Health blog
Knee Problems: Common Causes and Symptoms
By Angie Austin, LPTA
Knee problems are something that everyone will experience at some point in their lifetime. Having knee pain can be the result of many factors and affects all ages. As physical therapists, we work with patients to educate them about their problem in addition to how it can be corrected. So don’t sweat it! We are here to help!
The knee is a large hinge joint that gives you the ability to bend and straighten your knee.
Don’t Let Neck Pain Slow You Down
By Misha Gilani, DPT
Neck pain is a very common problem for every age group and one we treat often at Loudoun Sports Therapy Center. Our patients will typically complain about pain along the middle of the neck, pain in the middle of the back and pain radiating into the top of the shoulder along the upper trapezius muscle which, can also radiate down your arm into the fingers. These symptoms often cause the patient to have difficulty sitting, sleeping and turning their neck.
Couch to 5K: Training to Crossing the Finish Line
By Xavier Thompson MS, ATC
Pumpkin spice lattes, football games, cooler weather. Fall is a busy time of year with lots of hustle and bustle and lots of opportunities to be active -5Ks come to mind. There are Zombie 5Ks ahead of Halloween, Turkey Trot 5Ks to celebrate Thanksgiving and plenty of other 5Ks that raise awareness about various causes. If you’ve decided to take on this physical challenge for yourself, while there is a lot of work to be done, you’ve taken the first step and made the commitment to try something new.
Back to School Ergonomics
By Kate Zanoni, LPTA
As summer winds to a close, it’s time to start back-to-school shopping. With the beginning of the 2017-2018 school year looming ahead in the coming weeks, you will likely need to purchase a backpack along with a laundry list of items on your child’s back-to-school supply list. While narrowing down the essentials, budgeting and trying to appease your little ones’ ever-changing fashion preferences, it’s easy to overlook important matters such as finding an ergonomically friendly backpack.
Why It’s Important to Strengthen Multiple Body Parts
By Danielle Hoguet, DPT
If you look through the plan of care for a patient who comes to Loudoun Sports Therapy Center because they are feeling ankle pain for example, you will notice that their exercises and stretches are not only focusing on their ankle but also their hips and their knees. Not surprising, a common question we hear as physical therapists is ‘why do I have to strengthen my hips if I am here for my ankle?’
Regardless of the body part a patient is coming here for whether that be their ankle, their hip, their back or shoulder, we answer with this explanation: Everything in the body is connected in some way and what happens at one joint affects what happens at other joints.
How to Properly Prepare Your Athletes for the Season
By Cierra Washington, ATC
iPhone. iPad. Xbox. Couch.
OR
Kickball. Relay Races. 4H camp. Neighborhood Hide N’ Seek before the street lights come on.
It’s quite possible that if you were born before the year 2000, your summer vacation consisted primarily of the second list of activities. I’m a product of the early 90’s and growing up, my friends and I would do anything to be outside and active as much as possible on summer break.
Knee Pain: How to be Proactive and Prevent Long Term Issues
Knee pain is a very common problem that we treat here at Loudoun Sports Therapy Center. It can can result in difficulty with many daily activities. The number one complaint for knee patients is pain that is under or around the knee cap. This pain can greatly limit your functional mobility. Some people also experience stiffness in and around the knee causing difficulty moving the joint and generalized weakness in the affected leg. Having pain or stiffness in your knee can cause quite a few problems:
- Difficulty walking
- Pain going up or down the stairs
- Pain squatting
- Difficulty standing up from a chair
- Inability to kneel
Most likely you will also have trouble lifting, pushing or pulling objects.
Read full blogPrevent Injuries in Lower Extremities
By Abbey Fecher, DPT
Injuries of our lower back, hips and knees can prevent us from doing the activities we enjoy. Many lower back and lower body injuries can be prevented by maintaining good strength in some key muscle groups. One of the most important groups of muscles to focus on, are our gluteal muscles. These muscles help provide a stable base for our legs and trunk and also are one of the major muscle groups responsible for allowing us to walk, run and jump.
Weekend Warriors: 6 Tips to Prevent Injuries
By Cierra Washington, ATC
120 hours in a week. Subtract the 40 hours you spend at work. 80 hours. Now, subtract the recommended 8 hours of sleep each night. 40 hours. And don’t forget the 2 hours you have to spend each day on things like grocery shopping, cleaning the house, laundry, cooking. 30 hours. If you have kids, any remaining hours are spent parenting. Hectic schedules leave minimum time to fit in a workout.
Untreated Foot & Ankle Problems Cause Even More Problems
By Misha Gilani, DPT
Foot and ankle conditions are very common for every age group. We treat general pain and injuries in this part of the body often at Loudoun Sports Therapy because even if it’s just general discomfort, foot and ankle conditions cause a lot of problems with daily, functional activities. The most frequent complaint we see in the clinic is pain at the ankle joint that can radiate up into the leg or down into the heel.