Shortened Muscles: How to Treat the Symptoms

What are shortened muscles?

There are many myths surrounding shortened muscles. If you sit in an office chair all day, you risk shortening your muscles. Pain in the back, hips and knees is also quickly blamed on supposedly shortened muscles. Shortening of the musculature would then impair extensibility, restricting movements and, in the long run, lead to stiffness, pain and tension.

Unfortunately, the subject is not that simple. Because healthy muscles cannot simply be shortened without further ado. Doctors always emphasize the immutability of the structural length of a muscle. Even muscles that are not trained and rarely used by exercises and workouts do not become shorter. What is popularly referred to as “shortened muscles” is actually a muscle that appears shortened and is held in a tense position due to faulty neuronal signals. Due to the tension, the muscle is functionally shortened and is less easy to stretch.

Symptoms of muscle shortening

The most common symptoms of restricted movement, colloquially referred to as muscle shortening, are

• limited extensibility
• tension
• Muscle aches
• chronic body pain

Possible causes

The cause of the false signals that keep a muscle in a shortened position can be the fascia. Fascia is a thin membrane of connective tissue that surrounds muscle fibers. In addition to receptors for stretching, the fine membranes also contain many pain receptors, even more than muscle cells. Our fascia is directly connected to the autonomic nervous system and transmits stimuli and signals between the brain and muscle cells. If the fascia is stuck, damaged or otherwise not intact, false signals can be sent to the muscles. The result: Glued fasciae signal muscle tension or relaxation at the wrong time. Tense muscles can then no longer be stretched as usual. Colloquially, a shortening is then often assumed. In fact, the musculature only appears shortened.

Another reason for muscle shortening is stress-related malfunctions. Our muscles are normally relaxed when we are at rest. But if we are under stress , the basic tension of the muscles increases. We are ready to flee and our muscles are preparing for action. What makes evolutionary sense and certainly saved our ancestors’ lives time and time again is what causes muscle tension and pain today.

What you can do about shortened muscles

Muscles that are not structurally shortened appear to be so when they are tense and their functionality is limited. In order to eliminate such apparent shortening and regain full mobility and relieve painful tension, you should rely on these regular exercises.

Correct and regular stretching

You can counteract “shortened muscles” with stretching exercises. Regular exercise can help loosen tense muscles, restore normal tension, and balance shortening tension signals. Make the exercise a daily ritual and stretch your muscles for about 30 minutes each day. If you spend most of the day sitting down, you should pay particular attention to the correct stretching of the hip flexors, thigh muscles and back . Avoid springy stretching movements as the risk of injury is too great. Instead, stretching exercises should always be performed slowly and in a controlled manner. Stretch the appropriate muscles for two minutes at a time to improve their mobility.

A simple stretch for the hamstrings in your thigh muscles is as follows:

• To begin the exercise, sit on the floor with your legs stretched out straight in front of you
• align your feet so that your toes are pointing toward the ceiling
• Your inner ankles of both feet touch during the stretching exercise
• You sit upright with your back straight
• stretch your arms out in front of you and slowly bend forward
• as you slowly bend forward, feel the stretch in your thighs
• The goal of the stretch is to touch your toes with your fingers

The perfect stretch for your lower back is easy to do at home:

• start the exercise with your feet hip-width apart
• Bend forward slowly and in a controlled manner at the hips
• while bending forward, keep your legs straight at the knees
• The goal of the stretch is to touch your toes with your fingertips, or better yet, touch the floor with your palms
• During the exercise you will feel a stretch in your lower back, hip flexors, and hamstrings depending on your flexibility

train fascia

False signals that have a shortening effect on the muscle can also be triggered by glued fascia. Targeted fascia training with a fascia roller can help to eliminate adhesions and let your fascia work smoothly again. There are different foam rollers for different muscle groups and body parts. Use foam rollers of different hardness or softness to relieve tension and massage your connective tissue in a targeted manner.

Also interesting: You should avoid these mistakes during fascia training >>

A simple exercise with the foam roller for the legs:

• At the beginning of the exercise, you sit on the floor with your legs stretched out
• Your back is straight
• slide the foam roller under your thighs
• support yourself with your hands on the floor
• Keep your legs straight as you move your hips back and forth
• The aim of the exercise is for the muscles on the back of your legs to roll on the roller
• slight pain in the muscles and legs at the beginning of the exercise is normal

Pay attention to everyday posture

Our muscles get used to everyday postures. For example, if the muscles in our back notice that we spend most of the day in a sitting position with a rounded back and neck stretched forward, this posture becomes the basic tension posture. Do not allow your muscles to have such negative learning outcomes by consciously sitting and standing. Keep your back straight, chest out, and neutral shoulders. The position of your hips when standing should also be pushed neither too far back nor too far forward. Your hip flexors should be in a neutral position. With the right posture, you can counteract functional muscle shortening.