Adhesions are essentially scar tissue that naturally develops in your body after any type of trauma.  Adhesions after surgery are very common.  They can cause organs to twist and move out of place and they can cause a tremendous amount of pain.  They can also be responsible for a wide range of issues from pelvic pain to infertility.

My experience with adhesions is a little different.  I've never had abdominal surgery so I've not experienced any of the problems mentioned above.  However, in my younger days of weight lifting, my legs were tremendously over-developed.

When weight training, the overloaded muscles suffer from micro-trauma and this is what strengthens the muscle.  However, it can also cause micro-adhesions.  These are small fibrous deposits deep within the muscle.

These micro-adhesions may or may not cause any problems.  For years, I did not feel any effects of the adhesions in my legs and I was not even aware that they existed.  However, in the past few years my legs have ached more and more.

Relief From Muscle Adhesions

For a long time, I dealt with my aching legs by stretching in the morning.  While shaving or brushing my teeth, I took advantage of the time every day to get in some light stretching.  This is a great habit and I recommend it for everyone.

That worked for a long time and gave me enough relief that I did not notice the pain during the day.  But, that changed over the past 2 or 3 years.  The soreness has gradually increased.  In fact, it was so gradual that I just ignored it and wrote it off as "getting old".

It was only recently that it occurred to me that something was not right.  I took a short hike and my calves were so sore the next day that it got my attention.  There was no good reason to be in that much pain after such a short hike.  Something was wrong.

My research led me to the conclusion that I was likely suffering from adhesions in my muscles and I wanted to find an answer.  I knew that adhesions could be broken up so I tried some self-massage therapy.

I could be wrong but I think the world's best massager is the Thumper.  If you have never tried one, they are awesome!  It's like heaven on sore muscles.  But heaven is not what I experienced on my calves.  It was like torture.  Even the lightest touch hurt more that I can describe.  In fact, if I pressed harder, it hurt less.

So, I proceeded slowly and gently.  To my absolute amazement, after about 15 minutes of torturous massage, my legs felt completely normal - no pain at all!  I knew that I was on to something.

However, by the next day, the pain was back again and I knew that it was going to take multiple session to really fix this problem.  After several sessions with the Thumper, I knew that the treatments were helpful but the pain during the treatment was substantial.  I needed a better solution.

The Best Solution

I searched around and I found a therapy called Active Release Technique (ART) and it sounds like exactly what I need.  Everyone raves over how effective it is and how quickly it gives relief.  But, I'm a self-help kind of guy and I'm also too cheap to pay for multiple sessions with a professional unless it's the only solution.

So I continued to search and I found my miracle.  This will sound a little funny so be prepared.  I learned about a technique that involves rolling a hard item across the muscle.  It will elongate the muscle and breakup the adhesions.  You can use a short piece of PVC pipe, a tennis ball, or anything else that works for you.  My solution was a rolling pin.  Yes, the kind you use to roll out a pie crust.

I lay on by back and roll the pin up and down the leg muscles.  I find that the pain is almost non-existent and the results are great.  Also, another substantial benefit is that it does not take as long as the massager to get relief.  That could be more related to how long I've been doing the therapy that the method I'm using but I don't know how to be sure one way or the other.

So, bottom line – if you are having muscle aches that are not just the result of working hard, it could be that you have muscle adhesions from micro-trauma in your muscles.  This is especially true if you are (or were) an athlete and have spent a lot of time developing your muscles.

If you want to do a little research on your own, do a Google search on muscle adhesions or Active Release Therapy.  Then, get out your rolling pin and go to work.  You will love the results!

Visit our website to see an informitive 6 minute video on muscle adhesions and ART.