Tales from the P.T. Table- Volume 1
I’m no stranger to Physical Therapy. Having spent 12 years in a health club with a PT clinic onsite paired with strength training in your 20s, I found myself on the table regularly during off hours.
Recently, with my shift to training and working out of my home studio full time, I haven’t had the luxury above, but yet still manage to train like I’m an idiot in my 20s (kind of…). I’ve always had a cranky lower back- my spine is shaped like a ? rather than an S and it periodically gives problems, fixable problems, but problems nonetheless.
So, I went huntin’ for a Physical Therapist to help ya boy out, booked a few appointments and have been going for the last month or so. While driving to and from the clinic, and spending some time on the table, I started making notes of some observations that I’ve noticed and thought they may be worthy of a share with you…
Observation 1- Physical problems require physical solutions.
I always joke with my buddy Dan Ellis -probably the best PT I’ve ever met and had treatment from- I always told Dan he put the ‘physical’ in physical therapy and would leave me sore and occasionally bruised after treatment. Funny enough, but no coincidence, Dan’s treatment always had a lasting effect and made me ‘better’.
Similar to fitness based goals- nothing in this realm has a passive solution. Your body requires force inputs to elicit a response (what’s up, science?) and on the spectrum of rehab to performance, this principle holds true everywhere.
Observation 2- Bedside manners matter just as much as the treatment of care.
No one wants a lame-o poking a prodding around their sore spots no more than you want some whack job telling you what your next workout is. Something I can value as a service provider is that you have to be personable, approachable, and all in all a good person. If you’ve ever done repeat service at a business, chances are it’s because the people kick ass...physical therapy (and personal training for that matter) are no different.
Observation 3- In rehab, life context means a whole lot.
My only gripe with my PT is that they had me lift a weight smaller than my 3 year old.
With all respect to the profession, context in and around one's life really makes a difference in the presentation and buy-in effect of rehab/training/fitness.
If you’re in the gym lifting less than your kid, book bag, purse, or other repeated objects in your life, you’re probably spinning your wheels to nowhere.
Observation 4- Make sure the services around the service match.
I learned early in my career that talking with people about their fitness, relationship with exercise, and overall health is an incredibly personal and intimate subject. With those conversations, it became apparent that all of the surrounding services must match that level of importance.
What do I mean?
I mean that if I want someone to talk to me about their past history with fitness and exercise, they need a welcoming greeting when they come in, clear instructions on what our session (especially the first session) will look like, and they probably want very clear expectations.
Online portals can make life easier but don’t undervalue personal connection in the setting you’re in.
Observation 5- Good training looks like rehab and good rehab looks like training.
See point #1- with physical solutions, i.e. rehab exercises, there is still a quantifiable amount of sets, reps, training volume, exertion levels, load, and frequency. All of the same principles that apply to fitness. In my opinion the best PT’s look like and behave like the best Personal Trainers.
Observation 6- What you do after the session is more important than anything you do in the session.
The old adage in the fitness world is “your success is determined by the 23 hours you aren’t in the gym”. Nutrition, sleep, and other recovery tactics will dictate results.
Spoiler, the same happens in the rehab setting.
Do.Your.Homework.
Observation 7- You can only modify your lifestyle so much. That’s to be expected.
Typically when you’re in pain there needs to be some concessions made in the short-term (and maybe long-term) to allow your body to heal. When you’re making those concessions and modifications, it’s incredibly important to draw the line on what simply cannot be changed.
My 3 year old needs me to chase her. My dog needs me to walk her. I need to play basketball and give the other Dad’s the business on the court.
When you’re talking to your PT or even your Personal Trainer, you’ve got to be open about your non-negotiables, it’s their job to help navigate the weeds with you, don’t be shy about it.
Side note- pick up men’s hoops is back…
Observation 8- Make it fun.
No one likes working out all the time and no one likes doing rehab exercises 5 times a day. You’ve got to find a way to gamify it and make it fun.
For me, I would leave my cell phone on the floor and any time i would look at it I would be holding my side plank or doing my 90/90 deadbug marches....it wasn’t necessarily ‘fun’ but it gave me some mindless activity to do during the repetition of all my exercises.
If it helps you get it in and get it done, it’s worth it.