Lower back pain is a common health condition which can cause a high burden physically, mentally and financially. Over the years, a lot of research has been conducted to establish what would be the best exercise and rehab protocol to deal with lower back pain. Many different schools of though ranging from manual therapy only, chiropractic adjustments, pilates, low grade exercise, surgery, and high load lifting have been used to treat this condition. But which one is the best f

Hamstring injuries are among the most common injuries for kicking based sports (soccer, AFL, NRL etc.) This is due to the concentric force of the kick created from the hip flexors and quads exceeding the load capacity of the hamstrings to decelerate the leg. Although the hamstrings action is to flex the knee, it's functional role in running is to decelerate the leg and shin in a controlled manner so that it can then begin to assist the glutes in performing hip extension once

Have you sprained your ankle? Fractured a bone? Recovering from Achilles tendinopathy? Try the assisted calf raise! When recovering from any injury involving the ankle, at some point you will be required to strengthen up the surrounding muscles of the ankle particularly the calves (plantarflexors). The calf is an integral muscle used in everyday motion as well as performance and exercise. Without adequate strength and power provided from the calf during gait, compensatory s

Ankle Fracture rehab part 5 - Functional Ankle Strength Strength training is the most evidenced based and common staple of a rehabilitation program. Depending on the stage of the rehabilitation, different exercise variations such as opened chained, closed chain, isometrics, eccentrics and many more will be used to get your body moving as it should. Similar to ankle sprains, a severe ankle fracture can cause disruption and damage of the lateral ankle ligaments. An active stabi

When to introduce range of motion? Now that we have been given the all clear to weight bear on our leg, one of the most common and important questions is when can we start moving the ankle joint. A closed reduction within a cast is designed to immobilise the joint to allow for adequate bone healing, however the secondary effects include muscle atrophy, increase joint & muscle stiffness as well as loss of control and coordination at the ankle. The time frame of immobilisation

When can we return to exercise after a fracture? As previously mentioned in Part 1 of our Ankle Fracture series, it is important that we determine what type of ankle fracture has occurred so we can program our rehab appropriately. Our ankle fracture will vastly vary in its management due to the location and type of fracture. For a stable fracture in which you have been given permission to weight bear inside a CAM boot, you can and should immediately begin to apply load and we

When recovering from a fracture or any injury that requires a period of rest and offload, it's important that we do this in a relative sense. Without consistent load and resistance on our body, it is very easy for the muscles to atrophy and bones to become weaker. Strength and any type of exercises training have the added benefit of improving mood (through the release of dopamine) and can greatly enhance our outlook on recovery. A better psychological state will lead to a imp