PT Pro - April 2020

PT Pro - April 2020

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JUMPING (SAFELY) INTO SPRING Tips for Enjoying This Season

for example, start out with a lighter task. Take a 10-minute walk around the block or do 10 bodyweight squats and 10 heel raises. When people tell me they want to do a marathon, I support it! I think it’s awesome. But I also convey that they can’t just go out there and expect to run a 10K right off the bat. You have to build up to it. Look at these activities as you would a bank account: Going out and gardening for three hours is like writing a check for $3,000, and you’ve just emptied your account. Rather than draining it all at once, budget your energy. If you estimate there’s probably about three hours of yard work ahead of you, spend an hour tackling it, then take a break. Grab some lunch, then go back for another hour. Maybe you don’t spend those three hours all in one day, but spend an hour and a half each day over the weekend. Stopping to rest and refuel puts money back in your “bank” so you can go back out and have enough energy to not overexert yourself. When you try to do too much at once, injury happens. I get it — a beautiful day makes me want to do it all, too. And I’m not saying you have to suppress your enthusiasm. Just try not to do too much all in one day or all at once. We don’t want you to spend your spring and summer at our office recovering from an injury! Rather, we want you to be outside enjoying yourself and soaking up those sunny days. Taking things a little at a time and remembering proper body mechanics will help you do just that.

T he excitement of spring is hard to beat. With longer days and better weather, we want to get outside and enjoy spring activities! In our excitement for the season, though, we sometimes move a little too fast into activities we haven’t done for a year. When it comes to spring-cleaning, gardening, and working in the yard, there are steps you can take to prevent injuries and make sure you get to enjoy your favorite activities all season long. No. 1 on that list, especially when gardening and cleaning out the garage, is using proper body mechanics. When it comes to lifting and moving a heavy object, hinge at your hips and use your legs. By hinging your hips, your back can stay straight and is more stable. As you lift, push through the ground so you engage the right muscles. Ground

yourself with your feet so you’re pushing down as you’re lifting up.

We sometimes see shoulder injuries as a result of a garage cleaning. The person reached up to grab a box high on the shelf, and it was heavier than they expected. The box ends up behind their center of gravity and pushes their arms back behind their head. I always tell people that if a box is up too high to reach at arm level, grab a step stool or get someone who’s taller to take it down. Take a minute to assess the situation because it’s not worth injuring yourself over a task that would take a couple minutes to make more secure. We sometimes see injured backs from gardening and yardwork. It’s so important to start slow and be a little warmed up before you begin. Before you start moving cement,

-Maureen Madden

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YOUR GUIDE TO SPRING- GREENING 3 Eco-Friendly Home Swaps to Make When You Declutter It takes a special kind of person to enjoy

at Permacrafters.com/English-Ivy- Laundry-Detergent.

options will save plastic because you can reuse your bottles, and they can help you avoid the harmful chemicals found in most cleaners. Visit UnderATinRoof.com and read the blog post “Zero Waste Cleaning Supplies + Recipes” to get started. If you’re used to using a plastic jug of liquid laundry detergent, it’s time to step out of your comfort zone. This spring, try exploring greener alternatives like plant-based bulk laundry powder (Molly’s Suds is an excellent source). Or, if you’re feeling really adventurous, you can even try adding all-natural cleaners like soap nuts or English ivy to your laundry loads. For more on the former, search “soap nuts” on 1MillionWomen. com, and read up on ivy detergent

spring-cleaning. For most of us, the satisfaction of a clean house doesn’t quite outweigh the hours of scrubbing, sorting, and slogging through heaps of unnecessary stuff. If you’re struggling to find the motivation to start your spring- cleaning, try flipping the paradigm: Instead of spring-cleaning, think of what you’re doing as spring- greening , and make some eco-friendly swaps along the way. Here are a few ideas to get you started. 1. Swap your plastic spray bottles for bulk or DIY cleaning products. According to a Statista report, in 2019, the household cleaners market was worth more than $31 billion, and it’s continuously growing. You can save money on cleaning supplies by taking the green route. When your current stock runs out, try buying bulk cleaners or making your own. Both

3. Say goodbye to paper towels. Paper towels are a mainstay in

American homes, but do we really need them when a good old-fashioned rag can do the job? According to the Ocean Conservancy, 13 billion pounds of paper towels are tossed in the U.S. each year! This spring, quit paper towels and keep a stash of dish rags under the sink to do your dirty work. When you’re cleaning out your closet, you can even cut up old T-shirts and add them to your rag stash! If you’re brave, try giving up tissues, too — an old-school hanky does the trick. If you’ve made all three of these swaps, don’t stop there! To continue your green journey, visit any of the blogs mentioned above and start browsing.

2. Explore alternative laundry detergents.

EXERCISE OF THE MONTH

“Wasn’t Me”

WHY: The “wasn’t me” exercise is important for engaging the muscles in your shoulder blades and rotator cuff. Doing this regularly can help decrease issues in your shoulders and neck and really help with efficient posture. HOW: Draw your shoulder blades diagonally towards your opposite back pocket WITHOUT lifting your rib cage, keep elbows as close to your sides as possible WITHOUT letting them be behind your trunk, then open your palms out to the side as far as you can, just like your telling someone “It wasn’t me, I didn’t do it.”

