October 21, 2020
"Sean, I'm your grandmother. Grandmothers don't do squats or those deadlift things. Do you remember how old I am?" My grandmother is 86 years old and recently had some health issues that resulted in her being severely deconditioned and weak. My amazing parents swooped in and started providing round the clock care for her. My grandmother (and I'm sure my parents) were eager for her to get better and back to her own home living independently. With that in mind, she started physical therapy with her loving grandson (me)...
September 18, 2020
Many people who are diagnosed with “bone on bone” changes ignore exercise treatment due to the belief it will damage their joints further, which is NOT TRUE. Patients should not live with years of knee pain managing only with medication use while waiting to get their joint replaced. They need help to manage it with movement, mobility, and strength...
July 30, 2020
Low Back Pain (LBP) is the most common type of pain experienced by people in the United States. It contributes significantly towards growing health care costs and overutilization of the medical system through invasive surgeries and prescription pain medication. Patients with chronic and acute low back pain are routinely referred for extensive diagnostic tests or given opioids as the first line of action. So what is the right first move when experiencing low back pain?
June 29, 2020
With more people running, walking, and moving right now, we wanted to share a resource for those of you ramping up activity and looking for a new challenge. Welcome to our Zero to 5k program! Whether you are new to running or returning from injury or time off, a 5k can be a fun way to increase motivation and keep you excited to achieve a goal. Click here to read more...
May 28, 2020
If I were to show you a picture of a cell phone, could you tell me if the phone was ringing just by looking at the picture? Of course not! Identifying back pain with an MRI is very similar. We can’t identify the cause of low back pain by looking solely at an imaging image such as an MRI or X-Ray. A recent study studied a patient with chronic low back pain by watching the person get ten MRIs in ten different facilities throughout a three week period. The study found that throughout all ten reports, there was no single finding (1). So how do you know if an MRI is right for you?
May 14, 2020
The principle of being in balance is one of the most important aspects of life. Whether it be between your work and home life, homeostasis in the body, or in regards to a good balance in your diet. This principle of being in balance is just as important in your golf swing. Here are five exercises for increased mobility and stability in your golf swing...
April 29, 2020
Over the last couple of decades, there has been more and more push on getting youth athletes to play multiple sports. While it is true that if you practice one skill continuously, then you will eventually master it, but for a youth athlete, is this the best for their development? Here is some helpful information on the importance of multisport youth athletes >>
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April 22, 2020
During my clinical rotation in San Francisco, I enjoyed munching on carrots during the day. Then a nagging pain on the right side of my jaw began when I ate any hard foods. I thought it would go away. I ate on the other side of my jaw, chopped up the carrots but nothing helped the nagging jaw pain. As a physical therapy student in my last year of my doctorate program, I began my research...
April 15, 2020
With more time at home and wanting to get out and exercise, many of us want to start up old exercise routines but are nervous about injuring yourself. With starting any exercise routine, you need to gradually build yourself up to build up strength and tolerance. These dynamic and static stretches will help you get back to running and prevent injuries >>
April 7, 2020
Are you working from your couch? With more orders and encouragement to stay at home, many of us have recently transitioned from working in an office to working from home. Here are some tips to set up a productive and ergonomic working environment >>
April 7, 2020
We hope you will continue to support local businesses at this time - including your physical therapists. We also want our patients to remember to care for themselves, and not discontinue that care in light of current circumstances. Here are some ways you can do both.
February 28, 2020
February is designated as American Heart Month, created to bring awareness to heart diseases that affect many Americans daily. According to the NCHS, heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States.
February 28, 2020
Recent editorial publications have suggested that performing a deadlift can be risky and lead to increases in back pain and injury. However, no scientific publications have shown a direct correlation between this. As with any athletic movement, if you perform the movement improperly, you will have an increased likelihood of injury. When performing a deadlift, should you feel pain in your back?
Click to learn more about how to avoid back pain when performing a deadlift...
November 25, 2019
No matter what you’re thankful for this Thanksgiving, remember to be thankful for yourself! So this holiday season, remember to take care of yourself by eating and exercising right. Here are some tips to stay happy and healthy over the holidays...
November 25, 2019
Using BFR (Blood Flow Restriction) in therapy after an injury or post-operative surgery can speed up recovery time while decreasing muscle loss. Learn hoe Blood Flow Restriction Therapy works and how to do it correctly.
