Every time I walk into dance facilities, I see the same thing, and as a physical therapist, it makes me cringe. I see dance students waiting for their classes to start by surrounding their respective studios in splits or some variation of a split. Yes, flexibility in dance is so very important, but this bad […]
The Anatomy of First Position in Ballet
In ballet, first position is so much more than having your toes pointed outward. It has been said that dancing ballet is like being a duckling. A duckling glides effortlessly across a body of water, but what we don’t see is the constant work happening below the surface. If it looked hard to pull off […]
It’s Pool Season: Use It for Your Rehab
The weather is getting warmer and the sun is out for longer. People are putting on their swimsuits to sunbathe at the pool. If you are dealing with an injury, it’s a perfect time to change up your exercises a bit to do some rehab in that water. Benefits of Aquatic Exercises The buoyancy and […]
How to Landscape Without Experiencing Orthopedic Injury
It’s that time of year when the sun is out, the birds are chirping and bees are buzzing. It’s Spring! It’s the perfect time for gardening, whether you like to do so as a hobby or you just have to do basic maintenance of weeding and lawn mowing. These activities of botanical prowess sometimes come […]
The “Clamshell” Hip Exercise
It has stood the test of time and is a staple in just about every physical therapy clinic. It is the beloved “clamshell” exercise. This exercise is relatively simple, portable, safe, and effective in regards to recruiting the often-neglected gluteal muscles. Let’s take a quick look at the start and finish positions of this exercise. […]
How Do I Strengthen My Upper Back?
The muscles of the upper back are easily the most neglected in the patient populations that physical therapists see. Why? Two reasons reasons come to mind. 1. Most people sit at a desk all day in a forward-pitched position. The muscles in the front of the body become over worked with reaching movements of the […]
Shoes Make Your Feet Weak!
We are a culture that worships shoes. Companies have reaped untold billions from our insatiable desire to wear cool kicks. There is indeed a shoe for all occasions. There are shoes marketed specifically for nightlife, formal work settings, soccer, hiking, swimming, and one hundred other activities that I cannot think of. I am not immune. […]
Sitting Disease – The New Smoking: One Reason Fidgeting Is a Good Thing
Our ancestors walked or ran 10-20 miles a day, while the average American today sits 15 hours a day. Talk about a dramatic change in lifestyle. It seems we are wising up to some of the overuse injuries that occur due to sitting for extended periods of time, especially staring at a computer screen and […]
Neck Pain With Bicycling?
In terms of repetitive stress injuries involved with bicycling, one type of injury that we are encountering with increased frequency is the “neck strain.” Take a look at the relative positions of both the head and neck in the photo on the right. Note that this person’s neck has to extend quite a bit in […]
Pride and Exercise
Pride has the potential to destroy us all, at least from an orthopedic point of view. In our teens and twenties, we are invincible. Many of us can recall being able to perform in a basketball game or run in a track meet the morning after a night of drinking beers and eating McDonalds at […]
The Male “Kegel” Exercise? (A Taboo Subject!)
Men do not prefer to talk about the subject of urinary incontinence, but it certainly does exist. Most men, once they reach their late thirties, will notice that the urine stream becomes less strong. Many men will also note that there is less control over the extra “dribble” at the end of urination. (You can […]
Sugar Addiction: Confessions From a Physical Therapist
For as long as I can remember, I have been addicted to anything that is sweet. My parents tried to raise their children on healthy foods, but I always seemed to find a way to get around it. Secret trips on my bicycle to the general store, eating snacks at friends’ houses after school, and […]
Right Side Dominant?
At least eighty-five percent of us are naturally “wired” to use the right side of our body more efficiently than the left side of our body. Right hand dominance is the norm, and this is reflected in many of the objects that we deal with on a daily basis. Here is a list of things […]
Can You Do This Simple Exercise?
Take a look at this photo. Many people with shoulder and neck pain have a difficult time resting comfortably in this position. I have seen countless patients over the years who cannot tolerate their head in a neutral position while maintaining their hands resting on the floor as shown. Sustained forward posture from sitting in […]
Foam Rolling for the ITB: Why Am I Doing This Again?
How many gym-goers do you know who roll the sides of their legs up and down a foam roller before or after a workout? Throngs of people feel that they are doing themselves a service by mashing the “ITB”, or iliotibial band, in a fashion that resembles using a rolling pin on dough. I have […]
