About amacht

Swimming Injuries and Prevention

Swimming is a form of exercises which is non-weight bearing, low impact, and causes low stress on joints.  Injuries associated with swimming are usually not caused by trauma or impact, and commonly stem from overuse and repetition.  Swimming injuries most commonly occur in the shoulder joints but can also affect the knees, hips and low back.  Overuse can lead to fatigue and improper stroke and kicking mechanics.  Listed below are some examples of common swimming injuries associated with swimming:

  • Shoulder injuries result from muscle fatigue with repetitive motions and weakness of the rotator muscles.
  • Knee injuries results from repetition from breast stroke kick and irritation of the ligaments and tendons which allow bending and straightening.
  • Back injuries are common with too much back extension while swimming on your stomach.

Injury Prevention techniques:

  • Use good form and technique.
  • Lessen repetition.
  • Cross training.
  • Core, hip, and rotator cuff strengthening.
  • Rest when experiencing fatigue, pain or soreness to allow the muscles time to recover.

How Do I Lift Something Heavy Without Hurting My Back?

A lot of people end up having back pain from lifting heavy objects.  Most likely if they thought before they lifted the object, they would avoid causing themselves back pain. Listed below are steps to follow when lifting a heavy object to avoid straining your lower back muscles:

  1. Square your body to the object so it is right in front of you.
  2. Make sure the object is close to your body.
  3. Place your legs shoulder distance apart.
  4. Hinge forward slightly at the waist
  5. Squat down making sure your center of gravity is towards your heels not your toes.
  6. Pick up the object.
  7. If you need to place the object in a certain location, make sure to move your feet not twist your back.

If you continue to have back pain while lifting objects from the floor, call Harbor Physical Therapy to have one of our doctorate level physical therapists evaluate you to determine the source of the issue.

 

 

Ideal Sleeping Position

Certain sleep positions can cause more stress and strain on your muscles, joints and ligaments than others.

 Ideal Sleeping positions:

  1. Lying on your back with a bent knee position supported by pillows.
  2. Lying on your side with your arms folded resting in front of your body and a pillow between your knees.

Not ideal Sleeping position:

  1. Lying on your stomach this causes increase neck strain and increase back strain due to the pillows under your head.

Listed below are common patient questions about sleeping:

How many pillows should I sleep with? 

Typically one pillow is best.  When lying on a pillow, you want your spine to be level.  You can gauge this by looking at your head position in comparison to your body.  You want your neck to be in line with your body position at a zero degree angle.

Where should I put my arms when I sleep? 

Ideally you want your arms in front of your body to avoid strain on your shoulder.  Never have your arms above your head.  This can compress the nerves that innervate your arm leading to numbness and or shoulder impingement.

If you continue to wake up in the morning with pain, it is most likely due to your sleeping habits.  Call Harbor Physical Therapy and make an appointment with one of our doctorate level physical therapists to learn how to decrease your pain by changing your sleeping position.

 

What is a Hamstring Strain?

A hamstring strain is a common injury that involves one or more of the 3 hamstring muscles in the back of your thigh. Hamstring strains usually occur during running, jumping and climbing. Hamstring strains are common among sprinters, hurdle jumpers and football players.

Hamstring Description-
The hamstring muscle group is made up of 3 muscles, the semitendinosus, semimembranosis and the biceps femoris muscles. These muscles are responsible for bending your knee and extending your hip.

Symptoms-
Symptoms include a sharp pain in the back of the leg, pain with bending over and stretching the hamstring muscles, and pain when contracting the hamstring muscle. Sometimes there may be bruising or swelling.

Treatment-
1. Rest, ice, compress and elevate for the first 48 hours.
2. Slowly begin gentle stretching and strengthening exercises.
3. Make a physical therapy appointment.
4. Physical therapy will include modalities such as ultrasound, massage, dry needling, electrical stimulation, ice/heat to decrease of pain/swelling and promote healing.
5. Physical therapy will provide you an exercise program to improve the flexibility in your muscles and improve your strength to return you to your daily activities.

How to Improve your Sitting Posture

As we sit throughout our day looking at a computer screen, we slowly start to develop a forward head posture and rounded shoulders.  There are many postural exercises that we can perform throughout our day to help prevent this “slumped” posture. Check out this video by Dr. Amanda at Harbor Physical Therapy to learn how to perform a scapular retraction exercise to help improve your sitting posture.

 

 

Ankle Sprain Treatment and Prevention

An ankle sprain occurs when the ligaments in the ankle are stretched or torn, and most commonly occurs on the outside of the ankle. This occurs when the foot rolls inward, placing excessive stress on the ligaments and can occur during a fall, landing awkwardly after jumping, or running or walking on an uneven surface.

Signs & Symptoms

  • Swelling
  • Bruising
  • Painful to touch ankle
  • Painful to move ankle

Treatment

  • Within the first 48-72 hours, it is important to utilize the RICE principle (Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation) to minimize inflammation, pain, and swelling.
  • Range of motion exercises in all directions and stretching of the calf muscle will help to minimize loss of mobility and stiffness in the ankle joint.
  • Ankle strengthening exercises will increase the stability of the ankle to allow full return to all activities with decreased risk of re-injury.
  • Proprioception allows you to sense where your body parts are in space and in relation to the rest of your body. This is accomplished through sensory receptors called proprioceptors located in the muscles, tendons, and joints. Using proprioceptive and balance exercises helps to train this sense, thereby increasing ankle stability. These exercises are an important component to any ankle sprain treatment program.

