Archive for July, 2013

Hit the ski slopes

Winter is here and many people will head to the snow for a well earned break.  While skiing comes naturally to some, others spend most of their time unsuccessfully negotiating the equipment and terrain.  Whatever your level of experience, skiing can be hazardous and contribute to injury.  The physiotherapists in our practice can help. We can ensure that you are prepared for the slopes by minimising your injury risk through specific exercise programmes, fitness regimes, strengthening and warm up, stretching and cool down techniques.

To avoid injury this snow season, the physiotherapists in our practice recommend you:

Be fit to ski

Begin to incorporate ski-specific exercises into your regular exercise routine at least eight weeks prior to your holiday.  This will promote use of the muscles and joints required for skiing.  Strengthen the muscles specific to snow sports (thighs, butts, core stabilisers and triceps) to reduce the risk of injury and increase your enjoyment and endurance on the slopes.  We can outline ski-specific exercises whilst prescribing a conditioning programme to improve your core stability and muscle strength.  Ultimately, your performance on the ski slopes relies on your fitness, so talk to us about how to achieve an optimal fitness level.

Look after your back

When travelling distances to reach the mountain, rest every two hours and stretch.  See one of our physiotherapists for effective stretching advice.

Warm up, stretch and cool down

Before hitting the slopes, warm up like you would with any other sporting activity.  Stretch your thigh, calf and arm muscles.  Start your day with easy runs to loosen up (make sure you also do this after each rest break.)  Once you have finished skiing for the day, remembers to cool down.  These activities will better prepare your body to avoid injury.  We can show you warm up, stretching and cool down techniques.

Ski within your capabilities

Beginners should take advantage of a ski lesson and not succumb to the pressure of keeping up with experienced skiers.  Don’t be afraid to rest when you find yourself getting tired.  Fatigue can increase your injury risk.  And remember, the more unfit you are, the more tired you will become.  Injuries often happen on that last run of the day!

To avoid injury on the snowfields this winter, consult one of our physiotherapists on how to best prepare your body and ensure your holiday is injury free!

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Ski

We provide injury management for everyone wanting fast, effective help to return full activities.  We spend extra time to ensure complete recovery and prevention of recurrence to keep you at peak performance so you enjoy life to the full- because your body deserves the best of care.

 We know you have a choice.  Choose us for:

  1. Perfect central city location.
  2. Experienced team to treat a full range of injuries and conditions.
  3. Easy to get appointment times to suit.
  4. Seen on time, every time.
  5. Information on your progress from visit to visit.
  6. All appointments 30 minutes.

Winter is certainly here and for those of you who injure   out in the cold remember that hopping into a      hot bath           once you get home is likely to make matters worse not  better, especially if there is acute inflammation- better to stick to the RICE program (Rest, Ice, Compression,  Elevation).

If you are waiting for your injury to go away don’t wait more than 5 days or you may end up with more problems as a result of poor healing or compensation patterns.

Always best to get some advice from one of our team of Physios- even if you only need a couple of sessions, we can tell you how to get the best resolution of the problem.        

Ensuring your body gets the best of care- so you can get the best out of life.

 Here are some tips to help ensure a successful, speedy resolution.

  • Don’t wait too long before seeking help– excess swelling and inappropriate healing (e.g. scar tissue or lack of flexibility in the injured tissue) can lead to secondary problems.

  • Make sure you get the treatment you need initially– missing sessions in the initial phase can mean the whole thing just drags  on for longer – which is frustrating for everyone!

  • Rest from you sport if need be– the injured tissue needs to heal!  Your Physio will let you know how you can stay fit doing other activities.
  •  Do your homework! Your exercises and management of the injury is vital- we only see you a very short time out of the day so what you do the rest of the time is critical!
  • Make sure any long term management issues are dealt with– e.g. underlying muscle imbalances (like a weak core/tight muscles/weak muscles), the technique you are using to do an activity or even your day to day posture.                                          

For all appointments call 04 499 3504.

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Core stability and back pain

What is Core Stability?

This is a term which describes the firmness and stability of your trunk muscles.  These are the muscles which wrap around your trunk like a cylinder or brace.  They lie between your ribs and your hip bones just like the corsets worn in Victorian times.

The core or trunk muscles are the foundations of the body.  The back, arms and the legs work much better if the trunk muscles are stable.  When the trunk muscles are working together they support your body when walking, bending, lifting and even sitting upright and give you more energy.

Once working correctly they will also help protect the back from injury.

Why is Core Stability useful in the treatment of back pain?

Pain has been shown to turn muscles off.  Pain encourages sufferers to adopt pain relieving positions but ultimately they add to the problem.  Improving core stability will help stop this pain or reduce it a lot and encourage better posture which will prevent further pain.  Improving posture may reduce pain immediately.  Improving core stability will reduce pain over time.

How can we help you?

We need to teach your muscles how to work again.  This training is done one on one with your physiotherapist.  Once the muscles are working correctly we can then give you a programme of exercises to improve your strength even further.  These need to be monitored and are progressed as the muscles slowly strengthen and work together correctly.

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