done. We'll axe.

[johnst_nhb]

Research applied kinesiology make sure to use the search term "applied kinesiology scam". There are a couple of ways I have seen this done, and I am suspect of what you are describing.

Note that my only credentials are experience and skepticism.

[Joe Tandy]

This "test" is common among other quacks like kinesiologists/accupuncturists/homeopaths.

It is also the same essential technique used in various ways in lots of "mind control" magic tricks.
In essence it is a magic trick and here are some of the ways it's employed to deceive.

1) first a limb is placed into an unfamiliar position that you are not used to applying force from.

This is usually :
internal rotation of the leg+hip flexion for chiropractors

Transverse shoulder abduction while prone for homeopaths and their ilk

Fingers interlaced and arms crossed for magicians.

The "test" is applied, usually after inferring verbally that their will be a weakness (this cues your motor units to not fire, helping validate their "results")
An intervention takes place, and the "test" is repeated, you are led to believe verbally it should be better this time... And it miraculously is.

They fixed you!
It's like a sped up version of training the functional movement screen, an unfamiliar position justifies their claims... But this time they use magics power of suggestion to deceive further.



"These people are magic, or plying a skill.
They are either lying of mentally ill" - Tim Minchin

[musclemilk]

Look up Neurokinetic Therapy (NKT) by David Weinstock. He's this hippy who coined the term and performs this technique on people which is similar to MAT. It supposedly has very good results.

[John Petrizzo]

I have some experience with professors using these terms in grad school, but I am not an expert on the topic by any means. In general, there are a lot of body workers (massage therapists, manual PTs, chiropractors, etc) who throw around the terms "inhibited" to mean weak, and "facilitated" to mean tight. I am pretty sure that all of this started in the mid-twentieth century when a physician named Vladamir Janda coined the terms "Upper Cross and Lower Cross Syndrome" which was essentially his way of describing a pattern of muscular imbalance involving anterior and posterior muscles of the shoulder girdle and pelvis. Janda noticed certain muscle groups were prone to becoming overly tight (psoas, lumbar erectors in the lower crossed, and upper traps/suboccipitals and pecs in the upper crossed) and others becoming weak or inhibited (glutes and abdominals, deep neck flexors and scapular stabilizers). Janda believed this to be the result of a failure of the sensorimotor system and was really the first medical professional who could be considered a "corrective exercise specialist." In general, he believed that any muscle that was excessively shortened or lengthened would not function optimally.

We could probably thank him for all of the corrective exercise specialists today who talk about "glutes not firing." My opinion is if you sit on on your ass more times than not, some things are going to get tight, and some things are going to get weak. The best solution is to stop sitting on your ass, get strong, and if you need to stretch, then stretch.

Ultimately, I can't say for sure what is necessarily going on in your test, re-test with the chiro, but I will say that isolated break testing is not a very accurate way to test for muscle strength. Personally, I do not think that most soft-tissue work ultimately impacts long-term injury prevention or performance. The research on the subject seems to support this notion, but if you feel it helps, and it doesn't brake the bank, then it doesn't hurt to have a few sessions every now and then, even if we don't necessarily understand the "why."

[kgreen06]

My best guess, based on experience with judo and jujitsu is that joint locks come on very subtly and quickly and the person applying the lock can "feel" when it's applied properly.

So, usually, even though this sort of test seems like it's the same, only a very small variation on the angle of the joint can cause too much strain on the surrounding musculature. In short, he didn't actually apply the same test both times.

Probavly loosened you up a bit but he could have also locked your hip the second time and then applied more pressure to cause a strain in the muscle. He just didn't do that the second time and made it seem like he magically "fixed" you.

you see similar things at kiosks in the mall selling balance bracelets. they push you off balance, then tell you to wear some magic bracelet and then try to push you over again. You're amazed because they can't push you over but they're applying the force at a slightly different but very subtle angle

[freshelfpie]

I had a chiro that did this muscle testing thing. I never could quite decide if it was quackery or not, but had to quit going anyway due to his outsized fees.

[Mark Rippetoe]

I think Mr. Tandy hits the target.

[Gunnhild Bruno]

I think people also underestimate how quickly a person can learn. The first time you're asked to do an unfamiliar movement, it's--duh--your first time. There are many things that improve dramatically after only one experience with them.