While taping racers at the BC Bike Race, I often hear from curious onlookers, “Does that stuff really help?”
Many still ask how or why kinesiology tape works. The fivefold function of kinesiology tape includes; discomfort* reduction (skin stimulation interferes with discomfort* signals to the brain), decompression (reduction of swelling and inflammation by lifting the layers of skin allowing better blood ow), delay fatigue (help balance the load between overworked and underactive tissue), normalizes muscle tone (helping to repattern muscles and tissues to coordinate movement patterns for better healing) and spreading physical stress (in comparison to standard taping to reduce movement, kinesiology tape helps by allowing full movement while distributing forces to other tissues, ligaments and even bones).