During the 2008 Olympic Summer Games in Beijing, China, volleyball player Kerri Walsh sported black tape on her shoulder. Known as kinesio taping, physical therapists utilize this tape as an alternative method to traditional white athletic tape. The tape is administered in very specific positions to reduce pain and provide support to athletes. However, kinesio tape has uses outside the sports world, including helping breast cancer patients improve lymph fluid flow through the body.
Significance
Japanese chiropractor Dr. Kenzo Kase invented kinezio tape and the kinesio taping method in the early 1980s as a means to provide support without restricting movement. While Walsh's version was black, the tape comes in a variety of colors. The tape's texture is soft and it has elastic capabilities to stretch to 120 percent to 140 percent of its original length, according to Dehen Chiropractic, a chiropractics practice that uses kinesio taping.
Taping Technique
Kinesio tape was invented as an alternative to white athletic tape, according to the "Pittsburgh Post-Gazette." Traditional athletic tape is used to restrict the muscle to keep it from moving, kinesio tape is designed for movement, which means specific taping techniques must be used. For Walsh's case, the tape was to support an injured shoulder muscle. To accomplish this, the tape is stretched from where the muscle begins to where it ends. Pieces of tape are then layered on each other for support. To prevent a muscle from moving, the tape is applied in the opposite direction: from where the muscle ends to where it is inserted.
Time Frame
Once applied, the kinesio tape is designed to stay on for three to five days. You can shower with the tape on or swim with it and it will stay put. Because the tape is designed to be smooth and feel like a second skin, the tape should not feel restrictive as you wear it.
Uses
For athletes, kinesio tape present a non-restrictive alternative to traditional white tape and can be used on injuries, muscle dysfunction and areas of pain and inflammation. The tape is considered to have applications in treating cerebral palsy, carpal tunnel syndrome and the foot condition plantar fasciitis, according to the "Pittsburgh Post-Gazette." Because how the tape is applied is just as important as using the tape itself, you may require a physical therapist or physician's supervision for initial taping to ensure you are using kinesio tape properly.
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