CACC-PT

Restore Strength, Range of Motion and Mobility with our Sports Rehab Program

Sports and physical fitness are key to leading a healthy lifestyle. People may experience injuries without correct training, adequate stretching and proper conditioning and sometimes accidents just happen. Whether you are a competitive athlete or simply a weekend warrior, our experienced Physical Therapists are here to help. Physical therapy can be used to help you rebuild strength and improve movement after an injury. PT can also be used to manage pain and prevent future injuries from occurring. Our individualized rehabilitation programs focus on strengthening along with restoring range of motion and mobility. We are committed to helping you get back to your sport or activities quickly, safely and without pain.

See Our Expertly Trained Clinicians For:

• Joint Pain and Dysfunction
• Sports-Related Tightness and Muscle Banding
• Tendonitis
• Strains and Sprains
• Iliotibial Band Syndrome
• Low Back Pain and Herniated Disc
• Upper Extremity Issues
• Pre-Orthopedic Surgery Prehabilitation
• Post-Surgical Rehabilitation
• Concussion Management
• Kinesiology Taping

 

Do Not Just Treat, PREVENT!
Our therapists can also teach proper techniques for stretching, running, and more to prevent injuries and even improve athletic performance. Time is an important factor when you start on the road to recovery. We can usually schedule an appointment for you within 24 hours. We look forward to getting you back in the game.

PTs Fuel Healthy Movement With Nutrition

Physical therapy and nutrition are often seen as separate, but the truth is, they are deeply intertwined. To get the most out of PT, especially after an injury or surgery, integrating both is crucial. Here’s why:

Food Fuels The Body

During recovery from an injury or surgery, your body is working to heal itself. The activities and exercises you’re doing in PT are designed to help it along. To take advantage of all the work you and your body are putting in, proper nutrition is critical.

Protein provides the building blocks for tissue repair and muscle growth. Carbohydrates provide energy and help support your immune system. Your body also needs healthy fats to regulate inflammation and to build certain cells. Being short on any of these critical components will slow your recovery down.

You also need enough micronutrients, like vitamins and minerals. For example, vitamin C is needed to make collagen, which goes into bones, skin, and connective tissue. Vitamin D helps your body absorb calcium, which is important for healing fractures, or surgeries involving bones. Iron helps your blood cells carry oxygen throughout your body, which is needed for healing in general. Again, being low on any of these micronutrients will affect your healing.

Your Weight Affects Your Health

Being overweight directly affects your health. It puts you at higher risk for cardiovascular disease, stroke, osteoarthritis, back pain, diabetes, sleep apnea, and more. All of these are conditions that you might see a PT directly for, or that will impact your healing. Eating a healthy diet is the most effective way to reduce body weight. Combining a healthy diet with exercise is even better for your health.

As an example, an 18-month study of 450 people with knee osteoarthritis showed that the group that lost weight through a diet and exercised had less pain, better walking speed, and lower joint forces in their knees than groups who either only lost weight, or only exercised.

How can a physical therapist help with nutrition?

While PTs are not authorized to provide individual diet plans or medical nutritional advice, they can still help with your nutrition.

• PTs can screen for potential nutritional deficiencies or imbalances that may impact your progress in PT or your overall health. This might involve screening for malnutrition, sarcopenia (muscle loss), or assessing dietary habits affecting energy levels, healing, or muscle building.
• Your PT can educate you on the importance of nutrition for various aspects of rehabilitation and recovery. This includes explaining how specific nutrients like protein, vitamins, and minerals contribute to tissue repair, muscle building, energy production, and pain management.
• They can offer general guidance on healthy eating patterns, portion control, and choosing nutrient-rich foods to support reaching your specific physical therapy goals.
• PTs recognize that overall health and well-being involve various factors, including proper nutrition. They can encourage you to adopt healthy lifestyle habits that include a balanced diet alongside regular exercise and proper sleep hygiene.

Finally, your PT can recognize when your nutrition needs exceed what they are able to provide. In that case, they can refer you to and collaborate with a registered dietician or other qualified healthcare professional for help in dealing with complex nutritional needs or recommending specific dietary changes.

By combining the power of physical therapy and nutrition, you can achieve your recovery goals faster and feel your best!

