Bioperformance Physical Therapy

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  • So… What Should You Be Doing? Nerd Edition

    I chose a few different forms of exercise and broke down some of their specific benefits and pitfalls. If you find yourself asking “What kind of exercise should I be doing.” this may help guide you.

    🧘‍♀️ Pilates

    Benefits (according to research so NOT all encompassing)

    • May improve childbirth experience
    • Helps with chronic back/neck pain
    • Improves balance and pain in older adults
    • Encourages mindful body awareness

    ⚠️ Potential Pitfalls to Watch For:

    • If your goal is strength and hypertrophy (muscle growth) we must highlight the importance of mechanical tension and progressive overload
    • 1) mechanical tension (how much force is placed on muscle), BY FAR THE MOST IMPORTANT FACTOR FOR BUILDING MUSCLE
    • 2) Progressive Overload (increasing stress to gradually produce adaptation) NOT just increasing weight but also increasing the overall challenge to the body
    • Due to low loads, high reps (which have many benefits) Pilates doesn’t get high motor unit recruitment preferred for optimal muscle building
    • Takeaway: Will you get stronger and enjoy a slew of physical benefits with Pilates? Absolutely. Should it be your primary mode of exercise if your goal is to build muscle? Probably not. Pilates is a great option to work in conjunction with heavy resistance training.

    🏋️ Lifting Heavy

    Benefits:

    • Builds bone density and tendon/ligament resilience
    • Improves max strength and motor unit recruitment
    • Stronger people are generally more injury-resilient and age better
    • Encourages discipline and progression tracking

    ⚠️ Potential Pitfalls to Watch For:

    • Over doing specific movement patterns can limit variability. *this can be avoided by including multiple forms of exercise

    🏃 Running

    Benefits:

    • Increases cardiovascular capacity and VO2 max (linked to longer lifespan)
    • Improves bone density and tendon endurance

    ⚠️ Potential Pitfalls to Watch For:

    • Not great for building muscle

    🥊 Boxing

    Benefits:

    • Enhances hand-eye coordination, reaction time, and rhythm
    • Builds rotational core control and full-body power

    ⚠️ Potential Pitfalls to Watch For:

    • Getting punched isn’t fun

    🏋️‍♂️ Athletic Training (Plyos, Box Jumps, Sprint Work)

    Benefits:

    • Builds speed, power, and neuromuscular efficiency
    • Trains rate of force development (RFD) and reactivity
    • Improves agility, deceleration control, and coordination
    • Highly transferable to sport and life movement

    ⚠️ Potential Pitfalls to Watch For:

    • You’ll get more athletic than all your friends

    🎾 Tennis

    Benefits:

    • Excellent for coordination, agility, and quick decision-making
    • Trains rotational power, balance, and reactive movement
    • Builds anaerobic endurance and cardiovascular fitness

    ⚠️ Potential Pitfalls to Watch For:

    • You’ll never be good no matter how much you practice (take it from me)

    🚴 Sprints on the Airdyne / Assault Bike

    Benefits:

    • Skyrockets anaerobic capacity and metabolic conditioning
    • Fast, efficient, and brutally effective for short workouts

    ⚠️ Potential Pitfalls to Watch For:

    • Not what I’d do for muscle building

    🌀 Functional & Rotational Movements

    Benefits:

    • Mimic sport and real-world movement demands
    • Improve force transfer through the kinetic chain
    • Build usable strength, mobility, and movement literacy
    • Great for joint control and fascia-driven athleticism

    ⚠️ Potential Pitfalls to Watch For:

    • Might get made fun of in the gym

    🎤 Final Word (Still Stands):

    There’s no “best” form of training.
    There’s just what works for you, what fits your goals, and what keeps you coming back.

    ✅ Be informed
    ✅ Vary your training
    ✅ Learn your body
    ✅ Get strong, move well, have fun.

  • This is the only form of exercise you should be doing.

    Yup. You read that right.
    There’s only one kind of exercise that really matters…

    Scroll down. Get ready. Here it comes…

    The answer?

    Whichever kind gets you moving—and keeps you coming back.

    Gotcha.
    This was rage bait. But you’re here now, so let’s talk about the real truth:

    ❌ There Is No “Best” Type of Training

    The internet is filled with loud opinions:

    • “Just lift bro.”
    • “Oh running is cool, what are you training for the zombie apocalypse? (may be a good idea actually).”
    • “If you want a sick core do Pilates.”
    • “If you’re not doing [insert trend here], you’re missing out.”
    • *I’m not bashing all these great forms of exercise. In fact, that’s the exact point I’m making, they are all amazing for their own reasons.

    But here’s the reality as a physical therapist and performance coach: there is no one-size-fits-all “right” way to train.

    The “perfect” workout is the one that aligns with:

    • Your goals
    • Your lifestyle
    • Your injury history
    • And most importantly—your enjoyment

    ✅ All Movement Is Good Movement

    Strength training, boxing, running, Pilates, yoga, CrossFit, hiking, dancing… they all offer something valuable.
    What matters is consistency, progression, and variety.

    Want to build muscle? Train for strength.
    Want to move better? Work on mobility and control.
    Want to feel good and live long? Mix it all up.
    Want to prevent burnout or injury? Change things up before your body forces you to.

    🔁 Variation Is Key

    Doing only one style of training—no matter how “elite”—is a fast track to imbalance and overuse injuries.
    Your body craves different inputs:

    • Move heavy loads
    • Move fast
    • Move slow and controlled
    • Move for fun

    🎯 The Bottom Line

    Train for the improvements you want to see.
    Move in ways that challenge you.
    And above all—find something you enjoy. Because if it’s not fun, it won’t last.

    That’s the “secret.” That’s the only rule.

