An interesting look into the use of K-Tape in triathlon, performance and belief. Plus an inside view of physical therapy within Joel Filliol’s team of triathletes.
http://www.running-physio.com/kinesio-negatives/
Westy
Interesting take on the psychological aspects of using tape. I know I’ve caught myself thinking, on the run, “there’s a guy up there taped, catch and pass him, he won’t be able to come with me”
I saw this article a few weeks ago. There’s a reason that some will call it “placebo tape,” as that’s what most athletes are likely experiencing when “it just makes it hurt less.”
KT is one of the most bizarre trends in athletics that I have seen over the past decade. I have a cousin that is a pretty decent PG on the basketball team and a state qualifier in the 200 and 400m. About a year ago she was having some pesky IT band issues so my uncle paid to have her looked over by a PT. The PTs prescription was that she’d need him to regularly apply KT tape(because even if it helped, he couldn’t show her how to do it herself). So she would schedule regular appointments to have him spend 30sec applying KT tape, at who knows what cost. My uncle randomly asked me to take her to her appointment because he was stuck in a meeting and I lived right down the street. Without being rude, I kindly asked the PT why he felt that was the best solution for her issues and when he talked over me, I let him know that I was an exercise phys professor at the local university. She never went back.
One of the best marketing schemes ever was donating thousands of dollars of KT tape to athletes for the olympics.
Unfortunately these incidents are far too common in PT.
Westy.