Before you see your Physio, read this!
Wouldn't it be great if sport and injuries didn't go hand in hand? Unfortunately, injuries are inevitable for most long term players of sport and the likelihood of that changing in our lifetime is very low. What we can do is change is the level of success you are likely to have upon returning from injury. There is a window of opportunity to really catapult the success of your rehabilitation, but first we need to identify what may be holding you back from your best rehabilitation outcome.
What is going wrong?
Like many things, the system is broken when it comes to the rehabilitation of Athletes. Not only can Personal Trainer's decide to add "Rehabilitation Coordinator" to their resume and be hired by a sports team due to poor funding, their eagerness to be involved in sport and their low cost, but on the other end of the spectrum, Seeing a Physiotherapist for an injury is the 'go-to' for those that don't want to mess around with their rehabilitation and return to their sport or former pre injured condition. This is the main area in which the system is broken. Athlete's are completely unaware of how low the bar is when it comes to Physiotherapy and rehabilitation, often paying $100+ to be seen for 20-30 minutes for a little rub, some "exercises" (drawings and scribbles) to perform at home, told to take it easy and please rebook to be treated the same with a slight adjustment in 2-6 weeks time. This low bar has existed since the 20th century when that is all Physiotherapists had available to perform treatment. We are 22 years into the 21st century with significant advances in science, technology, and communications that give us a far greater opportunity to really advance injury rehabilitation for beyond the ultrasound machine (aka the shiny overused tool in every "modern" physiotherapy clinic). We can do better. We must do better. Our Athletes put their bodies on the line for sport and they deserve so much better. Physiotherapy must move out of the stone age and as with the rest of sport- keep up!
What can we do right?
If there is one thing that you need to wrap your head around the most, it is this... Rehab is training. Simple. If you don't walk out of your Physiotherapy initial consultation with a detailed understanding of your timeline, the training required and the process mapped out for you- you're with the wrong Physio. It doesn't mean they're terrible or that all of their experience doesn't matter... It does, perhaps for general populations, but not for you as an Athlete. Rehab is smart, structured training with a purpose. If your return to sport rehabilitation consists of therabands, quick appointments and an empty wallet- your clinician is purely nursing you through the natural stages of healing post injury and not facilitating your ideal outcome. The goal should never be to have an Athlete follow the standard rehabilitation process where it is a miracle if their function returns to a standard level. The goal is to harness an Athletes natural instinct to dig deep and apply an immensely greater level of effort along with commitment, resilience and determination to lead them to a far greater outcome than simply what is expected. This effort is unlikely to be found in your usual Physiotherapy office, but you'll definitely find it in your S&C Gym with a Injury Rehabilitation program tailored exclusively for Athletes, where you are supported not only by your 21st century Physiotherapist, but your team of Coaches and likeminded fellow Athletes while you complete your Rehabilitation journey in the gym, not an office or at home.
How can we be better informed in future?
Injuries often happen for a reason (unless inflicted in a traumatic manner such as a car accident). Whether it be a movement inefficiency, muscle or tissue weakness, fatigue or a previous known or unknown injury at the same site. Whatever it may be, each of these reasons can be addressed with a structured strength and conditioning program and the right team behind you.
When beginning your rehab journey, whether it be a grade one hamstring or ACL reconstruction, ensuring that your Physio has a solid understanding of the demands of your sport, as well as understanding of at least the basic S&C principles (even better if they work with or align with a strength and conditioning coach) is crucial to your success in not only returning to your sport, but also performing to the standard you expect to upon your return.
What should you be looking for with regards to your Injury Rehabilitation?
At Axis Performance we proudly combine Physiotherapy with sport science, strength conditioning and recovery modalities where applicable. During your rehab journey, your athletic development shouldn’t suffer. You should be able to stay in the gym and you should be getting strong and powerful where possible. Even if you haven't stepped foot in the gym while playing sport (if this is you, please stop what you're doing and find an S&C coach, now!), completing energy system development (upper body conditioning if lower body is affected, or lower body conditioning if upper body is affected) and ironing out all the kinks that you may not have been able to address while fully fit, is crucial to returning ready to perform. Maintaining as many of your Athletic capabilities as possible is an often overlooked concept for Athletes throughout their rehabilitation journey and usually only considered at the very end of the rehab journey, causing unnecessary further delays to an Athletes return. Your rehab journey isn’t only about strengthening and reconditioning the area that you injured, but also developing your athleticism globally and to ensure that you are a complete athlete upon your return to sport.
Something to think about...
If you’re an athlete that is currently injured, please take a minute to answer the following question- “Which process am I following, the old or the new?". If it’s not the latter, it is not too late to pivot, change lanes and finish your rehabilitation journey in the most effective way.
If you would like to begin your injury rehabilitation journey the right way and Axis Performance is not local enough for you, let us know where you are and we will refer you to the right place, closest to you. Please don't leave your rehabilitation to chance. You deserve better.
By Rod Blackbourn
