News

Don't Keep Injury Secrets!

Physical therapists are experts in dealing with injuries, but your PT can't help if they don't know about your injury!

You might be wondering who would keep an injury secret. The answer is - lots of people!

The first thing that comes to your mind might be an athlete, like a football player, or maybe a baseball pitcher. But athletes aren't the only ones that keep injury secrets. Performers like dancers keep injury secrets, and so do workers in all types of jobs.

Why would anyone want to keep their injury secret instead of getting it treated and letting it heal? Read more here.

Blood Flow Restriction Training: What Is It and How Can It Help

One of the newest tools we have available at Repsher & Associates Physical Therapy is Blood Flow Restriction Training (BFR). So, what exactly is it? Blood flow restriction training is a technique that uses a blood pressure style cuff applied to the affected arm or leg. Pressure is then applied to the cuff partially impeding blood flow to the limb which causes blood to pool in the capillary beds of the muscle below the cuff. The results of which help increase muscle strength and endurance while decreasing pain. Studies have also shown that blood flow restriction therapy helps increase bone mass.

Blood flow restriction therapy has grown in popularity lately as it is a great tool that can be safely implemented for a large number of patients: from seniors to superstar athletes. The main reason is that you can achieve the same results as traditional resistance training by using very light weights which protects healing tissues. While it may be uncomfortable, people find it worthwhile once they see the results.

If you have any questions about blood flow restriction therapy, please feel free to contact us at 518-489-2524.

Feature | Blood flow Restriction training becoming standard practice. (2022, February 1). APTA. https://www.apta.org/apta-magazine/2022/02/01/blood-flow-restriction-trainingbecoming-standard-practice

Youth Sport Specialization Awareness Week

This week was Youth Sport Specialization Awareness Week. For some great information on this important topic, check out this article from the National Athletic Trainers’ Association.

5 Reasons You Need a PT to Coordinate Your Fitness Regimen

Physical therapists aren't just for people that are injured or have had surgery. Physical therapists can also help healthy people improve their fitness. Here are 5 reasons why you should consider seeing yours.

1. You Want a Baseline

   When you see a physical therapist to improve your fitness, you'll get an assessment of your strength, range of motion, posture and movement patterns. This not only helps your physical therapist design a customized program just for you, it gives them a baseline to compare things to in the future should you start having pain or suffer an injury.

2. You Want Expert Guidance

   Sure, other professionals could help with your fitness routine, but the fitness industry is not well regulated. Some certifications just require an online course and paying a fee. There are no licenses or other requirements to use many titles. Becoming a physical therapist requires at least a bachelor's degree and most PTs practicing today have a doctorate. Every PT has passed a national board exam and maintains a state license. That guarantees you that every physical therapist is a verified expert in human movement.

3. You Want to Prevent Injury

   Physical therapists don't just work to heal injuries, they are also experts in preventing them. After a thorough assessment, a PT can help you design a program that will not only help you reach your fitness goals, but that can address any issues that increase your risk for injury.

4. You Want Unbiased Advice

   Yoga instructors will want you to do yoga. Personal trainers will want you to come to their gym. Pilates instructors will want you to do Pilates. Strength coaches will want you to strength train. A physical therapist doesn't have a bias or vested interest as to what type of fitness regimen you choose. They are only interested in helping you reach your goals.

5. You Have a History

   If you have some kind of history that affects your ability to exercise, a PT is the best person to help you design a fitness regimen.

It doesn't matter if it's an old injury from athletics or work, back pain that comes up from time to time, COPD, arthritis or heart disease, a PT can help you safely work around it and meet your fitness goals.

Physical Therapist Warns to Start Slow Getting Back to Reopened Gyms

Our owner, John W. Repsher, PT, AT,C was recently featured on a local news story giving gym goers some valuable advice as they eagerly return to reopened gyms. You can see the full story on News10.

Lazy Summer or Deconditioning?

The weather is hot, the gym is closed, and you've been relaxing - enjoying the lazy, hazy days of summer. Taking a day off here and there is no problem, but if you've been consistently missing your regular run, bike ride, or gym session and notice some aches and pains showing up, you might have the beginnings of deconditioning.

