It's All About the Curves!

The post-holiday season has us sporting more curves than necessary so why not start the New Year on focusing on the curve that matters the most.

While the word ‘curves’ is associated more with vanity and the fashion industry --- physical therapists are also interested in your curve --- but not the fashionable one ---the functional one.

The most important curve in your body is your ‘spinal curve” and the loss or gain of it sets you up for a lifetime of niggling and annoying pains. The stiff back on long car rides, the need to stretch your neck when staring at a computer screen, the shuffling in your seat at a movie theatre – if this sounds familiar then you have compromised your curves. It's these ignored pains that can sometimes lead to severe problems which in turn lead to major surgeries.

The human spine has 3 curves—cervical, thoracic and lumbar curve. The balance between the three curves is optimal for functioning and getting through the movements that occur in daily life. 

The cervical curve is the inquisitive curve as it allows us to move to discover our world. Functionally it supports the weight of the head (approx. 8-10lbs) and when optimally balanced allows for 180 degrees of rotation or looking over each shoulder (think backing up a car).

The thoracic curve is like the powerhouse curve as it supports the weight of both arms (approx. 15-18lbs each). Then it also supports 24 ribs that protect the heart and lungs and viscera. Then it also has to expand and contract while we breathe all this while allowing us free arm motion.

Then the lumbar curve it’s the expensive curve compensated most for increased movement and lack of strength. It costs us billions per year in medical cost. Just look at the stat below.

The prevalence of pain has a tremendous impact on business, with a recent report by the Institute of Medicine indicating that the annual value of lost productivity in 2010 dollars ranged between $297.4 billion to 335.5 billion. The value of lost productivity is based on three estimates: days of work missed (ranging from $11.6 to $12.7 billion); hours of work lost (from $95.2 to $96.5 billion); and lower wages (from $190.6 billion to $226.3 billion

But fear not….. All problems have solutions ---and so does the spinal curve!

Dr. Carolyn Richardson as Australian physiotherapist and researcher has spent her career studying the spinal curves and has proven hypothesis and theories by doing research on astronauts. I have had the pleasure to study with her and learn her system called “GRAVITY FIT” that offers real world solutions to spinal and peripheral joint pain. Learn more at www.gravityfit.com.au

No one can escape gravity but it is one of the most predictable elements in life 9.8m/s2 and it’s constant. So if you are not in a good relationship with gravity expect breakdowns in your body. Gravitational force is acting on you at all times 24/7/365. And the more your body and gravity and work together the lesser stresses on your joints, ligaments, muscles etc.

Renuka Pinto, PT, MA
renuka@duffyandbracken.com

PREGNANCY: The Joy of Giving Birth!!

I started to write this blog the last week of work before going on maternity leave and then nature intervened --- so I finish this blog staring at the face of my second child quietly sleeping in her crib.

When I went through my first pregnancy I was determined NOT to be a victim to pregnancy related musculoskeletal problems, which we treat at our practice. There is nothing more moving than to see someone pregnant and suffering with sciatica, low back, pubic bone or neck pain or an inability to walk pain free… not because they are weak but mainly because they feel it is normal.

Pregnancy is a joyous moment and every pound that one gains (trust me I know I gained more weight with my second) is towards growth of a child they bear. So I put myself on an exercise regimen contrary to the popular ones like viz. yoga and Pilates. Instead I put myself on functional strength and balance exercises to help me cope with the changes happening to my body. After a successful pain free first pregnancy I devised P3: PLAN PREVENT PREPARE! And launched the program in 2012, the program is based on the science of movement, biomechanics and exercise.

So as I went about caring for my newborn and being a full time PT – I got back to my old weight and went about my business. Then in late spring last year --- I was pregnant again. This time I put myself on the P3 program like I had advised all my patients for the past two years. With pregnancy number two I was much bigger and gained 10 pounds mostly all in my belly. I am five feet tall and weigh 104 pounds –so walking around with a belly girth of 44 inches and working as a PT ---was no joke! Most colleagues and friends who compared me to my first pregnancy were shocked.

But let me be a testament to myself and all the other pregnant women out there who embraced the P3 method --- I had no back pain and no sciatica. Although I did have three groin spasms that I needed to stretch out -- all of my own doing trying to sprint walk across Broadway at 35 weeks to make a light (silly in retrospect).

So yes I did have a joyous birth experience --- where I could rely on my body – those strong core muscles that held the baby in place, those sling pelvic floor muscles that provided a hammock, those gluts and oblique’s that prevented me from waddling, those scapula stabilizers that allowed me to be a manual therapist. The list is endless....

So to all the women out there ---pregnancy does not have to hurt your muscles and joints. There are ways to turn in bed, walk, maintain good posture, sit on a toilet, dress and choose footwear --- so that you can have a joyous birth

Come visit us --- we can show you how!!!

Renuka Pinto, MPT, PGDR, CSCS, CES

Comments: contact our marketing person at info@duffyandbracken.com for a P3 Method Brochure

Physical Therapy for the 21st Century!

Physical Therapy never ceases to amaze me. I continue to be a huge advocate for the profession I fell in love with 34 years ago when I observed my first physical therapy session and the patient that was being treated told me that he had back pain for years and that PT cured him. I have heard that story so many times since then, from patients saying they thought they would be in pain the rest of their lives and that they should have come much sooner or that they were told that they would probably need surgery and now they no longer do. The pelvic work we do gives both men and women their life back, by strengthening the muscle to cure incontinence or stretching it to allow a normal sex life.

The future of Physical Therapy is not only to be able to get people out of pain or dysfunction sooner, reduce surgeries and medication use but also to prevent the ever growing need for joint replacements, assisted and nursing home living. This is not only the future of PT but it must be the future of the country. We cannot afford the ever-looming healthcare escalations.

We need to practice progressive and preventative medicine even if our archaic insurance companies and government haven't embraced it yet.

Physical Therapists have so much knowledge to share with you about your bodies and how to prevent future injuries and pain. It is crazy not to seek their help... I certainly do! I have been a physical therapist for 29 years and I know that when I have muscular skeletal pain or I'm having trouble with my sports performance and my instructor whether tennis, skiing, golf etc isn't completely solving the issue, I turn to our sports physical therapist to get the exercise or body correction needed to complete the task. An instructor can teach the correct technique but they don't change your body so you can perform the technique. That takes a physical therapist's knowledge.

This mindset of prevention and getting the help of physical therapists has and will keep me active. So far in my 50 years, I have climbed to Everest Base Camp, Kilimanjaro, the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu, the Milford Sound Trek, hiked many mountains, biked many hills and continue to jump on my wake board, surf board, snowboard or skis plus play competitive tennis and golf, all without incident, and my bucket list is still full. I plan on bucket listing into my 90's. What's on your bucket list and how can we help you continue to play the game of an active lifestyle.

I highly recommend it!

Ann Duffy, M.A., P.T.

Owner