Most patients presenting to our Boulder and Lafayette Physical Therapy practices are facing a pain or symptoms which are limiting their ability to participate in the activities they enjoy. Their current abilities, or lack thereof, prevent them from being available for work, life, and recreational activities. Availability is often the greatest predictor of long-term health...
A common question we receive from young throwers and their parents is how to improve throwing velocity safely without undue stress on their arms. Our prior posts on throwing have focused on reducing arm stress through injury prevention and lower quarter strengthening. This post will focus on the research surrounding exercise programs designed to improve...
In our prior posts on injury prevention in sports we have highlighted the importance of training volume management, balance training, and strength training. Of all the training options, strength training is the most important due to its’ ability to cut an athlete’s risk of injury in half. Despite the evidence many healthy athletes focus a...
The hamstrings are a group of 3 muscles running from the pelvis to the back of the knee. These muscles are an essential component of the posterior chain improving lower back, hip, and knee stability. In our previous posts we have discussed the importance of developing these muscles for injury prevention and sports performance. Specifically,...
Hamstring strains or pulls are a common injury among acceleration sports including rugby, soccer, and sprinting. Our previous blogs have written about the causes and treatments of these muscle injuries. One of the common causes of injury involves a lengthening contraction (eccentric) of the muscle during these explosive sports movements. If the muscle is unable...
Alpine skiing is Colorado’s most popular winter sport and provides billions in tax revenue each year. Across the country, about 7 million individuals took part in at least one day of alpine skiing in 2017. Skiing while popular and fun does come with inherent injury risks. Authors have found 1-2 ski injuries per 1000 ski...
Stretching remains one of the more debatable areas in our profession. Although mobility and stretching can play a significant role in Physical Therapy treatments designed to help an individual recover from injury their importance in a healthy individual is questionable. Despite this, stretching’s popularity remains on display in most gyms and exercise classes, but the...
Self soft tissue mobilization using a foam roller or other device (stick, ball, etc) is a popular adjunct to training that we see our strength and endurance athletes utilize in our Boulder physical therapy practice. We often receive questions about how and when foam rolling should be utilized in training and whether it helps with...
In our Boulder Physical Therapy practice we commonly address areas of weakness in a patient or client’s body that is limiting performance, as well as, precipitated or perpetuated their current condition. Strength is an essential component of health allowing us to participate in our chosen activities at the level we desire. For example, running at...
Strength training is an essential component of any skier’s fitness regimen and one of our key interventions we prescribe in our Boulder Physical Therapy and Lafayette Physical Therapy clinics. Skiing demands high levels of muscular strength, endurance, and balance, particularly in the lower body. Strengthening the core and leg muscles helps skiers maintain proper form,...