Hold this for 15–20 seconds. Repeat exercise 3 times, and do it 3–5 times a day.

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TEAM MEMBER SPOTLIGHT Kathleen Helps Us Stay at the Forefront of Physical Therapy

When physical therapist Kathleen Young joined PT Pro in 2007, it was due to Maureen’s focus on one-on-one care and her passion for education. “Maureen is really excited about education, and I liked that. Her excitement about the physical therapy world is contagious,” Kathleen says.

SESAME ZUCCHINI NOODLES

Ingredients

Inspired by PaleoRunningMomma.com

It’s fitting, then, that not long after joining the team, Kathleen helped Maureen build on the education focus. “Maureen had done training through the Institute of Physical Art (IPA), and she wanted to introduce me to it. But with most of the classes taking place on the East Coast and me having two little kids, it was challenging,” Kathleen explains. When the IPA offered a course in Seattle, Kathleen attended, and the organizers told her to let them know if PT Pro ever wanted to host a class. Kathleen brought the idea back to Maureen, and from there, PT Pro helped introduce the IPA approach to Seattle, and our clinic became a center of continuing education. The benefits for the practice, and for our patients, were immediately clear. The Institute for Physical Art approaches physical therapy by looking at the whole person, not just the back pain or ankle sprain that brought them in. It addresses how injury and pain affects efficiencies in their body and how they walk differently or shift their weight because of it. “By looking at the whole individual, we get a better outcome. It sets us apart from other practices. Having classes and introducing this perspective to our staff has put us at another level in our practice,” Kathleen shares. “It opens our eyes to another layer that can help get a person to their most efficient and functional capacity.” PT Pro has been offering continuing education courses for over 10 years now, and Kathleen coordinates the classes and workshops. “It takes a lot of coordination,” she says, but her passion has only grown. “It’s grown so that most of our staff can be introduced to continuing education in these courses,” she says. “Going to the same courses helps us all speak the same language. A lot of people come to our clinic and tell us, ‘I feel like no one has ever looked at my injury this way. No one has ever looked at all the pieces.’ That feeling patients get? It has to do with us bringing in classes and trying to be a center of excellence for continuing education.”

• •

3 tbsp pure sesame oil 3/4 tsp fresh ginger, grated 2 cloves garlic, chopped 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar 3 scallions, thinly sliced 1/4 cup chopped almonds

• • •

4 medium zucchini

Salt, to taste

3 medjool dates, pitted and softened in warm water for 5 minutes 3 1/2 tbsp creamy, unsweetened almond butter 3 tbsp coconut aminos

• • • •

•

•

Directions

1. If you have a spiralizer, use it to cut zucchini into noodles. Otherwise, use a peeler. Salt zucchini. Allow zucchini to “sweat” out water for 1 hour, wrap in a paper towel, and squeeze the water out. 2. In a food processor, blend dates with almond butter and aminos until smooth. 3. Add sesame oil, ginger, garlic, and vinegar and pulse until sauce is smooth. 4. In a pan, sauté zucchini noodles until heated and slightly softened. 5. Toss zucchini noodles with prepared sauce and top with scallions and almonds.

A quick look at the numbers: •

20 courses hosted at PT Pro

• 462 course hours instructed at PT Pro with an average of 25-plus students per class (mostly from the PNW but also from across the U.S.) • 46 hours per year on average of continuing education offered by PT Pro, doubling the 20 hours of continuing education required by the state of Washington

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Move Safely Into Spring

3 Eco-Friendly Home Swaps to Make During Spring-Cleaning Exercise of the Month

Team Member Spotlight

Sesame Zucchini Noodles

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The History of Libraries in America

THE OLDEST LIBRARIES IN AMERICA What’s the oldest library in America? It’s an easy question to ask, but it has an unexpectedly complicated answer. Before the Industrial Revolution generated greater interest in public services, a library’s function and purpose varied widely. Several libraries in the United States claim to be the country’s “first,” but for different reasons.

4 425-497-8180 | WWW.PTPRO.BIZ A Few More Firsts During the 1700s, a few more “first” libraries were established. In 1731, Ben Franklin and a few others started the first subscription Colleges and the Clergy Some believe Harvard University hosted the first library in the United States. Harvard was the first university in the United States, founded in 1636, and clergyman John Harvard seeded the library with a 400-book collection. Soon after, however, Thomas Bray, another clergyman, began establishing the first free lending libraries throughout the colonies to encourage the spread of the Anglican Church. Not surprisingly, most of the libraries’ holdings were theological.

library in the United States. Members of subscription libraries could pay to buy books or borrow them for free. In 1757, 60 men founded the Library Company of Burlington in New Jersey, and Thomas Rodman received a charter from King George II to operate the business in 1758. The library still operates under that charter today. The Library of Burlington was the first library to operate out of its own building after a prominent resident donated the land in 1789. By the People, for the People In 1833, just as the Industrial Revolution was picking up steam, the Peterborough Town Library was founded in Peterborough, New Hampshire, at a town meeting. It was the

first tax-supported free public library in the United States and in the world. Not long after that, the Boston Public Library, known as the “palace for the people,” became the first municipal public library in the country. The Boston Public Library was also the first library to have a space specifically for children. Out of all the “first” libraries in the country, these are the most probable progenitors of most libraries today — even if they weren’t exactly “first.”