What KT Tape is, and how it has helped me

Have you ever been in the middle of a marathon and you start to feel an odd pain in your hip? Are you swimmer? While training for a swim meet and your shoulder starts to swell and ache in pain?….Well like I always say “There is KT Tape for that!!”

If you don’t know by now, I wear KT Tape almost all the time while running!

WHAT IS KT TAPE?

KT Tape is applied along muscles, ligaments, and tendons to provide a lightweight, strong, external support that helps to prevent injury and speed up recovery. KT Tape works differently for each injury. It can support sagging muscles along the arch of the foot, relieving the connective tissues for Plantar’s Fasciitis. And KT Tape can lift the stress off of shin splints to allow pain release and give the body a better opportunity to recover. Depending on how it is applied, KT Tape supports, enables, or restricts soft tissue and its movement. By stretching and recoiling like a rubber band, KT Tape improves tissue function and distributes loads away from inflamed or damaged muscles and tendons, thereby protecting tissues from further injuries.

KT Tape comes in many different colors, but the color does not affect its function. The colors are just a way to express yourself. =)

There are two types of the KT Tape, a regular KT Tape, and KT Tape pro(the one I use) I’ve always used the Pro, it lasts for days, usually 4-5 days. There are some differences:

Another reason I wear the Pro is because I do a lot of cross training in the pool. Luckily my tape doesn’t come off my shins, back, shoulder, hip, where ever I have the tape on that day. It’s  also perfect for my night runs since it has the reflective safety print on it, and cars can see me better when I’m running back home.

 They also sell a spray that helps the tape stick better, but from personal experience, if you clean the area, shave if needed, and keep it clean, it should stick with no problem.

KT Tape has hundreds of different applications for different injuries. Depending on the area and injury then a certain amount of the tape is stretched out. You can log onto their website for VERY easy to follow instructional videos on the most common injuries. I have also listed some in past posts. If you have an injury that is not listed you can contact them and they will quickly respond with an application that is right for your injury.

The tape comes in a roll of 20 precut strips

The tape does not have any medication on it. It is just a tape that sticks to your skin and allow to speed up muscle recovery. The Matrix is a mechanical mesh weave designed to provide precisely 140% bilinear elasticity along the length of the tape, and no elasticity in the tape’s width. 140% elasticity is critical because it is the same elasticity as human skin. By matching the exact elasticity in skin, and stretching lengthwise, KT Tape flexes and moves comfortably with the body’s tissue, releasing and recoiling like a rubber-band.

KT Tape’s unique Matrix Mesh also allows for moisture release which is critical for comfort and wear-ability. The more porous the tape’s weave, the better it releases moisture caused by sweating or being worn in the water. The design provides more breathability and release of moisture so that it is comfortable to wear for up to five days at a time without itching, irritation or reactions with the skin. It is super lightweight and comfortable it is as if it’s not even there. You can keep on with your daily life without restriction from the tape. One thing I can suggest is, when I sleep I try to lightly wrap my tape to secure it doesn’t come off while I’m sleeping, or just wear pants or socks to prevent it from peeling off the corners.

Thanks to KT Tape I am able to do what I once couldn’t. Yes I am prone to more injuries than those without my condition, but I came across KT Tape after trying pretty much everything out there. Doctors were no help, they just told me “you can’t do it, your body can’t handle it”, booo!! So I took it upon myself to find something that worked for me. Without the tape I can probably run 3 miles, but be in pain afterwards. So I usually tape up to run anything longer than 4 miles.

Every once in a while my hip flexor flares up because my left hip is higher than my right. But when it does, I put the hip flexor application on, and tada! The pain instantly goes away! =) I love this stuff and recommend it to EVERYONE! It is super easy to apply, I do most of my own applications, except for my back because I obviously can’t reach, Alpha does that. =)

It’s so AWESOME that they have a Scoliosis application too!!! I was so amazed when I found out about it! It really does help to relieve the tension that the Scoliosis creates. And my latest discovery was the upper trap and rhomboid application!!!! AAhhh I’ve been in heaven ever since! Due to all my back surgeries, there was A LOT of muscle damage done since, to get to the bone the surgeons had to cut through the muscle first. (sorry for that graphic mental picture) I have permanent muscle damage on my upper right shoulder. By putting this application is helps keep that chronic pain under control.

If you are having pain, and have tried several different treatments and nothing is improving your injury, give KT Tape a try. You can purchase the tape at sporting good store and just recently started selling at CVS. They will soon start selling first time user kits with just 3 precut strips for you to try out. Even though if you purchase the full roll and for whatever reason you aren’t happy with the product, you can contact them for a refund or other options. You can look through my post for a few of the most common tape applications but if you aren’t sure if that is the one you need, you can let me know and I’ll find the answer for you, or you can log onto their FB page at http://www.facebook.com/kttape

I wrote this post about the tape because in almost every running picture I have the tape on, and I get a lot of questions about it and how it has helped me. So just wanted to let you guys know a  little bit more about it and again, ask me any question about the tape, I don’t mind! I’m here to help! =)

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