    Now go do something cool today—just don’t let anyone tell you there’s only one right way to do it.

  • Why Ice Might Be Harmful After Acute Injury

    1. Inflammation Is Necessary for Healing – When you get injured, the body sends inflammatory cells (like macrophages) to the site to clean up damaged tissue and stimulate healing. Ice can slow the release of these cells, delaying the repair process.
    2. Reduced Blood Flow – Ice constricts blood vessels (vasoconstriction), which can limit oxygen and nutrient delivery needed for healing.
    3. Delayed Recovery – Some studies suggest that icing may slow muscle regeneration and delay recovery, especially if overused in the early stages of injury.

    When Is Ice Actually Useful?

    • Pain Management: Ice is effective for short-term pain relief, particularly in acute injuries where movement is painful.
    • Post-Surgical Swelling Control: In cases where excessive swelling could cause complications (e.g., post-op care), ice can help limit fluid buildup.
    • Severe Bruising or Contusions: For significant impact injuries (e.g., a direct blow to the thigh), ice can help minimize excessive bleeding into tissues.
    • Nerve-Related Pain: Conditions like sciatica or radiculopathy can benefit from ice application to temporarily dull nerve pain.

    Alternative Approaches to Ice for Acute Injury

    • Active Movement: Gentle, pain-free movement helps with lymphatic drainage and prevents stiffness.
    • Compression & Elevation: Helps control swelling without interfering with inflammation as much as ice.
    • Isometric Contractions: Low-load muscle contractions can maintain blood flow and reduce atrophy while protecting the injured area.

    Takeaway

    Ice can still be useful for pain relief in the short term but shouldn’t be the default treatment for every acute injury. If reducing pain is the goal, 10-15 minutes of ice is reasonable. However, if the goal is faster recovery, prioritizing active movement, compression, and blood flow may be more beneficial in the long run.

  • Top 5 Injuries in Athletes (And How to Prevent Them)


    Athletes push their bodies to the limit, which makes them more susceptible to injuries. Whether you’re a sprinter, weightlifter, or weekend warrior, understanding the most common injuries—and how to prevent them—can keep you performing at your best. Here are five of the most frequent sports injuries and the best ways to avoid them.

    1. Hamstring Strains

    Hamstring injuries are common among athletes who sprint, jump, or make sudden directional changes. These strains occur when the muscles in the back of the thigh are overstretched or torn.

    Prevention Tips:

    • Incorporate eccentric strengthening exercises like Nordic hamstring curls.
    • Consider performing a dynamic warm up that incorporates hamstring loading including SL RDLs, 90/90 active hamstring stretch.
    • Use Controlled Articular Rotations (CARs) daily to ensure full hamstring and hip function.
    • Improve hip mobility and glute activation to reduce strain on the hamstrings, focusing on Progressive Angular Isometric Loading (PAILs) and Regressive Angular Isometric Loading (RAILs) to increase end-range control.

    2. Knee Tendinopathy (Patellar Tendinitis)

    Often called “jumper’s knee,” patellar tendinitis results from repetitive stress on the patellar tendon, common in basketball, volleyball, and running.

    Prevention Tips:

    • Strengthen the quads and calves to absorb impact forces better.
    • Gradually increase training intensity—avoid sudden spikes in workload.
    • Use soft tissue techniques like foam rolling and dry needling to reduce tension in overworked muscles.
    • Improve knee joint capacity with kinetic control drills from FRS, including isometric knee extension holds at varying joint angles to develop tissue resilience.

    3. Ankle Sprains

    A rolled ankle can happen in any sport involving running, cutting, or jumping. These injuries occur when the ligaments around the ankle stretch beyond their normal range.

    Prevention Tips:

    • Perform balance and proprioception drills (e.g., single-leg stance on an unstable surface).
    • Strengthen the muscles around the ankle with resisted dorsiflexion and calf raises.
    • Train the tissues that are injured during ankle sprains with eccentric ankle eversion exercises.
    • Develop full ankle joint control using CARs and PAILs/RAILs to expand movement capacity and avoid compensation patterns.

    4. Shoulder Impingement

    Overhead athletes (swimmers, baseball players, weightlifters) are prone to shoulder impingement, where tendons in the shoulder become compressed and irritated.

    Prevention Tips:

    • Make sure you have adequate shoulder AROM including reaching overhead, behind your head and behind your low back, limitations in functional shoulder motion can contribute to stress on rotator cuff tendons.
    • Strengthen the rotator cuff and scapular stabilizers (e.g., external rotations and YTWs).
    • Maintain proper posture—avoid excessive forward shoulder rounding
    • Limit movements that contribute to discomfort, try modifying exercise and decreasing loads
    • Improve scapulothoracic and glenohumeral joint function through FRS principles, utilizing shoulder CARs daily and isometric end-range loading drills to build active range control.

    5. Hip Flexor Strains

    Athletes who sprint, kick, or perform high-intensity movements can overstretch the hip flexors, leading to pain and limited mobility.

    Prevention Tips:

    • Strengthen the core and glutes to reduce overreliance on hip flexors.
    • Avoid prolonged sitting, which can shorten and tighten these muscles.
    • Utilize hip CARs daily to maintain hip joint function.
    • Increase hip flexor resilience by incorporating PAILs/RAILs at end ranges, ensuring the tissue is strong throughout its full range of motion.

    Final Thoughts

    Injury prevention isn’t just about avoiding pain—it’s about longevity in your sport. By implementing proper strength training, mobility work, and recovery techniques based on Functional Range Systems principles, you can minimize your risk of these common injuries and keep performing at a high level. If you’re struggling with pain or recurring injuries, consider seeing a sports physical therapist for a personalized treatment plan that integrates joint-specific mobility training and tissue resilience work.

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