Taping lower back question

Based on the recommendations here I ordered and have now received some Kinesiology Tape. I am hoping that it will help me with lower back pain - approximately located at the SI joint.

I asked my wife to apply it in a star-shape as shown on the picture on page 67 (page 117 of the book) in the djvu file.

I did some research online and on youtube and found different recommendations as to how much you should stretch the tape, ranging from 25% to 75%. I settled for the max recommendation (note to self; somehow I always end up doing that!) and it feels like it is too much as the skin feels sore. :(

However, I don't know how the skin should feel so I am hoping that some of you that have used the tape successfully can share your experiences in how far you stretch the tape.

I learn so many interesting things on this forum - I'm really starting to enjoy learning. My supplements are arriving from the US this week, my FIR sauna blanket will be in by the end of this week and I'll change to the USD. Exciting :thup:
 
Thor said:
I did some research online and on youtube and found different recommendations as to how much you should stretch the tape, ranging from 25% to 75%. I settled for the max recommendation (note to self; somehow I always end up doing that!) and it feels like it is too much as the skin feels sore. :(
Click to expand...

Bad move. Trust me, it really works if there is almost NO stretch on it at all other than the natural extending that comes with applying it.

When I did my back, I used two or three patterns at once, one on top of the other. No stretch. It worked great.
 
Laura said:
Thor said:
I did some research online and on youtube and found different recommendations as to how much you should stretch the tape, ranging from 25% to 75%. I settled for the max recommendation (note to self; somehow I always end up doing that!) and it feels like it is too much as the skin feels sore. :(
Click to expand...

Bad move. Trust me, it really works if there is almost NO stretch on it at all other than the natural extending that comes with applying it.

When I did my back, I used two or three patterns at once, one on top of the other. No stretch. It worked great.
Click to expand...

Laura,

Thanks for the quick reply. I took off the first pattern and applied another pattern as described in option 1 on page 116 of the book in the .djvu file (file page 66) for the SI joint. I decided to go for one option and if that was OK, to add the second option afterward.

Here it is mentioned that one should use the "ligament technique". As I was unsure what was meant here, I looked online and came across the following (from http://www.kinesiologytaping.co.uk/APPLIC/Application_Techniques.html):

Ligament Technique: Kinesiology Tape is normally fully stretched in the middle, then applied with each end being anchored with no stretch
Click to expand...

This was the method I used but based on a couple of hours with this new method, I think that you may be right. I feel as if the big muscles of my abdomen are getting sore and I have gotten a slight headache. This could also be due to the fact that other muscles are coming into play that are not used to being used which can relax the muscles that are generating pain :huh: . But then again, I don't know for a fact that these symptoms are related to the taping.

I will start afresh tomorrow with the no-stretch method and hopefully that will give some benefit :)
 
Laura said:
Thor said:
I did some research online and on youtube and found different recommendations as to how much you should stretch the tape, ranging from 25% to 75%. I settled for the max recommendation (note to self; somehow I always end up doing that!) and it feels like it is too much as the skin feels sore. :(
Click to expand...

Bad move. Trust me, it really works if there is almost NO stretch on it at all other than the natural extending that comes with applying it.

When I did my back, I used two or three patterns at once, one on top of the other. No stretch. It worked great.
Click to expand...

Wow - this is quite amazing. It definitely has improved my back pain. It is not gone but the muscles don't tense up nearly as easily as they normally would. The list of things I have tried to help my back pain over the years is several pages long - I kid you not - and this promises to be the best way of pain relief so far.

I have experimented with some different patterns and am currently using two on top of each other and will add another one next week. As you recommended, I have found that it works best with very little stretch.

FWIW I want to point out to others that will be taping their backs that if you're taping on both sides of the spine, it is important to make sure that the stretch on each side is equal. If not, the muscles on one side will be pulling slightly more all the time and after a day or two it becomes quite painful. Also, to begin with, I noticed that my abdominal muscles became a little sore as the muscles in the back were no longer doing the work.
 
Thor said:
Wow - this is quite amazing. It definitely has improved my back pain. It is not gone but the muscles don't tense up nearly as easily as they normally would. The list of things I have tried to help my back pain over the years is several pages long - I kid you not - and this promises to be the best way of pain relief so far.
Click to expand...

I hear you! That was my reaction as well, not just to back pain, but shoulder, neck and other pains. It just amazed me. And I wasn't an expert, I was just applying the tape according to the photos and trying to follow the instructions, though they were a bit difficult for me. But it worked! After about two weeks of two or three tapings of the back, the pain was gone completely and hasn't come back.

Thor said:
I have experimented with some different patterns and am currently using two on top of each other and will add another one next week. As you recommended, I have found that it works best with very little stretch.
Click to expand...

That was actually rather surprising to me but there it is. The less stretch you put on the tape (with very few exceptions) the better it seems to work.

Thor said:
FWIW I want to point out to others that will be taping their backs that if you're taping on both sides of the spine, it is important to make sure that the stretch on each side is equal. If not, the muscles on one side will be pulling slightly more all the time and after a day or two it becomes quite painful. Also, to begin with, I noticed that my abdominal muscles became a little sore as the muscles in the back were no longer doing the work.
Click to expand...

If you try to avoid any stretch at all, just apply the tape exactly the same on both sides, you'll be amazed.
 
it is so exciting to hear how it works!. A question, for the Y shape, I saw that they sell a preformed tape .Is it necessary to buy it or can be made from a single tape?
 
Galaxia2002 said:
it is so exciting to hear how it works!. A question, for the Y shape, I saw that they sell a preformed tape .Is it necessary to buy it or can be made from a single tape?
Click to expand...

It can be made from a single tape, if it's thick enough, you just cut half way through it in order to make the Y shape.

Medical tape really works!
 
Galaxia2002 said:
it is so exciting to hear how it works!. A question, for the Y shape, I saw that they sell a preformed tape .Is it necessary to buy it or can be made from a single tape?
Click to expand...

FWIW, it is also an option to make the Y-shape with two separate identical lengths of I-tape. This would be the cheaper option. :)
 
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