Clinic Archives - East Tennessee Spine and Sport

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December 11, 2022

By Kristine Mongan Exercises, Home Exercise Program, Physio, Sporting, Therapy back, back pain, Clinic, desk pain, nationalstretchingday, neck, neck pain, physical therapy, stretch, stretching, Therapy

Let’s Stretch Together!

National Stretching Day and most people would say they understand the benefits of stretching, but not everyone is committed to staying loose with a regular routine. While regular long stretching sessions are beneficial, especially for athletes or active individuals, how can we maintain flexibility if we do not have the time to commit? Here are some tips to help you stay loose even if you are stuck at the office.

The most common stretches are focused on “flexibility” or lengthening the muscles which is important to prevent injury. These should be completed in a dynamic movement fashion to warm up before activity and should be completed as 30-60 seconds static holds after activity.

However, muscles are not the only part of our body that get “tight”. We also have to consider our joints or “mobility” as well. We like to say that Motion is Lotion. These repeated movements assist with lubricating our joints with nutrient-rich fluid which in turn will help maintain range of motion and decrease pain and stiffness.

Most of the population (around 80%) will complain of back or neck pain in their life. Our spine is made up of lots of different joints, so it is susceptible to stiffness resulting in common complaints of neck and back pain. When we stay still for too long, such as sitting at our desk, our joints are not lubricated and we can lose mobility over time.

For those that are stuck behind a desk, try these easy office stretches to break up your day, improve your posture, improve your mobility, and reduce your chance of developing back or neck pain.

Try to perform up to 10 reps at a time and do at least one stretch every 1-2 hours. 2-3 minutes of stretching periodically throughout your day can be more beneficial than 1 intensive hour-long session.

If you have any specific questions or concerns and would like a personalized evaluation, please contact one of our six locally-owned clinics. We will provide you with a personalized plan of action based on your goals. We want to get you back to doing the activities you enjoy as quickly as possible.

extending backwards — Stand up and extend backward.

Rotate to the left and right on a chair. — Rotate to the left and right.

Stetch your arm straight back. — Stretch your arm straight back.

Extend upper back over your chair. — Extend your upper back over your chair.

August 21, 2018

By East Tennessee Spine and Sport Physio, Studies, Work Injury Clinic

Do you have a stiff back?

Often times, people seek physical therapy treatment with the complaint of “pain,” which can be in various locations and described with even more varying adjectives. However, another common report we hear is “stiffness,” but what does it mean to be “stiff?”

November 28, 2017

By East Tennessee Spine and Sport Physio, Studies, Therapy Clinic, Therapy

Physical Therapy Can Help With What?

When people ask me what I do for a living, I generally say I’m a physical therapist, but sometimes I will divulge that I am a pelvic health physical therapist. This is usually met with lots of questions. Yes, I can treat neck pain, knee problems, general weakness, and all the usual things that you normally think a physical therapist can treat. However, I also have additional training that allows me to treat specific dysfunctions in the pelvic area like bowel and bladder incontinence, pelvic pain, and tailbone pain. These are often conditions that people think they need to just live with, but that is absolutely not true!!

I hear this statement all the time: “Sometimes I leak urine, but I’ve had kids so that’s normal right?”

No. Urinary incontinence is very common-ranging from 0.3-44% in the literature, but it is not normal even after having children. Urinary incontinence can occur in all ages and fitness levels. It can be the result of a strong urge from the bladder or it can be caused by cough, laugh, sneeze, or other movements that will increase the pressure in the abdominal area. Both types of leakage can be helped by a physical therapist with this additional training.

Everyone has a group of muscles that make up the bottom of their pelvis called the pelvic floor muscles. These muscles are key players in the ability to maintain bowel and bladder continence and just like any other muscle group, they can get weak over time. Most people have heard the term “Kegels” which is just another name for a pelvic floor muscle contraction.

Another statement I hear a lot is that “Well, I’ve tried Kegels in the past and they didn’t help!”

Only about 50% of people verbally cued to do a pelvic floor contraction are doing it correctly. So about half of the people who have tried to strengthen their pelvic floor on their own are not utilizing these muscles correctly. These muscles also have to have the correct dosage of exercise to be effective. If these muscles are overworked, urinary incontinence may get worse. If these muscles are underworked, the muscles never get stronger and these symptoms never improve. Maybe the muscles are strong enough, but the timing of the muscle contraction is not occurring when it is needed to prevent incontinence. Maybe these muscles are working too hard because another muscle in the hip or core is weak and the pelvic floor is trying to make up for that weakness.

Sometimes it is not as easy as doing Kegels at every red light to fix a problem like this. A physical therapist with training to assess this condition can help to figure out what is causing the muscles to work inefficiently. Spine and Sport is excited to be able to offer pelvic health services in our Oak Ridge by myself and West locations by Lauren MacGuire to help patients across the greater Knoxville area find solutions to their pelvic health problems.