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October 1, 2019
You schedule an annual check-up with your dentist and primary care physician. Why not with your physical therapist, too? Here are six things you might not know about getting an annual physical exam with a Physical Therapist.
August 7, 2019
Does your backpack cause unnecessary pain? Learn 8 quick tips on backpack safety and posture to help you prevent back pain and injuries. Going back to school doesn't have to include going back to pain.
This is the first article in Central Valley Physical Therapy's special blog series "A Lesson Plan on Back-to-School Health & Wellness."
August 6, 2019
Learn these 5 exercises to relieve pain most common with pregnancy. After watching his wife go through the aches and pains of pregnancy, Dr. Andrew Grissom put together these five exercises to help reduce pain in the lower back, hips, and pelvis. Each exercise includes a picture demonstration, description of the proper form, and extra tips.
March 22, 2019
Dealing with the pain and limited mobility associated with an injury or illness can be stressful for so many reasons. You might have questions like, “How long will I be sidelined?” and “What do I need to do to get better?” Or maybe you’re worried about how you’ll pick your children up from school, take a walk with your friends or prepare meals for your family.
These are all perfectly normal concerns. Luckily, there are some ways that you can gain control over the situation and ensure that you return to the activities you care most about—especially if physical therapy is part of your plan.
March 11, 2019
Thoracic outlet syndrome (TOS) is a term used to describe a group of disorders that occur when there is compression, injury, or irritation of the nerves and/or blood vessels (arteries and veins) in the lower neck and upper chest area.
November 1, 2018
Unlucky or freak collisions are NOT the cause of most ACL injuries. Rather, the injuries have more to do with the condition of the athlete’s strength, balance, and control than the stress the athlete puts upon it. The good news is that much of this can be helped with specific directed therapy and training. Prevention programs have been shown to reduce the injury incidence by 50% or more in some studies. These are three simple exercises you can do to help prevent ACL injuries.
August 14, 2018
The ACL, short for “Anterior Cruciate Ligament,” is a ligament in the center of your knee that helps add to the stability of your knee. It keeps your tibia (shin bone) from sliding forward on your femur (thigh bone), and also provides stability from the two bones “twisting” on one another.
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June 27, 2018
Have you ever had an injury that causes pain for a short period of time, then goes away? What about an injury that seems to linger for months or years such as neck or back pain? Why is it that some injuries tend to cause pain for longer than others? The answer lies in the biology of how we as humans perceive pain.
June 20, 2018
Our body is comprised of over 600 hundred muscles that all have to work in a coordinated fashion to ensure we are able to move well without pain. Very commonly these muscles don’t work as well after injury and our bodies never learn how to use those muscles properly until they are re-trained. This situation occurs after a low back injury and can lead to continual problems in the future.
June 13, 2018
80-90% of Americans experience some aspect of low back pain at some point in their lives. For anyone that has experienced this, myself included, it can be an extremely disabling and scary. But the good news is that our bodies are incredibly resilient and have the capability of healing themselves even with debilitating issues.
June 6, 2018
As a physical therapist that treats musculoskeletal conditions, it is not uncommon to have patients on a weekly basis concerned about popping or cracking they hear in their joints. For some, this popping and cracking may have been present for many years, for others it may have started occurring after an injury. If not accompanied by pain, it is typically perfectly normal as most of us have this sensation when we move different joints in our body.
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May 23, 2018
Are you a runner that is sick of avoiding traffic, tired of the same boring route? Perhaps you just enjoy being out in the woods and want to spend more time taking advantage of the beautiful scenery we are surrounded by? Whatever your reason may be, trail running is a great way to break the monotony of running on pavement as well as soak in the local landscape. Follow these five tips to get you on your way!
May 9, 2018
Getting started with a running routine can be tough. Running drums up feelings of pain, exhaustion, and boredom for many people, yet the trails in our Blue Ridge Mountains are full of seemingly happy people running along. How can this be? For many people, starting is the worst part. Here’s how to get started.
May 8, 2018
In the second installment of my blog topics revolving around patient communication and building a good patient-therapist alliance, I wanted to discuss attributes you should be looking for when deciding what physical therapist you work with.