References:

1. Effects of Intensive Diet and Exercise on Knee Joint Loads, Inflammation, and Clinical Outcomes Among Overweight and Obese Adults With Knee Osteoarthritis: The IDEA Randomized Clinical Trial Effects of Intensive Diet and Exercise on Knee Joint Loads, Inflammation, and Clinical Outcomes Among Overweight and Obese Adults With Knee Osteoarthritis: The IDEA Randomized Clinical Trial | Obesity | JAMA | JAMA Network
2. Ottawa Panel Evidence-Based Clinical Practice Guidelines for the Management of Osteoarthritis in Adults Who Are Obese or Overweight Ottawa Panel Evidence-Based Clinical Practice Guidelines for the Management of Osteoarthritis in Adults Who Are Obese or Overweight | Physical Therapy | Oxford Academic (oup.com)
3. Strategies for optimizing nutrition and weight reduction in physical therapy practice: The evidence Strategies for optimizing nutrition and weight reduction in physical therapy practice: The evidence: Physiotherapy Theory and Practice: Vol 25, No 5-6 (tandfonline.com)
4. Body mass index and risk of knee osteoarthritis: systematic review and meta-analysis of prospective studies Body mass index and risk of knee osteoarthritis: systematic review and meta-analysis of prospective studies – PMC (nih.gov)
5. Nutrition:  A Portion of PT’s Menu of Services Nutrition: A Portion of PTs’ Menu of Services | APTA
6. Considerations for PT’s Role in Nutrition Considerations Related to the PT’s Role in Nutrition and Diet | APTA
7. Nutrition and PT a Powerful Combination – Nutrition and Physical Therapy: A Powerful Combination | APTA

What is Physical Therapy?

By: Allison R. Weder

Everyone will likely need physical therapy (PT) some time in their life. However, many people don’t realize a Physical Therapist can help with many things beyond joint pain and rehabilitation after surgery. Take the time to learn about the four major ways PT can help you.

 Manage Pain

Chronic pain is a major issue for people worldwide. It stops us from doing the things we want to do and enjoying time with the people we love. Physical therapy can help relieve that pain and our expertly trained Physical Therapists can teach you how to resolve that pain on your own for years to come. If you have pain in your back, neck, hand, joint pain, or headaches a Physical Therapist may be able to help eliminate that pain without surgery or medication.

Improve Mobility, Movement and Balance

Are you struggling to navigate stairs? Or maybe you are not as flexible as you used to be. Physical Therapists understand the mechanics of body movement and can address your weakness and strength issues with an individualized exercise plan. They can focus on fixing the problem by looking at the underlying cause to address the issue long-term, not just temporarily.

Recover From Injury, Trauma, or Surgery

Auto accident? Ankle sprain? Hip Replacement? Our Physical Therapists can help get you back to life quickly. No one expects a sudden injury, but it’s good to know there are highly skilled clinicians who know just what you need to fully recover. Your recovery plan will be tailored to your specific injury and adjustments will be made as you progress. And our pre-surgical, prehabilitation program gives you the tools you need to recovery confidently and quickly after your elective procedure.

Manage Diseases, Conditions or Age-related Medical Issues

Our Physical Therapists specialize in treating patients with specific diseases and conditions. They can help with pelvic floor conditions, neurological conditions, carpal tunnel, arthritis, diabetes, Parkinson’s Disease and so much more. They successfully help patients restore mobility and strength when recovering from COVID-19 and they can help the aging population maintain their independence by addressing pain, osteoporosis, balance conditions and fall risk issues.

If you’d like to learn more or stop by to see our therapists in action, call the clinic location nearest you.

Learn the Basics of Proper Foot Care

Your feet work for you the whole day. Whether you stand, play, run, or walk, they can sustain forces of up to 120 percent of your body weight. That’s an enormous amount of wear and tear and it’s why your feet are more prone to injury than any other part of the body.

Without attention and proper foot care, disorders are likely to develop with age.

