Injury Recovery Archives

Shakira said it best. “I’m on tonight, and my hips don’t lie, and I’m starting to feel it’s right.” Your hips really don’t lie. They are the most central vortex of your entire body, and when they are hurting, chances are the rest of your body will follow suit. Structurally speaking, your hips are smack dab in the middle of everything else. Therefore, if your hips are out of whack, your body will be forced to compensate and end up in pain and out of alignment.

The everyday lifestyle choices that we make in the western world often involve jumping from one extreme to another, as far as our bodies are concerned. For example, you most likely spend most of your day working at a desk, on a computer. Maybe you try to keep yourself in shape by hitting the gym super hard or playing an intense sport or even going for a long run. After that, you are tired, so you retire to the couch with a cold one and your favorite show or movie to unwind before hitting the hay and repeating the same cycle the next day.

With a routine like this, you ask your body to ping pong from sitting to partaking in an extreme activity, and then back to sitting or laying down. Add alcohol into the mix (which causes dehydration of the joint tissue and everything else), and you are not helping the situation.

Let’s face it, in this day in age, we are not partaking in the constant and consistent fluid motion that our hunter-gatherer ancestors endured to stay alive. Here’s the problem with this lack of motion, followed by intensity: you will lose your hip mobility, which can contribute to pain in the knees and the lower back. Luckily, there are some reasonably simple hip mobility exercises that you can do to limber up your most central joint system and potentially prevent injury. If you are wondering how to increase hip mobility, read on to learn more.

HOW TO IMPROVE HIP MOBILITY

First and foremost, when doing these hip mobility exercises (and any other feats of the body) you should not push yourself to the point of pain. The goal is to loosen up and increase your range of motion. The goal is not to push yourself past the point of your body’s capacity and cause injury.

So, if something is beginning to feel unpleasant in any of these exercises, slowly back out of it and regroup before attempting it again. Without any further ado, here are some of our favorite hip mobility stretches.

3 Easy Hip Mobility Stretches

1. PIGEON POSE

Yogi or not, pigeon pose (or any figure four position) is where it is at for opening up your hip flexors. To get into pigeon, you will want to place your right ankle directly behind your left wrist and your right knee directly behind your right wrist.

Be sure to flex your right foot (by pulling your toes back toward your shin) to protect your knee. Your left leg will be extended out behind you. You can either remain seated in an upright position, or you can fold forward over your front leg. Be sure to practice these hip mobility stretches on both sides to maintain balance.

2. BUTTERFLY STRETCH

Butterfly stretch earns its place on our list of favorite hip mobility stretches because it is an excellent opener for hip flexors. Sit on your butt and draw the “palms” of your feet together so that they are touching. Open them as if you were reading a book. Sit up as tall as you possibly can, elongating your spine.

While maintaining the length (and without slouching or rounding the spine), begin to hinge forward at the hips over your feet and folded legs. You can clasp your hands around your feet and use your elbows to push your legs and knees down, closer to the ground. If you feel your spine beginning to round, come out of it, reconnect with your length, and start again.

3. FROG STRETCH

Another one of our favorite hip mobility stretches is the frog position. Warning, this one is not for the faint of heart. It is a deep stretch, so as we mentioned before, be sure to listen to your body and not push yourself past your limit and into pain.

For this stretch, you may want to put a squishy mat or cushion underneath your knees. You will begin on your hands and knees in a table-top position. From there, you will widen your knees as far as you can from each other while lowering down onto your forearms. You will want to turn your toes out, away from each other. Once you are as low as you can go, you can experiment with the positioning of your pelvis. You can try tucking your tail bone down and under your rear end. You can also play with slightly arching your lower back. Even slowly and gently moving back and forth between the two positions may feel nice and will enable you to stretch different parts of your hip joints.

It would be best if you aimed to do these three stretches as often as possible, but at least once every day. If we take advice from Shakira, the key here is really to do them, “whenever, wherever!” Seriously – take care of your hip joints, and they will take care of you.

These hip mobility stretches don’t take very long, and the benefits are undeniable. Having healthy hip joints will help you combat natural aging, a sedentary lifestyle and will aid your athletic performance. As you age, the longevity of your body and all of its mobility and functionality becomes the name of the game. If you live in the Greater Boston Metro area, consider scheduling a session with one of our Doctors of Physical Therapy (DPT) to work on your hip mobility training. We offer in-home treatment and can facilitate your schedule.

