Blog

Steroid Shots No Better for Back Pain Than Placebo

The use of low back injections is often utilized for patients with low back pain and nerve pain (radicular pain) and/or leg numbness, pins and needles, or nerve root weakness (radiculopathy). In an older adult these symptoms may be due to a narrowing of the canals in which the low back nerve roots exit (lumbar...

Why You Should Stop Massaging, Needling, and Mashing That Spot Next to Your Shoulder Blade

We have seen countless cases in our Boulder and Lafayette physical therapy offices of clients presenting with reports of a “knot” next to their shoulder blade that in many cases has often been massaged, needled, scraped or mashed to death with no lasting relief of symptoms. Scapular or shoulder blade pain is a classic sign...

Is My Pelvic Floor Too Tight to Give Birth?

At Mend, we work with highly active women in Boulder County during pregnancy in our Boulder and Lafayette sports medicine and pelvic health physical therapy practice. This includes elite marathoners, CrossFit enthusiasts, triathletes, group fitness junkies and more. As pelvic health specialists we often hear concerns from these active women about “being too tight” in...

Getting More Out Of Your Workouts With Measuring Total Work

At a fundamental level, all forms of exercise are designed to improve the current state of the participant. In our Boulder Physical Therapy practice, we aim to effectively and efficiently prescribe exercise to meet each patient or client’s goals. A key element of any exercise program has to include progressively, increasing demands over time. Flexibility...

Top 5 Things To Do After A Running Injury

Death, taxes, low back pain, and injury if you are a runner. With over 90% of runners reporting an injury preventing participation in training or competition running injuries fall into the when not if category. The vast majority of these injuries occur in the lower quarter and are overuse in nature involving tissues in the...

How To Decrease Pelvic Floor Muscle Tension

At our Boulder pelvic physical therapy clinic, we often see the cause of a pelvic floor dysfunction being tension, not weakness, of pelvic floor muscles. This applies not just to those that identify as female, but those identifying as males as well.  Muscles that are holding more tension than they should, cannot properly function. So...

Sign Up for Evidence-Based Content Specifically for Rock Climbers

Sign up below to receive monthly newsletters with evidence-based resources for rock climbers. Injury prevention Self-diagnosis Self-treatment Training protocols and much more! Subscribe * indicates required Email Address * First Name Last Name If you’re a rock climber experiencing pain that is limiting your performance or ability to climb, schedule an appointment with a rock...

Research Finds Little To No Clinical Benefit For Arthroscopic Surgery For Knee Arthritis Or Degenerative Meniscal Tears

Arthroscopic surgery remains a common procedure for patients with knee arthritis and degenerative meniscal tears despite medical evidence questioning its’ utilization. Previous research papers have not shown a clinically significant benefit for this procedure and some have shown it has not outperformed a placebo surgery for these conditions. The increasing evidence has led to medical...

Evidence Does Not Support Utilization Of Surgery Over Physical Therapy For Most Musculoskeletal Conditions

The vast majority of musculoskeletal conditions and diagnoses are not life threatening or time sensitive and allow for conservative treatments, including Physical Therapy, to be utilized prior to surgery. In our Boulder Physical Therapy practice we commonly see outcomes consistent with the current research on the utilization of Physical Therapy instead of surgery for common...

Utilize Shoulder Strengthening to Decrease Elbow Pain for Rock Climbers

Make sure you’re incorporating shoulder strengthening into your elbow rehabilitation! The elbow is one of the most common sites for pain in rock climbers. Lateral elbow pain (tennis elbow) is a limiting condition causing pain with repetitive movements including crimping or pinching while rock climbing. This condition was previously thought to occur secondary to inflammation...