Prevent Plantar Fasciitis!

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Tips to prevent plantar fasciitis: The term plantar fasciitis is misleading. Literally translated it means inflammation of the plantar fascia. Truth be told plantar fasciitis (PF) does not involve inflammation at all, rather it is caused by repeated micro tears of the plantar fascia on your foot.Plantar fasciitis can be caused by poor ankle mobility, inappropriate shoe choice and/or poor gait mechanics.Tight Calves are a big reason for PF.When walking or running, your foot has to bend backwards towards your shin bone as your leg passes behind your body just prior to your heel leaving the ground. This action is called dorsiflexion. People need 15-20 degrees of dorsiflexion to avoid PF.Tight calves restrict dorsiflexion and force your foot to operate differently, putting excessive tension on the plantar fascia.Think of how much tension your calf can create running, and then imagine all of that tension pulling on tissue no thicker than several pieces of notebook paper. Fascia is strong, but not strong enough to withstand the excessive repetitive stress. SOLUTION: Stretch your calves 10x/day for 1 minute. SHOES: Control pronation,avoid stiff shoes! When your foot lands, there is something called the ground reaction force. Your feet need to be good shock absorbers to prevent injury.To effectively do this, upon impact, all 26 foot bones and 33 joints need to ‘unlock’ and work together to create a spring to absorb the shock.Done correctly, your arch should flatten and ‘pronate’ prior to stiffening back up to spring off. If your foot does not pronate,injury can occur. 1) Find a shoe that allows your foot to pronate.It is better to over-pronate than under-pronate. For most, this means staying away from overly supportive ‘motion control’ shoes with huge arches. 2. Find a shoe that is shaped like your foot. Avoid shoes that are narrow with arch support. 3. Minimize heel to toe drop. Some running shoe have as much as 13-15 millimeters of drop from the heel to toe. This causes tight calves and poor gait mechanics.We recommend progressing towards 4 mm drop and under over time.Let us know if you have questions by visiting our website ANCPT.com#footpain#prevention#health

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Prevent Arthritis Of The Knee

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Final post-I would like to share how to continue having pain-free summers through prevention. Many people believe that arthritis is just something that everyone seems to get as they get older. Arthritis is not necessarily something that occurs because joints wear out. Arthritis is a result of abnormal motion in the joint that causes the joint surfaces to rub together and lay down more bone creating something more like bone blisters (see photo).When these incongruent surfaces rub on each other it creates inflammation in that joint which leads to swelling. The end result is pain and more abnormal movement patterns.When I tell patients that arthritis and joint replacements can be avoided, many don’t believe me. The key is discovering these abnormal patterns before they become a pattern in your brain. As a PT the hardest part of my job is changing a patient’s brain, and re-education of normalized movement patterns. Some of these abnormal movement patterns can start when the person is young or from a previous injury that causes them to move differently. This is where PTs come in to identify these abnormal movement patterns before becoming a problem. I have been an advocate for PTs performing musculoskeletal check-ups vs. medical doctors, from the very beginning of my career. Research has shown that joint replacement surgery would decrease if patients saw the PT for musculoskeletal check-ups 1x/year. All other industrialized countries besides the U.S. have this benefit built into their healthcare system...and joint replacements are rare compared to the US.What can you do? First, the minute you feel that something isn’t moving right contact your local PT. Studies have shown that when patients with musculoskeletal injuries see a PT first, the rate of surgery and opioid addiction decreases. Also,patients end up paying less out of pocket and overall healthcare costs are less when compared to the surgical approach. Our hope as a profession is to educate the public about what a PT does. When I think about what do I actually do, the answer is clear to me. I want to provide health and longevity through movement, and prevention is part of this role.#prevention#longevity#Health

