3 Guidelines on What Professional Speciality You Should Seek and Why

We get this question all the time! Whether it is a parent calling to schedule their child athlete, a CrossFitter who is sore all the time or an adult trying to start their fitness journey, sometimes it is difficult to decide where to start or who to see. Here at Sports Performance, we have three specialities: physical therapy, massage therapy and performance training. All three of these areas have a similar knowledge base, but they also have their distinct differences. Let me preface this by saying all three of these specialities are completely intertwined, especially here at Sports Performance – we all work together and compliment each other. It is important to not compartmentalize the services, meaning it is better to have one plan that encompases everything you need, rather than five different plans that can contradict each other. Below are three general guidelines to help you determine which of the three specialities is right for you and why.

1. Physical Therapy – seeking physical therapy is important if you are experiencing some sort of injury or impairment; especially if it is negatively impacting your quality of life and exercise routine. Physical therapy is needed when you are trying to get back to your prior level of function or exercise routine. As a physical therapist, we can easily address pain relief with manual work and injury prevention with monthly tune-ups and exercises.

2. Performance Training – working with a performance specialist or generalized fitness coach is best if you are looking for strength and conditioning, beginning a fitness journey or need help with exercising and programming. A trusted performance specialist is someone who will help you achieve your fitness and lifestyle goals, while motivating you by holding you accountable.A fitness coach can easily work around an impairment or injury, but if you are unable to do some of the vital movements then physical therapy would be the place to start, especially if it a brand new injury.

3. Massage Therapy – if you are experiencing discomfort or tightness and need relief, massage therapy is a great way to just feel better. Massage helps with improving generalized wellness, relaxation and helping with injury prevention. A massage is also full body during every visit with a focus on whatever you need.

It is important to understand that injuries are normal and common with exercise, because exercise is just stress to the body; aches and pains are a normal reaction. Our goal here is to give you the knowledge and tools to combat these aches and pains, that way have a way to manage injury prevention yourself. Remember, it is important to find professionals who partner together and compliment each other; you want everything to blend together and being directed along the way. It could be as simple as getting physical therapy for rehab and injury prevention, working with performance for fitness and then seeing massage once a month for maintenance!

As always, we hope this helps! If you have any questions or if you would like to read about certain topics, feel free to send us an email at TeamSP@SportsPerformancePT.com.

-Dr. Melanie