Improving Flexibility With a Mindbody Approach

General flexibility is a key component of health, wellbeing and general physical conditioning. In fact, lack of flexibility has been associated with an increased risk of developing musculoskeletal injuries and underperformance.

It has been previously shown that a regular stretching routine will improve flexibility relatively quickly. However, when the routine is discontinued or when stretching is not performed regularly, flexibility is also quickly lost. Therefore, an alternative intervention with longer retention would be desirable.

The reason for reduced flexibility, or a shortened muscle length, can be multifactorial. Reduced flexibility can be due to physical causes, such as an acute injury or strength training. Likewise, mental factors, such as anxiety and stress, can also significantly contribute to muscle tension, thereby reducing flexibility. It has been previously shown that somatic symptoms of anxiety can be lessened by treating the psychological symptoms of anxiety. It has also been previously shown that Neuro Emotional Technique® (NET), a chiropractic stress-reduction technique, is effective at reducing stress. Therefore, I hypothesize that NET may be effective at improving general flexibility. Therefore, the aim of this study is to investigate if NET can improve flexibility in the short-term, and if so, if these changes are durable in the long term.

Participants of this study will be randomly divided into three arms: (1) Experimental Arm - which will receive two 20-minute sessions of NET, (2) Active Controls - which will receive two 20-minute sessions of stretching instructions, and (3) Inactive Control - which will receive no intervention or instruction, but simply be assessed.

Inclusion criteria

• Healthy adults aged 18 to 45 years.

Exclusion criteria

• A currently diagnosed physical or mental health problem
• Pain on forward bending
• Pregnancy

NOTE: For this study, no compensation is possible.