What is the Atlas/C1? The cervical spine (neck) contains 7 bones or vertebrae labeled C1 – C7. The C1 vertebra, known as the Atlas, is the first bone in the spinal column. It's named Atlas, after the Greek Titan who was condemned to hold up the world on his shoulders...
What happens when your adductors are tight? Your adductors are the muscles on the inside of your leg that bring your leg in and they can get particularly tight and create issue in the dynamic of how you walk. This can also affect how your pelvis moves and create some...
Where is the gluteus medius located? Your glute medius is a small muscle that runs along the crest of your hip and then down by your hip joint. How you find it on yourself is that you will want to find the very top of your hip bone. Then slide down over the bone and...
What happens if your rectus femoris is tight? Your rectus femoris is the big muscle that goes from your knee to your hip along the front of your leg. The muscle itself and the fascial layer on top of it can get very tight from too much sitting. While this is a really...
What causes a tight quadratus lumborum? You can use a large massage ball or a softball to release the muscle in your back called the quadratus lumborum or the QL. You will want something that's fairly firm and a little bit larger than a tennis or lacrosse ball for...
What problems can tight calves cause? Your calves do extra work that they are not intended to do if the dynamic of your low back and pelvis is off. This creates changes in the way that you walk and in your gait, which uses these muscles more than they are intended...
Why do we take diagnostics seriously? Many new patients get frustrated when they come to our office and they don’t get treated on the very first visit. I get that! You’re in pain and you want relief NOW! Totally understandable. However, would you like a surgeon to...
How do you apply lumbar traction? When setting up your lumbar traction pillow, you will want to make sure you are setting it up correctly and paying attention to how and where you are placing the lumbar traction pillow. One of the first things to note is that you will...
What causes lower cross syndrome? Lower crossed syndrome happens when you sit too much. And almost all of us do, whether you have a desk job or not. Our society just has a lot of sitting involved with it. But if you do have a desk job, then you're even more prone to...
What causes tight upper traps? You can release the upper traps using a tennis ball. The upper traps can get very, very tight, especially when you've lost your normal cervical curve and have your shoulders rounding forward. That puts incredible strain along the back of...