It restricts movement, weakens, and prevents full lengthening of the affected muscle. If you press on the TrP, it refers pain in its characteristic pattern. Latent TrPs may be activated by overstretching, overuse, or chilling the muscle. People who get little exercise have a greater chance of developing latent points. This is important, because some people feel that by restricting their range of motion, they are getting rid of their TrPs.
Nothing can be farther from the truth.
Physical stress isn't the only thing that can cause TrPs. Tension TrPs can occur. These are not the psychological result of tension, but they are physiological biological effects of long term emotional abuse or mental trauma. When you have TrPs, muscle strength becomes unreliable. You may have also have noticed that if one part of your body turns over another while you sleep, the part being compressed goes numb.