Surgery is not usually something that people look forward to. No one wakes up thinking, “you know what I really feel like doing today? I feel like having an operation!” Surgery is typically very expensive, sometimes dangerous or complicated, and usually involves substantial downtime and recovery. Luckily, physical therapy (PT) can be extremely beneficial after surgery to help you regain joint mobility, strength, and flexibility. Therapists are trained to teach you exercises and techniques to speed up your recovery time and make sure that everything heals properly.

WHAT IS PHYSICAL THERAPY?

You may be prescribed physical therapy after surgery because your doctor is sure that it will help you recover faster. But what exactly is it? Post-surgery visits will involve meeting with a PT or DPT who will help you regain mobility, movement, and flexibility. They will do this by helping you use devices and equipment (both assistive and adaptive), as well as bodyweight exercises that can be done with no equipment (so you can practice at home) to speed up your recovery time.

The goals of physical therapy after surgery are two-fold. Firstly, you are aiming to regain joint mobility and increase your active and passive ranges of motion. This will involve targeting the joint itself and all of its inner workings (such as connective tissue). Secondly, you aim to strengthen all of the surrounding muscle groups so that the targeted joint is supported. The last thing you want to do is strain a joint that has recently been injured, replaced, or operated on. By strengthening the muscle groups around the joint, you can relieve some of the pressure and impact of mobility from the joint itself. Read on to learn about some common post-op physical therapy practices, and what kind of exercises would likely be involved.

PHYSICAL THERAPY AFTER KNEE SURGERY

Knee replacements are relatively common in our older population. Thankfully, they have a very high success and recovery rate (roughly 90%). Knee surgeries are sometimes necessary for athletes in the younger demographic as well. Physical therapy after knee replacements or surgery is almost always part of the recovery prescription, but what does it entail? Typically, PT will begin within a day (or even on the same day) of your operation.

When recovering from a total knee replacement, you are basically starting from square one, learning how to walk and utilize basic mobility functions with a brand-new body part. Therefore, day one of physical therapy after knee surgery will most likely involve simply standing and putting weight on your new knee and attempting to take some steps (usually with a walker and the help of a doctor).

From there, your PT will focus on the surrounding and supporting muscles of the knee joint. You will work on strengthening your calves and thigh muscles, both the quads and the hamstrings. This can be done by intentionally flexing and releasing the muscles or by trying to walk up a few stairs at a time. Eventually, you will be able to walk, and your physical therapist will shift the focus to strengthening. You will probably be putting some time in on an exercise bike.

PHYSICAL THERAPY AFTER ROTATOR CUFF SURGERY

The shoulder is a fairly complex joint, with many moving pieces. Therefore, it is important to allow ample healing time and rest. That said, physical therapy after rotator cuff surgery is highly beneficial for regaining joint mobility. The exercises are simple and can be done at home (although we advise consulting with a therapist before trying anything on your own).

You can practice shoulder elevations by keeping your arms straight and raising them slowly up toward your head. Hold them as high as possible and then slowly lower them. You can also work on strengthening your rotator cuff by clasping your hands behind your back. Be sure that your wrists stay together in this position, or else you can strain them. Slowly begin to lift your clasped hands.

Another great physical therapy exercise after rotator cuff surgery is slow-motion swimming. Try to mimic the movement in the front crawl stroke, but with straight arms. If approved by your therapist, you can try this while standing in water for a bit of extra resistance.

PHYSICAL THERAPY AFTER CARPAL TUNNEL SURGERY

Unfortunately, carpal tunnel syndrome is very common. Many of us spend countless hours typing on a computer. Others have jobs that involve manual labor that puts extra strain on the wrists. Jewelers and surgeons alike may suffer from this as well. So, what does physical therapy after carpal tunnel surgery look like?

The biggest obstacle with carpal tunnel surgery is typically scar tissue that forms as the wrist heals from the operation. Therapists will utilize manual therapy called soft tissue mobilization. They will use their hands to massage the tissue and break up the adhesions in your wrist to restore your joint mobility.

Your therapist will also focus on helping you recover your range of motion with a series of exercises to help limber the joint back up post-op. Additionally, they will give you exercises (such as squeezing a stress ball) to help strengthen the surrounding muscles so that they can better support the joint as it heals.

PHYSICAL THERAPY WITH LCG BOSTON

You may also need physical therapy after ankle or shoulder surgery. If you are interested in scheduling a consultation and PT sessions with a physical therapist and are in the greater Boston area, LCG Boston offers 1:1 rehab and recovery. Our team of Physical Therapists offers in-home therapies for up to 7 days per week! We also offer Virtual Physical Therapy and Yoga Physical Therapy, so no matter your needs, we can find a flexible treatment plan that will work best for you.