Factors that affect your feet include:

• Activity level – Being physically active improves your balance, strengthens your muscles and bones, keeps your toes flexible, elevates your mood and reduces your risk of disease.
• Weight – Active people who are ten pounds overweight and walk 10,000 steps a day, subject their feet to 100,000 pounds of extra impact each day. More sedentary people who are 30 pounds overweight and take 5,000 steps per day subject their feet to 150,000 pounds of additional impact.
• Occupation – Sitting or standing for long hours will affect the condition of your feet. Moderate activity is the best way to exercise the muscles and keep them healthy.
• Health – Foot problems can sometimes foreshadow a more serious condition such as arthritis, diabetes, nerve, and circulatory disorders.
• Footwear – Properly fitting footwear (and replacing worn footwear) can play a critical role in preventing foot problems. Most people wear shoes that are too narrow. This can cause the big toe to bend towards the smaller toes, thrusting the big toe joint outward. This results in a misalignment of the two bones that form the base joint of the big toe to create a bunion.

Proper foot care is just as critical as taking care of the rest of your body. Chronic pain of the knees, hips, back, or neck can actually originate from having poor posture of the feet.

If the bones in your feet and ankles are not properly aligned, the distribution of weight and excessive pressure in the wrong place can adversely affect other parts of the body.

A structural flaw or malfunction in any one part of the foot can result in the development of problems elsewhere in your body.

Here are some easy steps that you can follow to take care of your feet:

• Buy your shoes by fit, not by size. Try them on towards the end of the day since your feet tend to swell over the course of the day.
• Frequently soak, scrub, and massage your feet, toes, and ankles. For example, Epsom salt is known to help soothe bunion pain.
• Exercise your feet. In today’s Western-style society where people wear shoes most of the day, your feet, the bones, muscles, and tendons within, do not get the movement required to stay healthy as compared to those societies who do not wear shoes. Keep your feet flexible.
• See a CACC Physical Therapist! “Just walk on it” is the advice I often hear folks say they’ve gotten from their peers. Most people don’t seek help following an ankle sprain. Some of these individuals can benefit greatly from good manual therapy and joint manipulation by a qualified professional to help prevent re-sprains

References:

Cook JL, Purdam CR (2003). Rehabilitation of lower limb tendinopathies. Clin Sports Med, 22: 777-789.

Kaminski TW, Hartsell HD. Factors contributing to chronic ankle instability: A strength perspective. Journal of Athletic Training, 2002; 37(4): 394-405.

Improve Your Posture With Three Simple Exercises

Are you slumped in your chair, or standing with your shoulders hunched forward? Let’s focus on your posture.

Posture is probably the most misunderstood word of fitness. As a matter of fact, posture is more than just something we “don’t do right.” Posture can change our lives, both physically and mentally. And it’s never too late to improve our posture.

Try these Exercises and Stretches

Wall Arch

Face the wall with your feet about 6 inches from the wall and 6 inches apart. Stretch your arms up to touch the wall while taking a deep breath (concentrate on flattening your stomach). Exhale and bring your arms down.

Mid Back Posture Correction

Sit on a chair with your chin in, but not up. Keep the stomach tight, chest forward and feet together flat on the floor. Raise your arms to form a “W” position (shoulders relaxed and elbows bent). Bring the elbows gently back, pinching the shoulder blades together and hold for a count of 1-2-3, then relax for the same count.

Wall Slide

Stand with your back and buttocks flat against a wall and feet a few inches away. Tuck in your chin to keep your head as close to the wall as possible. Flatten your tummy and “slide” up and down the wall. Keep your back and tummy flat while bending the knees and never go lower than a 90-degree angle.

Did you know?

• Every move you make is affected by your posture.
• The origin of the word posture stems from the Latin word for “position”.
• Everything in your body is connected. Each misaligned movement can cause an issue.
• In order for your muscles to grow and organs to function, you need a good supply of oxygen.
• When you have poor posture, you’re less able to bring in enough air.

Top 6 Reasons You Need to Get Up and Walk Everyday

The New Year is here and one simple and easy method to stay on top of your health and fitness goals in 2024 and beyond is to walk.

 

When the Weather Gets Cold, Don’t Forget to Warm Up!

