This time of year, winter’s harsh temperatures can make arthritis and other joint issues particularly painful.  To help ease the pain and promote blood circulation, KT Tape can be applied to the affected joints.

Though KTTape.com has a plethora of applications for specific injuries,  arthritis pain can be very specialized, so we recommend finding a local KT Tape clinician to consult with about the best way to tape for your personal arthritis pain.   Let KT Tape help and don’t let winter arthritis slow you down.

For KT Tape applications click here.

To find a KT Tape professional in your area click here.

To email a question to one of our KT Tape experts click here.

Cut a 2″ I strip in half, anchor base on back side of the thumb just proximal (closer to the arm) to the nail. Extend the MCP joint of the thumb (joint closest to the hand), and flex the joint in the middle of the thumb ( with the joints like this, it will look kind of like a Swan’s neck). With 50% stretch, pull the tape toward the forearm and anchor the base ONLY, do not have the tape touch the skin in between the two bases, it will look like a bowstring. Lay the base down. Now flex the MCP joint and this will bring the tape that was originally not touching the skin into contact with the skin: apply. Now take a 2-3″ full I strip, with tension in the middle (like a bandaid) and apply over the painful area.

For other KT Tape applications instructions click here.

For a specific application not listed on the website you can ask a KT Tape expert here.

For professional application and to find a clinic near you click here.

I use KT tape on my ankle and it does everything I need it to do!! I also love that I can get it in my favorite color- NEON GREEN! I’m buying another roll to send to my husband for his runner’s knee, I can’t wait for him to try it! –Krystal Smith Johnson

I tape my knee for ITBS, and let me tell you… I went from not able to run at all to pain free long runs!! This stuff is AWESOME! –Steph Kitzman

Had a motocross get off last weekend, messed up both of my shoulders pretty good, had heard of KT tape but never used it till now, your tape ROCKS!!, it has help the pain and gave good support, thanks! –Chris Bowers

So after golfing sense i was 8 and marching on the drumline sense I was a freshman in high school (im now a freshman in college) I have royal screwed up both of my knees! My surgeon would not let me play college golf unless i wore these huge knee braces that were itchy, hot, and sweety and I hated them. Then my PT told me about KT tape and I tried it. I was a little scared at first because i am allergic to tape but i tried a little part of it on my skin and thankfully it was just fine. KT Tape saved my college golf career and a lot of hot itchy skin. sadley i do have to have surgey but that is due to genetics, KT tape saved me a lot of pain thank you KT Tape! –Katlyn J. Anderberg

So I am soo not a runner but I tore my foot and injured my neck in high school (color gurad) and I now work in an er. After many years of running around the er and failed attempts of pt I was really fed up. One of our OCC health girls said to try kt tape. (thank you stacy). This has really saved my life. I also use it for my wrist. I really look like I am going to war going into work every morning but my family thanks kt tape in the end because I am not crying at the end of the 12 hour shift. Thanks KT tape you really saved my feet, neck and wrist from more surgery!! –Karri Anderberg

KT Tape has saved me….So Thank you!!!!! –Carly Brent

Love this KT Tape. First morning in a long time I havent woken up to a stiff, sore, painful SI joint in the lower back. Good purchase, Josh. Good purchase. –Josh Blake

Thanks for all the love!  KT Tape fans are truly the best!

To follow KT Tape on Facebook and share your KT Tape story click here.

KT Tape isn’t just limited to the playing field. It has countless uses and applications,  many of which are well suited for the everyday office dweller glued to their computer for eight hours a day.  Pains like carpal tunnel, neck and shoulder pain and lower back pain are often associated with spending long hours at a computer or hunched over a desk.  KT Tape has applications that can help relieve these pains and help you get on with your workday pain free.  Unlike many braces used to help these office injuries, KT Tape is breathable, flexible, comfortable and one application can last up to an entire five day work week.  Now that’s office efficiency.

