Choice PT: Improve Your Health & Fitness With Strength Trai…

Choice PT: Improve Your Health & Fitness With Strength Trai…

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Stretch what’s tight, strengthen what’s weak, right? A very common misconception and something we spent some time discussing in past newsletters. . (continued inside)

THE #1 MISTAKE PEOPLE MAKE WHEN IT COMES TO INJURY PREVENTION. . .

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INSIDE: • Improve Your Health With Strength Training • Choice Physical Therapy Team News

• Patient Success Story • And More!

THE #1 MISTAKE PEOPLE MAKE WHEN IT COMES TO INJURY PREVENTION...

Have you ever been told that your hamstrings are too tight and putting stress on your lower back? Interested to see if a few simple suggestions can help your “hamstrings of steel” relax a bit? Your toes may not be as far away as they seem. Now, what if the hammies aren’t a big concern for you, but your lower back is constantly stiff and sore? How about that achy shoulder that clicks each time you reach into the third shelf for a coffee cup, let alone try and throw a ball? The hamstrings aren’t unique. Each area of our body has a corresponding checklist indicating which compensations are ok and which are placing you at more risk for injury. Interested in learning where you may be compensating and how you can address it? We’re hosting free injury prevention screens this month. Check out the inside of this newsletter for more information.

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Most of us are no stranger to the constantly “tight” hamstrings. No matter what hamstring stretch Dr. Google throws your way and no matter how long you hold it, you still can’t touch your toes. Or maybe you can squeeze out a toe graze for a bit after stretching but it seems that the hamstring forces that be lock right back up a short while later. What gives? Recently, I had the pleasure of working with a runner. The toe touch discussion came up and he immediately pulled out the “I’ve never been able to touch my toes and I’ve stretched my hamstrings FOREVER. I’m 37 now, don’t think any amount of stretching will reverse that”. Within 4 sessions he was touching the floor and his program didn’t call for a single “hamstring stretch”. The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over, expecting different results. Our brains are powerful things. They communicate to our muscles by sending messages through our nervous system. In many cases, “tightness” that we feel is really some type of overactivity in that muscle due to us being in protective mode (think fight or flight response, protective mode) or that muscle overworking for another muscle that has become lazy. So, what’s the big deal with being able to touch your toes? Besides loosening up your hips and taking pressure off your lower back it has been linked to heart health. Yes, you read that correctly. The American Journal of Physiology studied 526 participants and found a correlation with being able to sit, reach, and touch your toes and a decreased risk of cardiovascular disease, especially in people 40 or older.

Have an awesome month! Joe

P.S. You thought I forgot, didn’t you? In my 12+ years of being a Physical Therapist, the absolute #1 mistake I see people make when it comes to injury prevention is (drumroll, please)...they ignore their aches and pains. They put them off, hoping they’ll go away. They take a reactive approach to their health as opposed to a proactive approach. As the saying goes: “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.”

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IMPROVE YOUR HEALTH WITH STRENGTH TRAINING

Health is a relative term. It means that your body is operating at a high normal range in all the different systems from circulation, breathing, digestion, and more. Anything you can do to help your body achieve more of an ideal state is a step towards a healthier you. Everyone desires to be healthier, stronger, and more active. This may sometimes feel difficult to accomplish, due to pain, injuries, or poor diets. Pain increases undesirable chemicals in your body that cause stress, creating a challenge when it comes to exercise. All of this also affects your endocrine system, which regulates your hormones and controls almost everything happening in your body. Fortunately, strength training exercises can effectively ease your pain while simultaneously strengthening the affected part(s) of your body. Our highly trained physical therapists can create a personalized strength training plan for your needs and goals. They have the right knowledge and the time to listen, evaluate, and guide you toward a pain-free, stronger, and healthier lifestyle. Why is strength training so important? There are approximately 642 skeletal muscles in the body. This means that your strength and flexibility play an important role in your health. Your muscles not only help you move, but they support your circulatory and breathing systems. A stronger and more flexible you means a healthier you. Relieving joint or muscle pain and guiding you on proper strength training exercises are integral parts of our specialized physical therapy treatments.

Strength training helps in building muscle mass, and it is typically the final step in a rehabilitation treatment process. Whether you are recovering from an injury or underlying condition that is causing you pain, strength training will help you get back to your optimum physical performance. At Choice Physical Therapy, our strength training programs will get you back on track to living a happy and healthy lifestyle. Our physical therapists will design a treatment plan with the best exercises for an effective and speedy recovery. These exercises will be dependent upon which part(s) of your body are in need of strengthening. This may include body weight exercises (such as squats, push-ups, or planks) or exercises using additional tools (such as barbells, resistance bands, exercise balls, or hand weights).

Contact Choice Physical Therapy today to learn more.

PAT IENT SUCCESS STORY

EXERCISE ESSENT IALS

STRENGTHENS HIPS

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RESISTED LATERAL STEPPING

Wrap a resistance band just above both ankles. Stand with both legs hip-width apart so that there is tension on the band. Keeping your chest upright, back straight, and knees slightly bent, take a large step with one foot away from the opposite foot. Follow through by stepping in the same direction with the second foot, back into the original stance. Repeat this same maneuver into the opposite direction. Keep moving back and forth to the right and left in this manner until you have repeated the exercise at least 10 times.

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CHOICE PHYSICAL THERAPY TEAM NEWS

FREE CONSULT WEEK

BOTH CLINICS! OCT. 4 TH - 8 TH , 2021

CHOICE PHYSICAL THERAPY TEAM MEMBERS OF THE MONTH!

PRESEASON INJURY PREVENTION SCREEN FOR ATHLETES If so, call the clinic that is most convenient for you to reserve a spot with one of our PT’s!

Asuan Farrel l , PCA (Campbel l) & Dr. Gabriel le Battagl ia, PT, DPT (Speigletown)

Congratulations “Ace” & Gabe!!! Thank you for all you do for Choice Physical Therapy and our patients!

506 Campbell Avenue Troy, New York 12180 TEL: (518) 203-6761

290 Speigletown Rd Troy, NY 12182 TEL: (518) 279-2740

WE ARE PLEASED TO INTRODUCE YOU TO OUR NEW DOCTORS OF PHYSICAL THERAPY!

Check out our website to learn more about their interests and specialties!

DR. COURTNEY LAUGHL IN, PT, DPT

DR. GABE BATTAGL IA, PT, DPT

DR. SARAH AMEDURE , PT, DPT

DR. COL IN GAUERT, PT, DPT

1. Developed a love for working in both an outpatient setting and the pediatric settings, and also works as a Pediatric PT, at A Child’s Place at Unity House 2. Was in charge of running a fundraiser “Rally” during senior year at Russell Sage raising over $6,000 for The Alzheimer’s Association and the Center for Missing and Exploited Children

3. Studied for a semester in Rome, Italy, and plans to pursue a therapeut ic yoga cer t i f icat ion to help provide a hol ist ic treatment style.

4. Is a South Florida native having grown up in just 20 minutes outside of Miami, enjoys recreational hiking and building computers