Sports medicine encompasses a variety of different professionals that all work together to create the best opportunity for an athlete to return to sport. What distinguishes our program at The Center is the ability to have direct communication between all professionals within the sports medicine team to create continuity of care from initial injury to return to sport. From the athletic trainer who first sees the injury happen, to the physical therapist who guides a patient through their recovery, and finally to the Academy professional who ensures a patient is proficient in the movements needed for their specific sport, having all three professionals under one umbrella allows for optimal recovery.
As a physical therapist, I have a unique opportunity to play a role in an athlete’s journey following injury or surgery to help reduce pain, improve strength, maximize stability, and progress toward higher level activities for return to participation in his or her sport.
In the sports medicine realm, the reality is that there are many types of athletes. From the young athlete just starting to figure out how to move, to the high school or collegiate athlete participating at a high level in his or her sport, to the recreational athlete searching for a way to continue the lifelong sport he or she enjoys, all are athletes that need help navigating injury. I have the opportunity to work with athletes across all these categories. The concept that sport is open to everyone is one thing I love about sports physical therapy.
Why seek the help of a sports physical therapist?
Pain or injury can be discouraging and a sports physical therapist can be beneficial to help the athlete understand the pain present and to mitigate pain while adding an exercise program that promotes readiness for returning to the demands of their sport. One of the most important things that I learned through my own injuries, education, and experience in the physical therapy world is to be proactive about preparation. Sports demand an incredible amount of strength, stability, agility, endurance, and skill which an athlete must maximize to be ready for sport and to avoid injury. When preparation does not meet the demands of the sport, this is when injuries can happen.
Ultimately my job as a physical therapist is to facilitate a program that can assist with targeting all of these concepts. The exercise programs I create for my recovering athletes both guides them through their rehab and prepares them to return to all the demands of their sport safely. This is where our Academy comes into play. It provides a great opportunity to add resistance, create agility challenges, and progress dynamic stability to replicate athletic movements. The Academy is a separate area from our physical therapy gym and allows for higher level, Return to Play training. In some cases, utilizing our strength and conditioning specialists to assist in our Return to Play program can allow for important supervision and progression needed as an athlete returns to their sport. With sports physical therapy, it is important to collaborate with the athletic trainers and strength and conditioning specialists that are a part of the sports medicine team. I find this vital in the progression toward return to sport again making our collaboration at The Center so valuable.
My role as a sport physical therapist is very rewarding. Many times sports physical therapy involves off-season management with transition to in-season participation. One of my favorite things to experience is seeing an athlete understand the concepts being taught, perform the desired tasks proficiently, and return to the field, court, or track. To spend many sessions in physical therapy with an athlete and then to be able to sit in the stands watching them play in the sport he or she desired to return to is one of the many things I love about sports physical therapy.
Visit our Athletic Performance and Injury Prevention Page.
For more information about the Return to Sport Program offered in our Academy, watch for next week’s blog post!