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Fit Your Gear For More Fun

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August is all about how to have a pain-free summer outside! Part 3 – Navigating some common outdoor equipment This week we will delve into two common pieces of outdoor gear – trekking poles and backpacks! (1) Should I use trekking poles? Trekking poles have many proposed benefits while hiking, including reducing the impact on joints, improving balance, and increasing efficiency of energy expenditure. A 2011 study by Glyn Howatson, et al demonstrated that trekking poles could reduce perceived exertion levels on uphill climbs and reduce the incidence of muscle damage in young, healthy individuals. In addition, both research and our clinical experience has shown that using poles on a descent reduces the strain on your knees. (2) How to fit trekking poles: The proper height of your trekking poles can vary greatly depending on the type of terrain you are on. Begin by adjusting your poles for level ground. Your poles should be roughly at waist height to start. With the pole standing upright next to you, you should be able to place your palm on the pole with your elbow at 90 degrees (depicted above). However, it is important to realize that you may need to shorten your poles while ascending. When descending the trail, you may consider lengthening the poles so that you do not have to lean too far forward. Now that you have your poles sized, there are a couple of tips for proper use. Be sure to not squeeze or grip harder than needed, as this can lead to hand and wrist fatigue. Use momentum and the natural swing of your arms to propel the poles forward. In general, your arms and legs should move in reciprocal motions. (3) How to fit a backpack: -Here are a few quick tips to make sure your backpack is working with you, not against you. -Step 1: Fit your backpack straps with a load in your pack (15lbs) -Step 2: Start at the hips. The base of your pack should rest just above the buttocks and your hips. Step 3: The sternum strap. This strap should fit just below your collarbones with enough tension to hold the shoulder straps in a good position. Hopefully these tips will help you get the most out of your equipment this summer! #backpacking#kneepain#outdoorstuff#outdoorgear

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Dynamic Stretching For Optimal Performance

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August topic: How to have a pain-free summer outside! Part 2-Stretching for Outdoor Enthusiasts Do I really need to stretch before I head outdoors? We always hear about how important it is to stretch before activity but why is this so? Why can't I just hop on the trail/mountain and use the first part of my activity as my warm up? According to the research by Small K, et. al, stretching prior to activity is important because the decreased range of motion coming from tight muscles can lead to muscle imbalances (1). This can lead to pain, injury, poor motor patterns and posture imbalances. These impairments can lead to time away from activities you enjoy! Therefore, prepping the muscles for activity is an important key to preventing injury. What kind of stretching should I do? There are two main types of stretching — static and dynamic. (A) Static stretching means to hold a position for an extended amount of time. (B) Dynamic stretching means a brief hold while in motion. Both types can help to increase range of motion. Dynamic stretching has been shown to increase an athlete’s agility, power, jumping and running performance (2,3). Static stretching beyond 1 minute has been shown to start the changes in the actin and myosin muscle fibers that contribute to increasing length vs time less than 1 minute. When a patient performs a calf stretch 1 min 8-10x/day these changes not only occur in the tissue physiology, but in the brain (4). To determine what your imbalances are and what muscles may be tight make an appointment to come see us or see your location physical therapist and ask for a musculoskeletal check-up. These check-ups can prevent future long-term injuries. Check out our website www.ancpt.com Here's look at some dynamic stretching before heading to the mountains! (References available upon request) Post written by Stacey Schwartz from ANCPT#decreasepain#outdoorsports#gettingbuffandtight#gettingoldandtight#stretching#outdoorrecreation#performance#hiking#kneeproblems#backproblems#footproblems#shoulderproblems#PTsareawesome#musculoskeletalcheckups

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Training For The Outdoors

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The month of August is all about: How to have a pain free summer outside. 1. Physical preparedness is critical for a fun, pain free excursion outdoors. It means developing and following a two-day per week cross training program. If you want to excel rock climbing, bias flexibility and grip strengthening. You're get the drift. A good all-around cross training program can reduce risk of injury if your workouts are well balanced and include the following components: *Haley, DPT, demonstrates a quiver of movements below. Two using the Neubie to reprogram her nervous system and target her strength training goals. (Squat and box-jump) We are the first NeuPTTech certified provider in Seattle! Check it out on our services: ANCPT.com Components of a well-rounded cross-training program include: *Strength training. One movement per major movement strategy performed in sets of 2 until fatigue within 8-15 repetitions per set. For a basic workout this includes at least one exercise focused on training the legs, upper body pushing muscles and upper body pulling muscle. (Squat or pushups) *Balance. Balance is critically important to performing well and preventing pain in nearly every outdoor activity. As a starting goal we suggest 2 sets per leg,45-60 seconds per set. acrobat. *Lateral movement (or rather side-to-side). Not only important for performance and injury prevention outside, but also important for back health. *Jumping: Often overlooked and undervalued, jumping is perhaps one of the most important things we can do to improve strength and reduce risk of injury while performing dynamic sports. As few as 2-3 sets of 5-10 repetitions. * Aerobic intervals. Important for general cardiovascular health and sport specific performance, as few as 4-5 30 second aerobic intervals 1-2x/week can have a profound impact. *Functional mobility training. This can involve passive and active stretching strategies combined with functional movement. Remember that saying ‘if you don’t use it you lose it’? ANCPT can help you personalize your workout and dust off the cobwebs felt in your knees, ankles and low back after a hike. Visit us online:ANCPT.com#prehab#crosstrain#move

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