Active Release Technique®

What ART actually is

Active Release Technique® (ART®) is a soft-tissue therapy developed by Dr. P. Michael Leahy. It’s used to treat problems in muscles, tendons, ligaments, fascia, and nerves — the soft tissues that don’t always show up on imaging but that drive a great deal of musculoskeletal pain.

The technique itself is straightforward in concept: the practitioner places a specific hand contact on a restricted tissue, then guides — or asks the patient to perform — a movement that lengthens that tissue under the contact. The combination of sustained pressure and active motion frees up adhesions and restores normal sliding between tissues.

ART providers go through a certification process for each region of the body. Dr. Steve at Bluebird is full-body certified, meaning he’s credentialed to use ART across every major region — upper extremity, lower extremity, spine, and biomechanics.

What we use it for

ART is most useful when something has stopped moving the way it should — a muscle, a nerve, or the fascial connections between them. Common reasons we reach for it:

• Repetitive strain injuries (tennis elbow, golfer’s elbow, plantar fasciitis, carpal tunnel-type symptoms)
• Iliotibial band (ITB) syndrome and other running injuries
• Rotator cuff irritation and shoulder impingement
• Hamstring, calf, and groin strains that aren’t fully recovering
• Sciatica driven by piriformis or hamstring restriction (rather than disc-related)
• Tension headaches and cervicogenic headaches with upper-trap and suboccipital tightness
• Post-surgical or post-injury fascial restrictions limiting motion

It’s not the right tool for every problem — acutely inflamed tissue or unstable joints need a different approach first. Part of a good assessment is figuring out when ART is appropriate and when something else makes more sense.

How a session goes

Most ART treatment is integrated into a regular visit alongside chiropractic care or registered massage therapy, rather than being a standalone appointment. A typical sequence:

1. Assess. Range of motion, palpation, and movement testing to localize the restriction.
2. Contact. Manual pressure is applied to the affected tissue with a specific tension and direction.
3. Move. You perform a movement (or it’s guided passively) that lengthens the tissue under the contact.
4. Reassess. Re-test the motion or symptom to see what changed.

ART can feel intense — there’s often a “this is the spot” sensation when the right tissue is engaged. It shouldn’t be sharp or unbearable; let your provider know if the pressure is too much and we’ll back off.

Is ART safe?

For most people, yes. The technique itself is non-invasive and uses only the practitioner’s hands plus the patient’s own movement. It’s well-tolerated by athletes, office workers, and older adults alike.

Some situations where ART would be modified or avoided: open wounds, acute infections in the area, unstable fractures, severe osteoporosis at the contact site, certain blood-clotting conditions, or anyone on blood thinners where significant bruising would be a concern. Your practitioner will screen for these at the assessment.

After a session you may feel a bit of mild soreness in the treated area — similar to having done a focused workout — but it generally clears within 24–48 hours.

What about results?

For repetitive-strain and overuse problems, most patients notice change within two to four sessions. Tissue restrictions that have been there for years sometimes need a longer course, and we always pair ART with the active piece — exercises, mobility work, and load management — because hands-on work alone rarely sticks if the underlying movement habit hasn’t changed.

If you’re not seeing the progress we’d expect within a few visits, that’s a signal to step back, reassess, and either change approach or refer you to the right provider. We’d rather have that conversation early than keep treating something that isn’t responding.

For more on the technique itself and the certification process, see activerelease.com.