A physical therapist will devise the most appropriate treatment and exercise plan for your specific injury, progressing you to a point where you are able to return to all functional and sport-related activities. If you suspect an ankle sprain, the physical therapists at Harbor Physical Therapy can evaluate you to determine the degree of injury.  Based on the severity, we may refer you to a medical doctor if a more serious injury such as a fracture or complete ligament or muscle tear is suspected.

Common Gym Injuries

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Common injuries that occur at the gym:

  • Muscle Strain
  • Tendonitis
  • Bursitis

Common injury areas that occur at the gym:

  • Back
  • Shoulders

Muscle strain is the most common injury. There are different degrees of muscle strains from a minor overstretching injury to a muscle tear. To avoid muscle strains, make sure you perform a warm up and a cool down.  It is important to listen to your body.  If something hurts, stop and stretch.

Tendinitis is caused by a repetitive strain to the tendon of the muscle. If you overwork a muscle, you can develop tendonitis.

Bursitis is inflammation to the bursa.  A Bursa is a fluid filled sac that provides decrease friction and helps to give a fluid movement to the joint. Avoid doing the same exercises all the time; change it up to avoid overuse of one particular area.

Back pain is one of the most common areas injured at the gym because the back is at the center of the body for all movement and exercise. To avoid injury, bend with your knees and tighten your abdominal muscles during exercises.

Shoulder impingement injuries occur due to lack of rotator cuff strength and or overuse of the rotator cuff muscles. To avoid injury, limit overhead weighted exercises and make sure to work on shoulder stability before increases the weight with strengthening exercises.

Harbor Physical Therapy can evaluate your gym injury and determine the most optimal course of treatment to get you back to the gym as quick as possible.  Our physical therapists will review your gym routine, educate you on proper body mechanics, and exercise routine to reach your fitness goals without injury.

Poor Posture Can Cause Headaches

There are 3 major types of headaches:

  1. Cluster
  2. Migraine
  3. Tension

Cluster and migraine headaches generally are due to a problem with the blood vessels while tension headaches are typically due to poor posture. Tension headaches usually cause a dull pain in the head, neck, temples, scalp or shoulders.

Forward head posture is a leading cause of neck pain, headaches, and shoulder pain. For every inch your head is located more forward from sitting right on top of your shoulders, the perceived weight of your head increases by 10 pounds.

Steps to improve posture:

  1. Set-up your work station to decrease strain on your neck.
    • The top 1/3 of the screen should be even with your eyes.
    • Elbows should rest comfortably by your sides.
    • Hips should be slightly higher than your knees with your feet flat on the floor.
  2. Use a supportive neck pillow for sleeping.
  3. Perform neck stretches throughout the day.
  4. Perform postural strengthening exercises throughout the day.

If these steps do not improve your posture, schedule an appointment at Harbor Physical Therapy to address tight musculature and receive a catered exercise program based upon your presentation.

What is Shoulder Impingement?

Shoulder Impingement occurs when one of your rotator cuff muscle tendons becomes pinched, or impinged, between the bone in your arm and your shoulder blade. The friction on the muscle can cause increased pain and inflammation when lifting up the arm as the muscle becomes pinched between the two bony landmarks. If you feel pain in the front of your shoulder when lifting your arm overhead, it may be caused by shoulder impingement.  It is important to address the cause of shoulder impingement, as repetitive stress on the muscle can lead to a rotator cuff tear.
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Causes:

  • Repetitive overhead movements performed during sports such as swimming, baseball, tennis, and volleyball, or during such activities such as overhead weightlifting or painting.
  • Weakness of the rotator cuff muscles, causing decreased shoulder stability and abnormal shoulder mechanics.
  • An injury or fall onto the shoulder.
  • Bony abnormalities that narrow the space underneath the shoulder blade.

How Harbor Physical Therapy can help:

  • Reducing pain and inflammation in the shoulder through modalities such as ice, heat, and electrical stimulation.
  • Patient education on which activities should be performed and which should be avoided.
  • Restoring range of motion to the shoulder through exercise and manual therapy.
  • Promoting normalized movement patterns with proper body mechanics.
  • Strengthening the shoulder complex and rotator cuff to increase shoulder stability and prevent further injury.

What is Knee Valgus?

Knee valgus is characterized by your knee collapsing inward when your hip flexes. You may also notice that the opposite side of your pelvis may collapse downward. This is seen most often in squats, lunges, jumps, landing, and descending steps. Women are more susceptible to knee valgus because women have a wider hip angle compared to men. Knee Valgus can lead to patellofemoral knee pain, ACL tears, and IT band syndrome.

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Listed below are causes of Knee Valgus:
1. Weak gluteal muscles allows for over compensation of inner thigh muscles pulling the knee inwards.
2. Restricted ankle mobility does not allow for knee to progress forwards over the toe.
3. Inadequate quad strength (specifically vastus medialis function) effects knee stability and can cause the patella to track improperly.
4. Weak hamstrings may similarly allow the knee to cave in.
5. Improper motor planning of movement and poor execution of movement.

A physical therapist can help address the causes of knee valgus and provide exercises to minimize the symptoms and effects. This can be done through strengthening, stretching, and proper training of movement execution.