Latest Articles
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Recognizing the Signs: Is Your Horse Ready for the Benefits of Massage Therapy?
How do you know if your horse would benefit from massage? If your horse is body-sore he will communicate the best way he can: By trying to avoid things that bother him. You may notice: Muscle responds to any kind of stress by tightening up. Muscle tension and pain are cumulative. It usually starts small, Read more
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Help Myofascial Pain with Myofascial Therapy
Myofascial pain can have two sources; the skeletal muscle, nerves and connective tissues that are ‘bound down’ by tight fascia or damaged myofascial tissue itself. In either case, blood flow to the affected structures will be inhibited and pressure on nerves will accentuate the contraction process further until the issue is resolved. Done well, myofascial Read more
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How To Achieve Ideal Joint Balance
For joints to have the ideal balance, some muscles need to act as stabilizers and others as mobilizers. A perfect balance of mobilizers and stabilizers results in optimal alignment, or neutral joint position. Neutral joint position enables optimal mechanics throughout the entire range of motion. When the neutral position becomes misaligned by unbalanced muscle tension, Read more
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Deep Muscles are Connected with The Digestive, Respiratory & Cardiac Systems
Did you know? The digestive system, respiratory system and cardiac system and deep muscles are directly connected through deep fascia and the deep ventral facial line. Nerves, blood vessels and lymph vessels are also embedded within this fascia. This means that the respiratory, digestive and cardiac systems, and the deep muscles, strongly influence each other. Read more
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“Pain is the Body’s Assessment of Risk.”
In other words; how big is my weakness? One advantage to having a injured ankle is that I have a chance to explore the experience that my fellow athlete, the horse, might go through if it had a similarly threatening injury. While I can still do most of the things I need to with my Read more
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Detecting and Transmitting Signals Related to Pain
Nociceptors are specialized sensory receptors that are responsible for detecting and transmitting signals related to pain. They are primarily located in various tissues throughout the body, including the skin, muscles, joints, and internal organs. Nociceptors play a crucial role in the body’s ability to sense and respond to potentially harmful or damaging stimuli. When activated, Read more
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Building a Healthy Topline: Tips and Exercises for Your Horse
The other day, I was asked an interesting question: ‘Can you recommend some exercises for “just the topline?”’ The short answer is no. You can’t separate or isolate the topline from the rest of the horse. It’s not a car where the parts begin and end. Your horse’s topline is very firmly attached to every Read more
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The Box Analogy – (And Why You Need To Know It)
I have noticed a disturbing trend lately: I see a lot of people asking for chiropractors when what they really mean is that they need a bodyworker. This use of the term “chiropractor” as an an all inclusive category for bodyworker leads to miscommunication, as some people use the term correctly and some don’t. It Read more
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NRF2: Exploring its Role, Benefits & Dietary Activation in Horses
What is NRF2 NRF2 (Nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2) is a protein that regulates the horse’s antioxidant response and cellular defense mechanisms. It attaches to specific parts of DNA to control which genes are turned on or off. By doing so, NRF2 manages genes responsible for producing antioxidants, detoxifying harmful substances, and managing inflammation. Read more