You are doing it! You are getting yourself in the best shape of your life. Summer 2021 is going to be the year that your beach bod is cut, chiseled, and at its best. You are unstoppable. You thoughtfully and carefully pack everything into your gym bag the night before. You have your water bottle, shaker bottle with protein powder already in it, your towel, and your change of clothes for after. You are locked and loaded with everything in your car. At 6:00 am, you almost hit the snooze button on your alarm, but no! You get yourself up, caffeinated, and ready! It is time to own the day! You make it to the gym (great job!) and get through your cardio warm-up. You make your way to the free weights for a lifting session, and it hits you… your back. Almost out of nowhere, your back feels like it got hit by a ton of bricks, and you can’t, simply can NOT continue working out. What gives?

Back Pain While Exercising

To be completely honest, your back is comprised of a whole lot of muscles layered on top of your spine, rib cage, sacrum, and all your connective tissue. While it appears like a flat surface, there is actually a great deal of anatomy up in there. The cause of back pain while lifting weights could be from any number of things. For example, your lower back pain while exercising is probably a completely different issue and cause than your upper back pain while exercising. We have outlined four common causes of lower (and upper) back pain while exercising below.

YOUR BACK IS COMPENSATING FOR A WEAK CORE

The simplest explanation for back pain while lifting weights (usually lower back pain) is that your back muscles are compensating for a weak core. This means your abdominal muscles are not pulling their weight (literally), so your lower back is stuck doing all of the extra work, quickly resulting in lower back pain while exercising.

Luckily, the solution to this problem is quite simple. You need to strengthen your core. This is both a long-term and short-term strategy. For the long-term, you will need to make a conscious effort to target and exercise the abdominal muscles. For the immediate and short-term, you will need to do some ab work before lifting any weights. For example, holding a plank position (with your wrists stacked directly under your shoulders) will fire up your abs and prepare them to be an active part of any lifting or exercise you may be doing.

YOUR BACK MUSCLES ARE STRAINED OR INJURED

Another reason that you may be experiencing upper (or lower) back pain while lifting weights or exercising is that you are simply overdoing it. You may have strained or injured back muscles. If this is the case, you need to listen to your body and give yourself a break. When you exercise to the point of soreness, what you are actually experiencing is your muscle fibers tearing. (Even though it sounds scary, this is totally normal). When your muscles recover, the fibers heal back together (usually stronger than they were before). If you don’t allow ample time for recovery before working out, you will experience back pain while lifting weights. If the soreness doesn’t dissipate within a few days, you may be dealing with an injury. If this is the case, you should contact your doctor or a health care professional for further advice.

YOU MAY HAVE AN INJURED SPINAL DISC

Your spine is your central structural element in your entire body. It is comprised of bones, also known as vertebrae (24 of them to be exact). In between the bones are discs, with are softer and more flexible than bone matter. These discs allow your spine to move freely in all directions.

If you move too fast, in the wrong way, or apply force with contact to one of your discs, it can be bumped out of place or injured. If this happens, you will definitely experience lower or upper back pain while exercising. Sometimes injuries of this nature will self-resolve, but if you are still in pain after a couple of days, contact your provider.

YOU MAY BE EXPERIENCING SCIATICA

Your sciatic nerve is a massive nerve that runs from your lower back all the way down the backs of your legs, ending at the tops of each of your feet. When pressure is applied to your sciatic nerve (which can occur from a bulging disc, impact, or other natural causes – hello, pregnancy, we are looking at you), you are going to feel excruciating, pinching sensations that may momentarily cripple you from being able to stand or walk.

Sometimes the solution is to invest in better footwear or spend more time warming up before hitting the weights. Remember that impact is a major cause of sciatic nerve pain, so you want to think about providing a softer cushion for your joints. (This can be accomplished with new and better-quality footwear and knee braces.)

You also may find that heat and cold therapy help treat and prevent sciatic nerve pain. You can take a long, hot bath, followed by a cold shower (or ice bath, if you are feeling ballsy). This will increase the blood flow to that nerve and help prevent it from getting pinched or impacted. Another way to keep sciatica in check is to be more conscious of your posture throughout the day. Make sure you sit up straight while working at a computer all day, and try to keep your spine well-aligned when you are lying down to sleep at night. If you are a side sleeper, place a pillow between your knees.

