We have been asked before whether our approach here at the Wellness Station is suitable for athletes. Regardless of age and sport, the care provided at Wellness Station can be extremely beneficial, as we are able to offer care that typically isn’t found in traditional physical therapy practices. Most athletes, particularly in high school or college, are well exposed to strength training and conditioning. Traditional rehabilitation for sports injuries tends to follow this formula of repetitive and progressive loading of the injured area.
What these athletes are not exposed to is neuromuscular re-education and self-care strategies that will help them heal from their injury and minimize the chance that future issues will occur.
When it comes to athletes, our approach truly shines when it comes to recurring injuries. Traditional PT may be great for an athlete with an acute one-off situation, e.g. a football player is tackled and sprains their ACL, etc. However, more often there is an underlying pattern at play, particularly for athletes with a history of repeated injuries. This may look something like tendonitis that pops up in multiple places, a history of concussions, back pain following athletic events, and so on. What we address here is not one body part in isolation, but how the body works together as a whole using biomechanical principles. Traditional rehab generally does not address the underlying movement patterns that may be setting these athletes up for injuries in the first place. We can help athletes to become aware of dysfunctional patterns and habits that may be detrimental to their performance, and provide movement lessons to stimulate kinesthetic learning and positive changes in these areas.
Athletes are very used to being told to push, push, push. Train harder, faster, and stronger. If dysfunctional movement patterns are at play, pushing harder will only add fuel to the fire. Additionally, the mindset of only pushing harder creates a relationship in which the athlete only works on their body, and has difficulty working with their body. The sport itself becomes work, and joy can start to be removed from the equation, potentially leading to burnout.
For sustainable performance, the athlete must unite mind and body into a state of flow, recognizing their own limits and honoring them.
The ability to slow down and listen to one’s body is often completely missing for most athletes, as they are so accustomed to being rewarded only for external achievement. The approach here at the Wellness Station can help athletes to reconnect to their bodies and find joy in movement. This facilitates a deeper connection with one’s body, thereby improving intrinsic motivation for the sport. This will help athletes improve their performance over the long term, avoid repetitive strain injuries, and find more enjoyment in their sport and daily lives.
Written by Jacob Tyson, DPT - Physical Therapist, Yoga Instructor and The Wellness Station Team