Category: Kinesio tape

What next, horses? Hold on, I just found a picture of one of those too. Thanks to a piece by a big-service health and science writer we learn what those often-colorful stripes are that have been appearing criss crossing a lot of athletes' bodies in recent years. It looks phony as can be. The Olympic Games are full of examples. I've heard a few sportscasters say the decor is supposed to speed healing from old injuries and prevent new ones. Then they stop talking as though this ritual behavior makes sense. This sound like a cheap version of the body-squishing tightsuits that swimmers setting world records have become fond of even if they do take forever to pull on and are dreadfully uncomfortable. Except there is some evidence, I guess, that the shrink-wrap suits work. Ditto I suppose for compression bands or fully taped ankles etc. that stabilize minor pulls and sprain to make them less likely to go major. But a stretch of tape just laid along or across a muscle on the skin...