Why Strength Isn’t Always the Problem: Understanding Motor Control
When people think about physical therapy, they usually think about getting stronger or stretching tight muscles. And sometimes that’s true. But a lot of the time, especially with ongoing pain or recurring injuries, strength isn’t actually the main issue. The real problem is motor control. What is motor control?Motor control is your body’s ability to […]
Weather & Pain: Myth or Science?
Do you ever feel like your joints can predict a storm better than the weather app? Have you caught yourself blaming the weather for a flare-up in pain? If so, you are not alone. Many patients with joint pain report that their symptoms worsen with changes in the weather. Why does the weather impact my […]
Can Women Get Bulky From Strength Training?
I remember playing sports in middle school and high school and being afraid to lift weights because I didn’t want to “look manly.” I’d heard over and over again that girls who lifted would lose their figure and start to look like boys. As a physical therapist with a background in exercise science, I can […]
Is Strength Training Safe for Kids? A PT’s Advice for Parents
“Is strength training safe for kids? As a Physical Therapist, I get this question from parents more than any other. Since I was a physical education teacher and coach in 2010, I’ve heard many concerns about strength training and children. Many still worry it could stunt growth or cause injury—but the reality may surprise you. […]
Why We Put Our Team First (And How That Helps Our Patients)
In healthcare, you often hear the phrase “patients come first.” And of course they should. But at RPI, we believe something important comes before even that. Great patient care starts with taking care of the people providing it. Physical therapy is a relationship-based profession. It requires listening, problem-solving, patience, and a lot of one-on-one time […]
How To Keep Your Youth Baseball Player Healthy (Part 2)
If you missed Part 1, check it out here: https://rehabilitationperformance.com/how-to-keep-your-youth-baseball-player-healthy-part-1/ Part 1 focused primarily on avoiding overuse, which is likely the lowest-hanging fruit when it comes to youth baseball injuries. Now that we’ve covered that, let’s dive deeper into the areas I address daily as a Physical Therapist. Below are ways 3-5 we can keep […]
Leadership Lessons I Learned From Being a Parent
No one warns you that parenting might make you better at your job. They warn you about the sleep deprivation. The messes. The emotional breakdowns over the wrong snack or the wrong color cup. What they don’t mention is that somewhere between morning chaos and bedtime routines, you quietly start learning some of the most […]
Your Elbow Isn’t Your Problem Part 2: It’s Your Shoulder!
In the first part of this series, I talked about the concept of regional interdependence and that pain in one part of the body can usually be traced back to other parts of the body. With elbow pain, one of the common sources of this pain can be the shoulder. With any overhead athlete (i.e. Baseball, Softball, […]
Age Does Not Determine Your Ability to Play a Pick-up Game
Age Does Not Determine Your Ability to Play a Pick-up Game Basketball. It’s a way of life for many of us in the Tristate. And with March Madness wrapping up this week, it has got me in the mood to play! My love of the game started at a young age playing in our driveway. […]
Aging Doesn’t Have to Be a Pain!
Aging Doesn’t Have to Be a Pain Over the past couple of days, I have had multiple patients ask me if the pain that they are seeking physical therapy for is just supposed to be their “new normal” or if their expectations are too high for how they are supposed to feel at their age. […]