What is Acupuncture?
Acupuncture is a form of therapy that promotes natural healing of the body by balancing the flow of energy in a person’s body. It involves inserting very thin needles into specific points that are thought to be gateways that influence the circulating energy, blood, and life force of the body. Specific to Sports Acupuncture the needles are inserted to make changes to the muscle, nerve and fascial tissues to reduce adhesions and restore strength and function.
How does Acupuncture work?
If you think of the human body as a highly complex electrical circuit, like any electrical circuit it needs to be kept in good working order to function effectively. If the circuit breaks down the result is illness. It is essential for qi/energy and blood to circulate in a continuous and unobstructed manner for good health of the mind and body. Acupuncture meridians or channels are the pathways through which the energy flows throughout the body. Acupuncture points lie along meridians and are the holes that allow entry into the acupuncture meridians. Acupuncture points provide gateways to influence, redirect, increase, or decrease the body’s vital substances, qi (energy), blood & lymph fluid, thus correcting many of the body’s imbalances.
In western science we can correlate Acupuncture’s balancing affects to regulating the nervous system. Regulation of the nervous system aids the activity of pain-killing biochemicals such as endorphins and immune system cells at specific sites in the body. It’s also been shown that Acupuncture may alter brain chemistry by changing the release of neurotransmitters and neurohormones. These affect the parts of the central nervous system related to sensation and involuntary body functions, such as immune reactions and processes that regulate a person’s blood pressure, blood flow, and body temperature. (excerpted from www.howdoesacupuncturework.com)
What is Athletic Training?
Athletic Trainers (ATs) are licensed health care professionals who collaborate with physicians to provide preventative services, emergency care, clinical diagnosis, therapeutic intervention and rehabilitation of injuries and medical conditions. Athletic training is often confused with personal training. However, there are many differences in the education, skillset, job duties and patients of an athletic trainer and a personal trainer. Athletic Training is a bachelor and/or master's level degree program. Athletic trainers provide physical medicine, rehabilitative and preventative services. Athletic trainers treat a breadth of patients, including but not limited to: professional, college, secondary school and youth athletes, dancers, musicians and military personnel. Athletic trainers work in a variety of locations including schools, physician clinics, hospitals and manufacturing plants. (excerpted from http://www.nata.org/athletic-training)