Motion Specific Release (MSR) - The Power of Diversity
Musculoskeletal problems rarely have a single cause, and no single treatment approach is appropriate for every patient. Motion Specific Release (MSR) was developed around a simple principle: drawing from different perspectives gives us more options for understanding and addressing the problems our patients bring to us.
MSR integrates concepts from myofascial treatment, joint mobilization and manipulation, acupuncture and acupressure, fascial research, functional exercise, and orthopaedic and neurological examination. The objective is not to use more techniques. It is to choose more thoughtfully.
Developed through more than three decades of clinical practice, MSR continues to evolve as our understanding of musculoskeletal care evolves. It connects assessment, treatment, movement, patient education, and rehabilitation within an approach that can be adapted to the individual and modified as their needs change.
The strength of MSR lies in diversity of thought: understand the problem, consider the options, and select the approach that makes sense for the person in front of you.
Article Index:
Evolving Perspectives in Musculoskeletal Care
Over more than three decades of clinical practice, Dr. Brian Abelson has studied approaches from chiropractic, osteopathy, physiotherapy, acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine, myofascial treatment, sports medicine, fascial research, biomechanics, rehabilitation, and exercise.
Exposure to these different perspectives played an important role in the development of Motion Specific Release and reinforced an important lesson: every approach has strengths and limitations.
A technique that helps reduce pain may not restore strength or function. Hands-on treatment may be useful during one stage of recovery, while exercise and progressive loading become increasingly important during another. Sometimes further investigation or referral is more appropriate than additional treatment.
The Power of Integration
MSR developed from the idea that different disciplines can contribute different pieces of the clinical picture.
Rather than asking which treatment system is best, MSR asks a more practical question:
What does this individual need at this point in their recovery?
Many of the approaches used in musculoskeletal care have evolved through generations of research, clinical experience, and ideas shared and refined across disciplines. MSR does not claim ownership of the concepts that influenced its development. Instead, it brings different perspectives together within a structured approach to examination, treatment, and rehabilitation.
The value of diversity is not in using everything. It is in having different perspectives available and selecting them thoughtfully.
MSR: Bringing Assessment, Treatment and Rehabilitation Together
Motion Specific Release is more than a collection of hands-on techniques. It connects examination, treatment, movement, and rehabilitation within a structured clinical approach.
The process begins by understanding the problem.
From there, treatment and rehabilitation are selected according to the examination findings, your goals, and how you respond.
Thorough Examination
Before deciding what to treat, we first need to understand what may be contributing to your symptoms and limitations. Depending on the condition, this may include orthopaedic and neurological testing, movement assessment, strength testing, joint and muscle examination, and functional testing.
The purpose is not simply to identify where something hurts. It is to build a clearer clinical picture and determine which findings are relevant to your symptoms and function.
Myofascial Treatment
Muscles and surrounding connective tissues can become painful, sensitive, or restricted following injury, repetitive loading, or changes in activity.
MSR uses a wide range of myofascial procedures that can be adapted to different areas of the body and different clinical situations. When appropriate, these techniques may be used to help reduce symptoms and improve movement as part of a broader rehabilitation plan.
Fascial Expansions
Fascial Expansions are one of the more distinctive components of MSR. They combine concepts from fascial anatomy and myofascial treatment with acupuncture and acupressure.
These procedures reflect the broader philosophy of MSR: drawing from different perspectives and integrating them where they may be clinically useful.
Joint Mobilization and Adjustment
When joint function is relevant to the problem, MSR may incorporate joint mobilization or chiropractic adjustment alongside soft-tissue treatment.
Not every patient needs an adjustment, and not every painful or restricted joint should be treated in the same way. The approach depends on the examination findings, the individual, and the stage of recovery.
Exercise and Rebuilding Function
Hands-on treatment is only one part of the process.
As recovery progresses, rehabilitation may increasingly focus on mobility, strength, balance, coordination, endurance, and progressive loading. Kinetic Health has developed a library of more than 250 exercise videos that we can use to support individualized exercise programs.
The goal is to move beyond temporary symptom relief and progressively build the capacity required for work, recreation, exercise, or sport.
Treatment That Evolves With You
What you need early in recovery may be very different from what you need several weeks later. Hands-on treatment may initially play a larger role, while mobility, strength, endurance, and functional rehabilitation become increasingly important as you progress.
The examination helps us decide where to begin. Your response helps determine what comes next.
The Art and Science of MSR
Good musculoskeletal care requires both clinical evidence and clinical judgment.
Science helps guide how we examine injuries, understand anatomy and biomechanics, recognize when further investigation is needed, and select treatment and rehabilitation approaches supported by current knowledge.
But patients do not arrive as textbook examples.
Two people with the same diagnosis may have very different symptoms, physical demands, medical histories, goals, and responses to treatment. Clinical judgment helps us apply what we know to the individual in front of us.
Adapting Treatment to the Individual
The “art” of MSR is not about abandoning science. It is about applying scientific knowledge while observing how the individual responds.