Colder weather means some changes to how we exercise. Of course, it’s harder to motivate yourself to get outside for a run or bike ride when the temperature drops and the shorter days compress our schedules, but there are changes in your body that affect your ability to exercise too. For many people with arthritis or other joint problems, cold weather brings more complaints of pain. To stay warm, our bodies narrow blood vessels to reduce blood flow to the skin, and more superficial muscles. That means that there is an increased risk of muscle strains in the cold. There is also an increased strain on the heart because of the narrowed blood vessels. This isn’t to say that you shouldn’t be active outdoors in the cold, it just means you may have to make a few changes to your routine. Here are a few to consider:

Warm up Right
A good warm up is always important, but because of the tendency for joints to be stiffer, and blood flow to muscles to be reduced in the cold, it’s even more important that you do it right this time of year. To start, do something to get your heart rate up a bit, maybe a brisk walk or light jog. Follow that up with a dynamic warm up rather than static stretches. This could include walking or jogging while pulling your knees up high to your chest. Maybe some high kicks in front of you with straight knees to get your hamstrings loosened. A walking lunge with an upper body twist can get your whole body moving. Cater your warm up to what you have planned in your workout. If you’re not sure how it should look, ask your physical therapist!

Dress Right
Dressing in layers allows you to adjust your insulation to your activity level. After you warm up, you might want to take off a layer to avoid getting too hot during your main activity. You’ll have it there later to put back on when your activity level drops and you start getting too cold.

Don’t forget about the sun either – just because it’s cold doesn’t mean the UV rays are gone. Sunscreen and sunglasses aren’t just for the summer. A lip balm with SPF can protect you not only from the sun but from the wind too.

Stay Hydrated
Drink water before, during, and after your workout. The temperature may be down, but you’ll still sweat and you’ll still lose water vapor in your breath. The drier air in winter lets your sweat evaporate more quickly, so it’s easy to underestimate how much fluid you’ve lost.

Cool Down
When you’re done, don’t rush to get inside and crawl under a blanket. Cool down properly. Keep moving with a walk or another form of active recovery to let your heart rate come down. After exercise is the right place for static stretching. You can also head inside for some foam rolling or self-massage.

The days being shorter and the temperatures being lower don’t mean you’re stuck inside for all of your exercise. If you follow these tips, you can safely keep moving outside. If you’d like a customized warm up or cool down, or have questions about your exercise routine, your physical therapist is a great person to ask!

 

Article source/credit: https://ppsapta.org/marketing/blog/browse.cfm?recID=096668C0-E54A-210D-FDE2A88266E8B1ED

How to Properly Use a Massage Gun

Massage guns are just one tool used in physical therapy. They can be used to relieve muscle tension and soreness, improve blood flow, increase mobility, and speed recovery. This tool is highly effective in a skilled therapists hands and also can be used daily at home when certain precautions are taken.

Here are some basic steps for how to use a massage gun properly:

1. It’s a good idea to turn the massage gun on BEFORE placing it on your body. Turning the gun on while in contact with your body can be a bit jarring and might lead to bruising.
2. Start on the lowest speed. Until you’ve had a chance to assess your tolerance level, starting out on high can be a bit painful. Also, keep in mind that soreness can be a result of micro tears in the muscle or increased inflammation. Beating the muscles into submission could do more harm than good. More is not always better. Two minutes should be the maximum time spend on any one area.
3. Whatever speed you’re using, you want to “float” the massage gun across the muscles. Extreme downward pressure of the massage head on the body is not necessary – light to moderate pressure is best.. Let the massage gun do the work as you gently glide it over the affected areas.
4. Remember to relax! You bought a massage gun to relieve muscle tightness, not make it worse. If you’re too tense and flexing the muscle while going over it, you’re not getting the full benefit of the tool. Just breathe – inhale, exhale, and slowly move the massage gun across the muscle.
5. Talk to your therapist about the correct technique if using a massage gun at home. If your muscles remain stiff or continue to ache see a physical therapist for a full assessment.

Avoid using a massage gun on bony areas as well as bruises, open wounds, or musculoskeletal injuries. If you have arthritis, fibromyalgia, osteoporosis, or other musculoskeletal issues, talk to your physical therapist before using a massage gun.

Your Physical Therapy Holiday Survival Guide

Keeping up with physical therapy during the holidays is tough. There are so many other things to do – cooking, parties, shopping, travel, and visiting with family and friends. But if you’re in physical therapy over the holidays, there’s a reason. You’re having pain, or not moving as well as you want to. These issues place limitations on your life, which are going to affect your ability to do things – like cooking, partying, shopping, traveling, or enjoying time with friends and family. So even though keeping up with your PT this time of year is tough, it’s important. That’s why we’re going to give you our best tips to help you through the holidays.

