Stretching Isn’t Always the Answer
Stretching can feel great in the moment, but if you wake up the next day feeling just as tight—or even tighter—it might not be the solution. Often, there’s a strength component to your discomfort that stretching alone won’t fix.
Let’s break it down with a simple explanation.
The Role of Big and Small Muscles
Your body has two main types of muscles:
Big muscles – These are responsible for movement.
Small muscles – These ensure your joints stay in place and don’t “hit the sides.”
When you experience pain, injury, poor posture, or even surgery, the small stabilizing muscles in the affected area stop working as well as they should. Your big muscles still move you, but without proper stabilization from the small muscles, the joint lacks control and starts “hitting the sides.”
This lack of stability can lead to discomfort. Over time, your body subconsciously adapts by changing your movement patterns and posture—often in ways that aren’t ideal.
Why Do Your Big Muscles Feel Tight?
Since the small muscles aren’t doing their job, your big muscles try to compensate. Instead of just moving your body, they also attempt to stabilize your joints. However, they aren’t designed for this dual role, so they tighten up to create a sense of stability.
Now it makes sense why stretching these tight muscles feels good in the moment. But because the underlying issue isn’t addressed, the tightness returns—sometimes even worse than before.
How Do You Fix This?
The key is to reactivate your small stabilizing muscles so they can do their job properly.
Steps to Improve Muscle Balance
Focus on pain-free movement – Small muscles function best when your body is not in pain and moving with good posture and mechanics.
Perform your physiotherapy exercises correctly – Your physio has given you specific exercises to retrain these stabilizing muscles. Make sure you do them with proper form and the recommended number of repetitions.
Avoid painful exercises – If an exercise causes pain, stop! You may not be doing it correctly, or it might not be the right exercise for you at this stage.
By following these steps, you’ll begin to address the root cause of tightness instead of just treating the symptoms.
If you’re unsure whether your exercises are working for you, or if you need guidance on improving muscle activation and movement patterns, book an appointment with Broome Physio today!
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