Muscle Repositioning: Combining Subjective and Objective Feedbacks in the Teaching and Practice of a Reflex-Based Myofascial Release Technique

Muscle Repositioning (MR) is a new style of myofascial release that elicits involuntary motor reactions detectable by electromyography. This article describes the principal theoretical and practical concepts of MR, and summarizes a workshop presented October 31, 2009, after the Second International Fascia Research Congress, held at Vrije Universitiet, Amsterdam. The manual mechanical input of MR integrates the client’s body segments into a block, which is evident as a result of the diagnostic manual oscillations the practitioner imparts to the client’s body. Segmental integration is achieved when the client’s body responds as a unit to the oscillatory assessment. It appears that manually sustaining the condition of segmental integration evokes involuntary muscle reactions, which reactions might correspond to mechanisms that maintain homeostasis, such as pandiculation. It might be that these reactions are part of the MR mechanism of action and underlie its clinically observed efficacy in the treatment of musculoskeletal disorders. For the practitioner and the client alike, segmental integration provides unique sensations. In teaching MR, these paired sensations can be used as kinesthetic feedback resources, because quality of touch can be guided by the client’s reported sensations, which should match the practitioner’s sensations. Another form of feedback with respect to quality of touch is the visually discernable degree of segmental integration. Finally, because the involuntary motor activity elicited by the MR touch can be objectively monitored through electromyography and possibly other instrumented measurements, the MR approach might yield objectivity, precision, and reproducibility—features seldom found in manual therapies.