PLAN

Some of what makes the holidays challenging is the crazy schedule. To survive this, you’re going to have to plan ahead. We’re not just talking about appointments on your calendar, either (although those are important). Here are some things to think about planning ahead:

Your PT appointments

Your schedule is busy during the holidays. So is your PT’s. Plan and schedule your appointments in advance. You’ll get the times and days that work best for you, and you’ll already have your PT appointments in your calendar to plan other things around.

Your exercise

Hopefully you have a regular time to exercise. With the holiday mania about to shake up your routine, that time may no longer work. Think about when you’re going to exercise ahead of time and you’ll stay consistent.

Your diet

Healthy eating often gets derailed during the holidays. Putting low quality fuel into your body won’t help you feel better. Think about planning what you’re going to eat ahead of time. We’re not saying to skip every holiday treat offered to you, but maybe think about which ones you really need to have, and which ones you can skip in advance. It makes saying “no thanks” to that third slice of fruitcake easier.

MODIFY

We’re realistic. We understand that life isn’t the same during the holidays as it is during the rest of the year. That’s part of what makes this time of year special! With that in mind, our next set of tips focuses on making modifications to help you get through the holidays successfully.

Your PT Plan

When you planned your PT appointments out well in advance, you might have run into some challenges. Talk to your therapist about how you might be able to modify your plan of care through the holidays to make it all work. Maybe you’re going to PT three times a week and you can only come twice a week for a week or two. Plan this sort of thing in advance with your PT and you can work together to come up with the best plan.

Your exercise

Exercise is so important, it made our list twice. Now that you know when you’ll exercise, you might have to modify your routine to make it fit. Again, we recommend talking with your PT to see what you can do. Maybe your home exercise program can be modified so you can do everything in the kitchen during downtime when you’re cooking up your holiday feast. Maybe you can reduce the number of exercises to focus on maintaining the gains you’ve made until things settle down.

Your schedule

In your planning in advance (see how important it is?) you might have found that your normal routine wasn’t going to work. If your PT appointments or exercise time is usually right after work and you’ve now got commitments during that time, maybe you can move them to the morning before work. If you’ve been exercising outside, the shortened days may move you into the gym. Be flexible and consider temporarily modifying your schedule and your routine to make it work better during the holiday season. You can always go back to your previous routine after.

The holidays are a special time of year. Keeping up with your health and your physical therapy can be challenging during this time. But you don’t have to fall behind. With some planning and flexibility, you can stay healthy, survive the holidays and head into next year with good momentum!

Article courtesy of: https://ppsapta.org/marketing/blog/browse.cfm?recID=E75A9C50-C7D8-D220-4F1230FC5F53CA7F&utm_source=Informz&utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=PPS%20Informz

What is Eccentric Training?

Eccentric Training

It’s really something that all of us have been subconsciously doing since the first time we ever picked up a weight. After some details about it, all of it will come together and make a lot of sense. So what is eccentric training? Let’s dive in.

There are two parts to every movement: the lifting (or concentric) phase and the lowering (or eccentric) phase. Some refer to this action as the negative part of the move.

When you control the weight on the down movement instead of just letting gravity do the work, you are taxing the target muscle (or muscles for compound movements) and making the most out of every rep.

How slow should you actually go? …it depends. Other factors come into play, such as what exercise you are doing, your experience level and how much weight you are using. But a basic rule of thumb is one-to-three seconds at the minimum and approximately five-to-six seconds at the most.

What you are doing is breaking down the muscle to build it up again. By keeping the tension going throughout the full range results in better growth once the recovery and recuperation phase kicks in. You’re going to feel the difference if you take advantage of this rehabilitation method. It may sound backwards, but you are actually using less energy when performing eccentric training. The reason is that you are not doing an explosive-type movement and it is more controlled.

Another attraction with eccentric training is that it strengthens your tendons and increases flexibility. If you ever have had to undergo surgery and attended physical therapy afterwards, you were put through exercises with a light weight that was used in an eccentric manner. The therapist gave you a small dumbbell and had you do whatever movement with it, in a slow and controlled manner. He or she then measured your range of motion. Each week you went through the same thing to see improvements.

All of that boils down to the fact that eccentric training works – in the physical therapist’s office and in the gym. Make sure you have been educated on proper mechanics before going it alone!

Ref:physical-therapy.advanceweb.com/Magazine/References/The-Importance-of-Eccentric-Training-in-Rehabilitation