During hands-on treatment, touch, movement, examination findings, and patient feedback provide additional information about how muscles, joints, and surrounding tissues respond. These observations can help guide how treatment is applied and what comes next.
Experience, Movement and Awareness
Dr. Brian Abelson's approach to MSR has also been influenced by more than 50 years of Tai Chi and martial arts practice. These disciplines emphasize controlled movement, balance, coordination, body awareness, and sensitivity to subtle changes in movement and resistance.
Those principles have influenced the development of MSR, particularly its use of movement during treatment and its attention to how different parts of the body interact.
Tai Chi itself is not necessarily part of a patient's treatment. Rather, decades of studying movement have contributed to how MSR approaches movement, resistance, coordination, and hands-on care.
Science Provides the Foundation. Experience Guides the Application.
MSR continues to evolve as research and our clinical understanding evolve. We retain approaches that remain useful, reconsider those that do not, and adapt as new evidence and better ways of understanding musculoskeletal problems emerge.
Science helps us understand what may be happening. The art lies in deciding how to apply that knowledge to the person in front of us.
What MSR Means for Your Care
After more than three decades of development, the principle behind Motion Specific Release remains simple: start with the individual, not the technique.
Your diagnosis is important, but it is only part of the picture. Your symptoms, examination findings, movement, strength, daily activities, goals, and response to treatment all help guide your care.
MSR gives us a broad range of options, but having more tools does not mean using more treatment. It means being able to select what is appropriate, reassess your response, and change direction when needed.
At Kinetic Health, we use MSR to connect careful examination, appropriate treatment, patient education, and progressive rehabilitation, with the goal of helping you build the capacity to return to the activities that matter to you.
The goal is not to fit you into a treatment system. It is to use the system to better understand and respond to you.
If a musculoskeletal injury, persistent pain, or movement problem is limiting your work, exercise, sport, or everyday activities, contact Kinetic Health or book an appointment online. We can start by understanding the problem and determining the most appropriate next steps.
References
Abelson B, Abelson K, Mylonas E. A Practitioner's Guide to Motion Specific Release: Functional, Successful, Easy to Implement Techniques for Musculoskeletal Injuries. 1st ed. Rowan Tree Books; 2018.
Blanpied PR, Gross AR, Elliott JM, Devaney LL, Clewley D, Walton DM, Sparks C, Robertson EK. Neck pain: revision 2017. J Orthop Sports Phys Ther. 2017;47(7):A1-A83. PubMed
Bussières AE, Stewart G, Al-Zoubi F, et al. The treatment of neck pain-associated disorders and whiplash-associated disorders: a clinical practice guideline. J Manipulative Physiol Ther. 2016;39(8):523-564.e27. PubMed
Dos Santos ECS, Dos Santos AT, da Silva NA, Carneiro SR, da Silva EPR, Magalhães MO. Effectiveness of adding manual therapy to exercise for pain and disability in chronic non-specific low back pain: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Musculoskelet Sci Pract. 2026;82:103508. PubMed
Kerr CE, Shaw JR, Wasserman RH, Chen VW, Kanojia A, Bayer T, Kelley JM. Tactile acuity in experienced Tai Chi practitioners: evidence for use dependent plasticity as an effect of sensory-attentional training. Exp Brain Res. 2008;188(2):317-322. PubMed
Kjaer P, Kongsted A, Hartvigsen J, et al. National clinical guidelines for non-surgical treatment of patients with recent onset neck pain or cervical radiculopathy. Eur Spine J. 2017;26(9):2242-2257. PubMed
Lin I, Wiles L, Waller R, Goucke R, Nagree Y, Gibberd M, Straker L, Maher CG, O'Sullivan PBB. What does best practice care for musculoskeletal pain look like? Eleven consistent recommendations from high-quality clinical practice guidelines: systematic review. Br J Sports Med. 2020;54(2):79-86. PubMed
Yang GY, Hunter J, Bu FL, et al. Determining the safety and effectiveness of Tai Chi: a critical overview of 210 systematic reviews of controlled clinical trials. Syst Rev. 2022;11:260.
Disclaimer:
The articles and embedded videos on the MSR website are provided for educational and informational purposes only. They are not a substitute for individualized assessment, diagnosis, or treatment by an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Some videos demonstrate clinical examination and manual therapy procedures intended for licensed or regulated healthcare professionals with appropriate training. These procedures should be performed only within the practitioner’s legal scope of practice and should not be attempted as self-treatment.
Viewing or using this content does not establish a practitioner-patient relationship. If you have questions about a medical condition or symptoms that are new, severe, or worsening, consult an appropriately qualified healthcare provider.
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DR. BRIAN ABELSON, DC.
Dr. Brian Abelson is a chiropractor, author, and educator with more than 30 years of clinical experience in musculoskeletal care, rehabilitation, and sports performance. His educational work focuses on musculoskeletal conditions, human movement, sports biomechanics, and evidence-informed approaches to treatment and rehabilitation.
He is the developer of Motion Specific Release (MSR) and Clinical Director of Kinetic Health in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
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