For a complete list of KT Tape application instructions click here.

My name is Joe McCaleb and I am a Physical Therapist from Colorado Springs. Up until a month ago I hadn’t heard of KT Tape but that all changed with a trip to my local sporting goods store. Being a skeptic I do not tend to buy into every “rehab tool” that I find. I bought a box, checked out the website and tried it on myself and I was sold!

I found the KT TAPE page on Facebook and became a fan. I was contacted by the KT Tape team to assist at the Teva Mountain Games in Vail.
So I decided to help out. Why you may ask? Because KT Tape works like nothing I have ever seen. I am using it on about 60% of my patients in my practice with about 96% effectiveness. I again, was sold on it. So when given the chance to tell folks more I jumped at the chance. Let me tell you I learned so very much from this “clinical experience” on the fly.

This weekend we taped up more people than I could count… for me there are several who come to mind but I’ll mention two. First was a hard core runner who has developed plantar fasciitis about nine months ago. He’d tried tennis balls, golf balls, IFC, ulltrasound, etc…nothing had worked. He was compensating so much that his left Achilles tendon was now hurting him. I taped his right plantar fasciitis and his left Achilles. He stood and walked for me…his face said it all as his pain almost completely disappeared.

Next was a woman who had a cast on her left forearm and was a rock climber. She’d been in an accident and since then had also tried multiple methods to reduce pain on her good right arm. She said that she often had no feeling in most of her right hand but usually constant numbness in her ulnar 3 fingers. I did a manual muscle test on her and then did the taping for medial epicondylitis…in literally seconds, she said she could feel her fingers.
I didn’t have a most common taping and I am not sure that I had a favorite but what I did find that was amazing was the numbers of people who came in with acute and or chronic problems who were skeptical suddenly gained relief. Seeing these folks walk away pain free was pretty amazing to see.

Thanks so much, Joe, for joining us and doing such a great job–it was fun!

In an article published by the UK’s Daily Mail, scientists say that “compounds in ginger work in a similar way to pain-relieving drugs such as aspirin and ibuprofen. “

Participants in the featured study consumed capsules containing two grams of either raw or heat-treated ginger or a placebo for 11 consecutive days.

“On the eighth day they performed 18 extensions of elbow flexors with a heavy weight to induce moderate muscle injury to the arm. Arm function, inflammation and pain were assessed prior to and for three days after the exercise,” the article says.

The end result? Study participants consuming ginger experienced a 25 percent decrease in exercise-related pain.

The development of some of the smaller muscles can also help prevent injury. For example, many shoulder problems are due to weak rotator cuff muscles. Such muscles are not developed in typical bodybuilding or conditioning exercises. Shoulder muscles must also be very strong for tennis, swimming, volleyball and golf.  Yessis says, “Unfortunately, the rotator cuff muscles are relatively small and situated deep inside the shoulder making it difficult to observe their development.”

Wrist ailments and carpal tunnel are often caused by weak forearm and finger muscles. Yessis says, “Carpal tunnel syndrome is an increasingly common injury in continuous weight training, in some forms of aerobic training and in repetitive motion jobs. This appears to be the disease of the new century. It is hitting not only athletes, but word processors, dental hygienists, assembly line workers, grocery store checkers, butchers, carpenters and people in many other occupations.”

Incorporating exercises into daily routine or training plan is important for everyone and of course to, as Yessis says, “Keep in mind that most injuries occur to the weakest muscles, usually the small and relatively insignificant ones.   All involved muscles are important and can be developed in different exercises.” To find exercises specific for developing the minor muscles in your body check out the rest of Dr. Yessis’s blog article.

We here at KT Tape appreciate the kinesiology of the human body and how all the small parts are connected together to produce the complex matrix of muscles, tendons and joints giving us the remarkable ability to be active. So, join us in remembering the minor muscles as they support and carry the major muscles through to the end of the next race, event or competition.