Deconditioning explained

Exercise creates many changes in your body - your heart begins to pump blood more efficiently, your muscles use oxygen more efficiently, they contract in a more coordinated manner, and your body gets more efficient turning food into fuel to name just a few. Deconditioning is the reversing of these changes. Exercise is a "use it or lose it" kind of thing, and deconditioning is the process by which we "lose it."

How long does it take to decondition?

As with most things related to a system as complex as the human body, it depends. According to the ACSM, two weeks without exercise can lead to significant loss of cardiovascular fitness. Two to eight months of detraining can erase virtually all of your gains. As you detrain, cardiovascular fitness tends to decline first, with muscle strength declining later.

Other factors are your age, and your exercise history. If you're younger, you'll probably lose fitness at a slower rate than someone older. If you've been consistently exercising for a long time, or at a high intensity, your losses will probably be slower than for someone who just started.

Reversing the losses

If you're just undergoing a period of increased time commitments at work or with family, using a shortened exercise routine can help minimize your losses. Even one session a week will help you keep most of what you've gained. Other options are to use shorter but more intense interval training sessions, or breaking up your activity into multiple short chunks during the day. If your layoff was longer, it may take just as long to retrain as it did to make the gains initially. If you're having those aches and pains due to inactivity or need help designing a safe program to either maintain your fitness or gain it back after a layoff, your physical therapist can help. Injury and illness are other common reasons for detraining. Your PT can not only help you recover faster, but they can also find activities to maintain your fitness while safely working around an injury or illness.

STOP Sports Injuries

Developed by the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine (AOSSM), STOP (Sports Trauma and Overuse Prevention) Sports Injuries is a public outreach program focused on sports safety, specifically relating to overuse and trauma injuries among young athletes. 

STOP Sports Injuries provides valuable information for athletes, coaches, parents, and healthcare providers to “keep kids in the game for life.” Check out the STOP Sports Injuries website for more information.

Our Winter 2020 Newsletter is here!

Check out our quarterly newsletter, where you can read patient success stories, learn more about our therapists, and even meet their dogs.

Repsher PT Becomes First Capital District PT Practice to Offer AlterG

Repsher & Associates Physical Therapy is proud to offer the AlterG Anti-Gravity Treadmill, a revolutionary machine that uses air pressure to lift users so they can move at a fraction of their body weight, allowing patients to walk or run with no pain while maintaining a normal gait.

Using NASA-developed Differential Air Pressure (DAP) technology, the AlterG treadmill will provide our patients with a unique rehabilitation and training experience by applying gentle lifting forces that use air pressure to "unweight" you to as little as 20% of your body weight. This reduces impact on healing tissues from total knee replacements, total hip replacements, and other weight bearing conditions.

Our patients will be able to walk sooner and train their gait earlier in their recovery. The AlterG is also ideal for patients with neurological conditions, as it provides a safe fall-free setting. Athletes will be able to use it to continue their training free of pain and without adversely affecting healing tissues. 

The AlterG is a valuable and versatile treatment tool, an important addition to our office, and a completely unique experience. 

Corey Kruse Now Certified in the McKenzie Method of Mechanical Diagnosis and Therapy (MDT)

We are pleased to announce that our therapist Corey Kruse has recently met the Credentialing Level status established by the Mckenzie Institute International. He is now recognized as a Certified MDT (Mechanical Diagnosis and Therapy) clinician. This is a very prestigious designation, as there are fewer than 170 certified clinicians in the state of New York. 

The McKenzie Method® of Mechanical Diagnosis and Therapy® (MDT) is an evidence based assessment and management protocol for patients with spinal and extremity problems. Mechanical Diagnosis and Therapy has been shown to be a reliable assessment system to categorize patients into mechanical sub-groups.

The MDT assessment enables clinicians to triage patients accurately and efficiently, particularly those with pain of spinal origin, to the appropriate services required. The assessment also identifies non-mechanical pain or contra indications to therapy where immediate referral onwards is necessary. Research has shown that the majority of patients with mechanical spinal pain respond well to specific exercises and experience fewer symptoms when treated with exercises individualized to the patient. 

The unique combination of postural advice, and the application of specific individualized exercises when delivered by an MDT trained clinician enables patients to self-manage their condition. This process promotes patient empowerment, increases satisfaction with treatment and is also cost effective.

Now Partnered with the Ciccotti Center

We are now partnered with the Ciccotti Center for a series of talks.

For information, click here.