Unstuck: The Truth About Muscle Adhesions and Fascia Myths

Every day, clients walk into clinics and gyms carrying the same beliefs:

“I’ve got adhesions.”

“My muscles are stuck.”

“I need someone to break up my scar tissue.”

They’re often clutching a foam roller, bracing for another painful scraping session, or booking yet another deep tissue massage. It feels productive. It feels necessary. It feels like something is being “fixed.”

But the question worth asking is:

Are you actually stuck… or just being sold a story?

Let’s cut through the noise and unpack what’s really happening with so-called muscle adhesions — and what to do if you genuinely want to move, feel, and perform better.

The Fascia Fantasy: What It Is and Why It Matters

Fascia is a dense web of connective tissue that wraps around every muscle, bone, nerve, and organ in your body. It’s the structural framework that holds everything together and allows for smooth force transmission from one part of your body to the next.

It’s complex. It’s dynamic. And here’s the kicker:

It’s tough as hell.

Fascia = Leather

If you want to understand the physical properties of fascia, imagine leather. Not some soft suede jacket, but thick, industrial-grade leather. It’s built to resist tearing, compression, and deformation. That makes sense — its job is to support and protect you, not fall apart under pressure.

Let’s put that into context:

The Tensile Strength of Fascia:

• Research shows that robust fascia (like the iliotibial band) requires over 9000 Newtons of force — that’s about 2000 lbs — to rupture.

• By contrast, the most intense forms of manual therapy — including scraping tools, elbows, and massage guns — generate a fraction of that: typically 250 to 500 Newtons, at best.

• That means you’d need surgical-grade trauma to cause physical disruption of fascial tissue.

So when someone says, “We’re going to break up your fascia,” what they’re really saying is: “We don’t understand biomechanics, but we’re going to sound confident about it.”

Myth-Busting: Can You Break Up Scar Tissue With Massage?

Let’s be clear:

• You cannot manually “break up” scar tissue — unless you’re holding a scalpel.

• Foam rolling, scraping, deep massage, and massage guns do not remodel the structure of fascia or adhesions.

• The feeling of “release” people chase is neurological, not mechanical.

Yet this belief persists. Why?

Where Does the Myth Come From?

Anecdotal observations. Outdated theories. And the natural human tendency to associate cause with effect.

When you feel looser after a treatment session, it’s easy to assume something physical changed. But that doesn’t make it true. In reality, what’s happened is a shift in the nervous system’s perception of tightness or threat — not the physical tearing or breakdown of connective tissue.

What’s Actually Changing? Neural Modulation, Not Tissue

When you experience a feeling of “release” after a massage, foam roll, or cupping session, you’re not breaking adhesions — you’re influencing the nervous system.

Here’s what’s happening:

• Temporary desensitisation of the nervous system: Local pressure stimulates sensory receptors that reduce pain and tightness perception.

• Changes in local blood flow and fluid dynamics: You might feel “looser,” but it’s due to improved circulation and hydration in superficial layers.

• Reflexive reduction in muscle tone or guarding: A touch-based stimulus can downregulate protective tension patterns.

• Psychological effects: Relaxation, placebo effect, and the belief that something was “released” all enhance the perceived benefit.

All of these effects are real — but they’re short-lived, lasting minutes to hours, not days to weeks. And none of them result in the “breaking up” of actual adhesions.

Adhesions vs. Adaptations: Are You Even Stuck?

Most people don’t have adhesions. What they do have is:

• Poor movement habits

• Undertrained tissue

• Protective guarding from previous injury

• Weakness masked as tightness

True adhesions — from surgery, deep trauma, or burns — are not common and certainly not fixable with a foam roller. They require surgical release or long-term structured intervention — not a monthly sports massage.

The language of being “stuck” creates dependency. It gives people the impression they are broken and in need of constant fixing — which keeps them booking appointments rather than building autonomy.

Let’s Reframe It: Fascia Is Adaptable — But Only With Load

Fascia’s Adaptive Properties

Fascia can remodel. But the change comes slowly, and only with repeated, progressive mechanical loading — the kind you get from strength training, not scraping.

What drives fascial adaptation?

• Eccentric loading

• Full-range strength training

• Movement variability

• Time under tension

• Dynamic mobility under load

This is where fascia responds. Not to a thumb. Not to a tool. But to consistent, progressive movement that challenges it to adapt and remodel.

The Cost of Believing the Myth

Believing that you’re “stuck” or “bound up with adhesions” leads to:

• Over-reliance on passive treatment

• Reduced confidence in movement

• Fear of exercise or strength training

• Constant need for external validation or “fixing”

• A mindset of fragility, not resilience

This is more than just bad marketing — it’s a harmful narrative that undermines long-term health, independence, and performance.

So, What Should You Actually Do?

If you want to feel better, move better, and reduce pain or dysfunction, the solution isn’t passive — it’s active. Here’s how to do it:

1. Strength

Train your body under controlled, progressive loads. Strengthening your body gives you durability, joint integrity, and dynamic mobility. You won’t need to “release” your back if it’s strong enough to handle what you throw at it.

2. Motor Control

Work on coordination, control, and awareness. Being able to access ranges of motion is one thing; being able to use them confidently under load is another. Learn to move well — not just more.

3. Consistency

There is no one-off fix. Long-term change comes from long-term effort. Show up consistently, train progressively, and give your body time to adapt.

4. Education

Understanding what’s actually happening in your body is powerful. When you stop fearing tightness or assuming every twinge is a “knot,” you start reclaiming control of your physicality.

Conclusion: Don’t Buy the Adhesion Story. Build a Stronger One.

Fascia doesn’t break under a foam roller. Adhesions don’t magically melt under a massage gun. You’re not a victim of stuck tissue — you’re simply not being given the right tools.

• The “tightness” you feel? Likely neural.

• The “adhesions” you’ve been told about? Likely fiction.

• The real fix? Strength. Control. Load. Confidence.

At Poseidon Performance, we don’t treat people like they’re broken. We train them to become unbreakable.

Stop paying to be told you’re fragile.

Start building the resilience your body is capable of.

Want to move beyond foam rollers and fad fixes?

[Join the Poseidon Performance community] and learn how to train for strength, longevity, and real-world results — no pseudoscience required.