In follow-up to my previous post with tips for runners, let’s take a look at other athletes who achieve peak performance levels with acupuncture. The science behind the bulk of the benefits from sports acupuncture can be summed up in another previous post on what happens to muscle and connective tissue during an acupuncture treatment. In this post, I want to share some interesting anecdotes on professional athletes who use acupuncture as part of their training.
Football
Perhaps the epitome of current professional athletic use of acupuncture is its popularity among players in the NFL. Green Bay Packers’ quarterback, Aaron Rodgers, is not only one of the most respected quarterbacks in the NFL but also a strong advocate for acupuncture. One of the most significant times acupuncture helped Rodgers was after a serious calf strain that occurred right before the playoffs in 2015. Rodgers was advised to take a full week off and sit out an NFC championship game, but instead he used acupuncture to recover in just a few days. By not only resting but treating the strained leg with acupuncture, Rodgers’ pain was reduced leading to an incredible game performance, scoring three touchdown passes and 317 yards [1]. This is an example of injuries that would normally take a week or more to heal being corrected more effectively and quickly with even just one acupuncture treatment.
Baseball
Major League Baseball pitcher, AJ Burnett, cites acupuncture treatment as a vital aspect of his recovery during training. When negotiating new contracts as a pitcher he suggests that there is a need for an acupuncturist either on staff or available. Burnett receives regular treatments and he has absolutely no doubt that acupuncture has helped him in his professional career. Since his major league debut in 1999, Burnett suffered a ruptured ligament in his thumb, a stress fracture of his right foot, a bone bruise, a right shoulder strain and scar tissue in his right elbow resulting from a ligament surgery. He first tried acupuncture in 2007 while with the Blue Jays and by 2008 was receiving acupuncture three times a week. In his final season with the Blue Jays, Burnett made a career-high 34 starts. He also set career-highs in victories (18), innings (221 1/3) and strikeouts (231) [2]. With so many pitchers experiencing shoulder, elbow and muscle injuries in their throwing arm, acupuncture is helping to extend the careers of professionals like Burnett. A number of MLB teams now employ acupuncturists for regular treatment of players for this reason.
Basketball
Retired players like Kobe Bryant, Shaquille O’Neal, Steve Nash, Jason Kidd, Charles Barkley, Yao Ming, Grant Hill, Jeff Hornacek and Kevin Johnson among others reportedly used acupuncture during their playing days to enhance their recovery. Shaq first tried acupuncture in 2002, when his big toe started acting up before the playoffs and he was determined to do whatever he could to lead the Los Angeles Lakers to their third straight championship. Later, he would use acupuncture for a number of other ailments, including a hamstring issue. Minnesota Timberwolves shooting guard Jamal Crawford used acupuncture as a regular treatment for many years [3]. With his consistency and longevity in the profession, Crawford is another example of acupuncture’s utility in prolonging careers.
Cycling
Vincenzo Nibali won the 2014 Tour de France and is one of the most famous professional cyclists in the world. He attributes his success in the Tour de France and in the sport itself to his use of acupuncture. Throughout the entire 2014 tour, all of the Astana team riders were getting acupuncture twice a day before the day’s events on the team bus as well as in the evenings in their hotel room. This sports acupuncture helped Nibali to stay strong and go on to win four different legs on the Tour de France. Nibali indicated that acupuncture assisted all of the riders with pain ensuring better endurance [4]. This is notable in that it is a way to deal with pain that is drug free so that there are none of the side effects that are common with opioids or other pain management drugs.
No matter what the sport, acupuncture is especially useful for players such as pitchers who utilize the same muscles to perform. Once a muscular knot has referred symptoms to a given area for any length of time, satellite trigger points will form in the zone of referral, so if it is a chronic issue your acupuncturist will also likely treat the surrounding areas to fully resolve the issue. Bottom line is that just as professional players use acupuncture to extend their careers on the field, sports enthusiast can use acupuncture to keep them pain and injury free so they can continue their favorite games and pastimes into retirement age.
Works Cited:
[1] http://www.espn.com/nfl/playoffs/2014/story/_/id/12152629/aaron-rodgers-green-bay-packers-got-120-minutes-left-calf-injury
[2] https://www.nj.com/yankees/index.ssf/2010/05/yankees_starter_aj_burnett_cre.html
[3] https://hoopshype.com/2017/12/30/nba-players-trying-acupuncture-to-relieve-pain-maximize-effectiveness/
[4] https://blogs.wsj.com/dailyfix/2014/07/27/nibalis-secret-to-a-tour-de-france-win-acupuncture/
