If you have read other pages on our website or other blogs, you may have noticed just how foundational these reflexes are to our bodies. Affecting a muscle’s ability is no different. Whether it be a muscle imbalance, lack of strength, not firing when it is supposed to, or lack of muscle tone, these reflexes may be the underlying cause you’ve been looking for - including those who have to get all too frequent adjustments from the chiropractor.
Whether a muscle is needing to fire to keep your posture, because you are tripping or to lift a weight, the muscle concentration is an “output.” There are two main steps that occur before we get to the output. First, the sensory feedback. If you are unbalanced and need the muscle to fire, then your body first has to realize that it is unbalanced. If you are wanting to lift weight - whether it be a dumbbell or yourself up the stairs - then your body first has to become aware of the desire to do so. This first step would be considered the “input.”
The input is then sent to the central nervous system (made up of your brain and spinal cord). Step two occurs here - “processing.” Your nervous system must process what information the input gave it. That could be something like “we are leaning forward too far” or “we need to get up these stairs.” Your brain or spinal cord will then send a signal to the part of the body that is needed in order to complete the appropriate output. The output is your muscles contracting so you stay upright instead of falling or making your way up the stairs.
Notice that the muscles that come into play, are called in on the final step. That means that you need everything beforehand to go correctly. Could it be that your back is tight because your body/brain thinks that you are always leaning too far forward? Could your knee hurt because the muscles are not “getting turned on” at the right times when you go up the stairs? Could it be that your shoulder hurts because your spine is too rounded and your shoulder is getting pinched?
Whatever your personal scenario may be, maybe your issue doesn’t lie just in the muscles or bones as it may feel. It could very well be a deeper issue that is then giving the incorrect information to the muscles causing them to act inappropriately. MNRI can address all three steps that we discussed and therefore can likely help any discomfort you may feel in any part of your body. Contact us for a screen and we can explain how the specific reflexes we find needing work are likely contributing to your muscle issue.
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