Tag Archives: injury

Treating high school athletes for improved performance and post game healing

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high school football

Stacy Sykora, the designated libero for the U.S. Women?s National Volleyball Team, two-hands a return during an exhibition match against top-ranked Brazil at Clune Arena on the campus of the U.S. Air Force Academy, Colo., June 14, 2008. Team USA is concluding a three-match 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Exhibition for Volleyball series that started June 11. (U.S. Air Force photo by Rachel Boettcher/Released)

High school athletics are very demanding and can take a toll on the body. A season of wear and tear and injuries leads to underperforming and a less successful season. No athlete wants to underperform especially when the raw talent is present. Performing at the highest level is every athlete’s goal. Most athletes perform conditioning and weight lifting to prepare for and stay strong during the season, but they are missing ONE BIG COMPONANT when it comes to staying healthy. Trainers and conditioning coaches are good at pure strength and endurance exercises but they do not have the education and the ability to evaluate, make assessments, and treat dysfunctions/injuries an athlete may have before and during the season that is limiting the athletes ability to play at the highest level. There is no reason to miss out on the ONE BIG COMPONANT that can lead to a much more successful and healthy season. And what is the ONE BIG COMPONANT? It is having a total body movement evaluation from Wright Physiotherapy to look for problems the athlete may have in muscles and joints that is limiting the highest level of performance. Then the appropriate hands on manual therapy will be performed to correct any dysfunctions that are present. At the end of the session a group of exercises will be given to specifically strengthen the body and deficits that were found. During the season, manual therapy and hands on treatment techniques can be used to heal injuries such as sprains, strains, back pain, knee injury, shoulder injury, hip injury, and injuries of all kinds to keep the player on the field or court throughout the season. Wright Physiotherapy can keep you healthy, so you can be an all-star performer. Give me a call for a healthier and more productive season!

Physical therapists and personal trainers working together

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Physical therapists are the experts in the field of movement and musculoskeletal injuries. We evaluate, diagnose, make assessments, and treat to get people back to their original level of functioning, but we are not the only skilled profession that is very in tune with how people move and function. Personal trainers are also highly skilled professionals that spend significant time with their clients watching how they move and perform physical activity. They are highly knowledgeable on muscles, how they work, and the kinds of activities to get the muscles strengthened back in shape. Physical therapists and personal trainers should have a symbiotic relationship and not work against each other. It is not a competition. We both want to keep people healthy. I have become a better physical therapist working with personal trainers and athletic trainers over the years. I know my limitations as a physical therapist when it comes to treating patients and getting them back to being as functional as possible. I am very good at making diagnoses when a patient comes to me with an orthopedic injury and I can get them back to a high level of function, but sometimes my skill level will only take the patient so far. For example a patient comes to me with, let’s say, a shoulder or low back injury. I will treat using manual therapy and appropriate exercises to reduce pain and hopefully completely rid the patient of pain, but sometimes I am not able to take the patient to the next level of healing due to the equipment I have at hand. In those situations I rely on personal trainers to use their knowledge and skill to complete the healing process using either more intensive exercises or cross fit training in a gym. Also, physical therapists and personal trainers can be good referral sources for each other. A personal trainer that has been injured can come to me and I can treat them, so they can return to the gym as quick as possible allowing them to work and make money. An injured personal trainer cannot make a living. When this happens trust is built between the personal trainer and myself. The personal trainer learns the healing powers of osteopathic manipulation, and I learn the skill of the personal trainers so I can refer my patients to them for quality training and they can also refer to me with injured clients.  A win win situation for both!