While an injury may bench you from certain athletic activities, there are many low impact workouts and exercises that can keep you in shape and help speed up your recovery. If you are wondering how to speed up your ACL or hamstring injury recovery time, we are here to tell you that many of the exercises you likely already enjoy fall into the category of low impact exercises! Also, make no mistake, low impact does NOT mean easy.

Suffering an injury can be an athlete’s worst nightmare. Training in the COVID-19 era, after several months of lockdowns and interruptions to our everyday lives, has left many with a higher propensity to get hurt. The more we stay put and the more we sit, the less we elevate our heart rate. The less blood flow we have to our joints, the more likely we are to get injured. No matter what level of pandemic restrictions are in place where you reside, make sure you dedicate time every day (and every hour, if possible) to move your body around. This will not only help you to stay in shape but will also help keep your joints healthy.

WHAT IS A LOW IMPACT WORKOUT?

To understand the benefits of low impact exercises, you must first know what they are. Low impact neither refers to how little your waistline is impacted nor how much muscle mass is gained. Phew! What a relief! So, where, then, is impact minimized?

Your joints! You can see all of the results that you usually see from exercising without the abuse and wear and tear on your body. Let’s face it, without healthy and fully functioning joints, you are going to be warming that bench indefinitely!

Joints get worn out both by overuse and as a natural part of aging. In ideal circumstances, all of the tissue that is damaged within a joint will naturally regenerate. Suppose you are an avid athlete with a training focus geared toward one sport (for example, a pitcher for a baseball team). In that case, you may experience pain, injury, or deterioration in your elbow joint. If you continue to train, even when the tissue has depleted, it will not have proper time to regenerate. Similarly, as we age, that very same tissue begins to wear down naturally and takes longer to heal and replenish. This is why you should cross-train with low impact exercises and give your joints a break so that they can recover.

So, without further adieu, our top three low impact workouts to help keep you in shape and for injury recovery and rehabilitation are yoga, swimming, and cycling. All three are excellent exercises to get your blood pumping without exerting much force on any of your joints. Read on to learn why we chose each of the three and how they can aid your road to injury recovery.

YOGA

Yoga is at the top of the list because who, especially in 2020, doesn’t love an exercise that also eases your anxiety? #amirite?? With yoga, you can improve both your physical and your mental well-being. By intentionally pairing your breath with your movement, you will increase your blood flow to your joints, which will help in the healing effort of any injury you may have.

Yoga is also a great way to target, activate, and workout your stabilizer muscle groups, which don’t typically get a ton of use otherwise. Your stabilizers offer a tremendous amount of support to all of your joints, so this may help you avoid injury in high impact sports.

You may also find that yoga can improve your flexibility and overall sense of well-being. While it may seem a bit “woo woo” for some, we are willing to bet that most serious athletes would find yoga to be far more challenging than expected. It is a great, low-impact way to stay in shape while you are rehabilitating any injury. An hour of yoga burns roughly 400 calories. If you are into hot yoga, that number can increase or even double.

Yoga Physical Therapy: Healing From Within

SWIMMING

Another tremendous low-impact cardio workout is swimming. Exercising in water is fantastic because it not only provides resistance, helping you to build up muscle mass, but it also allows your motions to be fluid and weightless. This helps remove the impact from your joints. Imagine running on pavement. When your foot hits the ground with force, that sends a pressure shockwave through your foot, ankle, knee, and hip joints. That source of pressure can be damaging over time and can worsen an existing injury.

Now imagine swimming laps. You are kicking both legs repeatedly while your arms fluidly glide through the resistance that water provides. You are breathing heavily, in rhythm from side to side. All of this is increasing your heart rate, building muscle mass, and burning fat. Swimming is an excellent low impact workout to get yourself in shape! It is a full-body workout and can burn up to 700 calories in an hour.

CYCLING

While we are on the topic of gliding, cycling offers a similar low-impact exercise experience. Because the pedals move continuously on a circular track, your ankle, knee, and hip joints will experience a fluid range of motion. There is no forceful interruption of movement.

If you have ever ridden a bicycle uphill, you already know that cycling can be one of the most challenging cardio exercises out there. Propelling your entire body’s weight forward, plus the weight of your bicycle, will have you winded in no time. Plus, with the many resistance levels that bikes can offer, you will likely find that cycling builds muscle mass in the booty and legs very quickly. Unlike doing squats, which may strain your ankle, knee, and hip joints, cycling will keep the pressure off so that you can see results without experiencing pain. An hour of cycling can burn anywhere from 600 to 750 calories.

LCG Boston Blog

Our Favorite Hip Mobility Stretches