MANUAL THERAPY
HANDS ON TREATMENT that helps you move better
Manual therapy includes a variety of hands-on techniques performed by highly trained physical therapists to reduce pain, improve mobility, and restore normal movement.
These treatments focus on the soft tissues and joints that often become restricted after injury, surgery, repetitive strain, or poor posture.
Soft tissue includes muscles, fascia, tendons, and ligaments.
When these tissues become tight, irritated, or limited by scar tissue, movement becomes less efficient and often painful. Manual therapy helps restore normal tissue mobility so you can move with less pain and better function.
Instrument Assisted Soft Tissue Mobilization
IASTM, sometimes associated with techniques such as Graston, is a hands-on manual therapy technique that uses specialized stainless steel tools to help treat tight muscles, scar tissue, fascial restrictions, and tendon irritation.
By applying controlled strokes over the affected tissue, your physical therapist helps break down adhesions, improve circulation, reduce pain, and restore normal movement.
This treatment is especially helpful after injury, surgery, repetitive strain, or long periods of poor posture that create tissue tightness and movement restrictions.
IASTM is commonly used to improve:
- flexibility
- range of motion
- scar tissue mobility
- tendon irritation
- muscle tension
- movement quality
It is often combined with stretching, strengthening, and movement retraining to create long-term results.
Common Conditions We Treat with IASTM
- Plantar fasciitis
- Tennis elbow / golfer’s elbow
- Achilles tendon pain
- IT band syndrome
- Shin splints
- Rotator cuff irritation
- Neck and back pain
- Muscle strains
- Post-surgical scar tissue
- Chronic ankle sprains
- Hip tightness
- Postural restrictions
functional cupping
Cupping has been used for many years in different cultures and has become increasingly popular in sports and recovery settings.
Functional cupping uses gentle suction to lift and separate tissue layers, helping improve circulation, reduce muscle tension, and restore mobility.
This technique is especially helpful for:
- tight muscles
- fascial restrictions
- post-workout recovery
- postural tightness
- scar tissue
- movement limitations
At THEORY, we often combine cupping with guided movement or exercise during treatment. This helps improve flexibility, increase blood flow, and restore better movement patterns while the tissue is being treated.
TRIGGER POINT RELEASE
Trigger points are tight, sensitive areas within a muscle that often feel like “knots.” These areas can reduce blood flow, create stiffness, and even refer pain into other parts of the body.
For example:
- Neck trigger points may contribute to headaches
- Shoulder trigger points may create arm tension
- Hip trigger points may cause groin or low back discomfort
Trigger point release uses targeted hands-on pressure and stretching techniques to help relax these tight muscle areas, improve circulation, and reduce pain.
This treatment is especially helpful for recurring muscle tension, headaches, postural strain, and overuse injuries.
Your therapist may also combine trigger point release with stretching and corrective exercise to help the improvement last.