Sports Medicine

Massage Guns: Worth the Hype?

by Breanna Callahan, Marketing Coordinator with contributions by Josh Bruner, Physical Therapist I love massages! They are relaxing, and when I have a headache for a couple days because of tension in my back or soreness from a workout, the massage melts the pain away. But sometimes, I don’t have time for a massage appointment, [read more]

Sticking to your health-related goals for 2021

By Andy Stader, Physician Assistant at the Orthopedic Institute at Southwest Health As we transition into the New Year, a lot of us will make some changes to take control of our health, especially after the wild year that was 2020. Many of us will set a resolution to eat better and exercise in early [read more]

ACL tears- Are you at risk?

By Joshua Bruner, Physical Therapist With high school and college sports starting once again, it’s important to understand what the ACL (anterior cruciate ligament) is, what causes tears, and most importantly, how tears and injury can be prevented. The ACL is one of the most frequently injured ligaments in the knee. Each year 100,000 to [read more]

Ultra Trail Running and the Many Rewards of Suffering

By guest blogger, world class trail runner, and Cuba City native Justin Andrews “A journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.” Laozi, Ancient Chinese Philosopher Twenty-seven hours and five minutes—that’s how long I spent circum-ambulating Ultra Trail Mt. Fuji this past April. It was a week after my 34th birthday, and I couldn’t [read more]

Pain Explained. Recovering from Injury.

by Joshua Bruner, PT, DPT, CSCS We’ve all heard the phrase “No pain, no gain.” When taking part in rehab to come back from an injury, is there really any truth to the saying? In the United States, chronic pain has become more prevalent over the past few decades. According to the National Institutes of [read more]

Reducing Muscle Pain & Improving Movement

by Julie Grabandt, MPT, OCS, ATC Therapists use many different forms of treatment to assist with healing and pain control. Instrument assisted soft tissue massage (IASTM) has been very successful in helping patients decrease pain and improve movement. IASTM is the use of instruments to assist with mobilizing and decreasing tension within muscles, tendons, and [read more]

Running vs. Osteoarthritis: Is running a risk factor for knee and hip arthritis?

By Joshua Bruner, PT, DPT, CSCS – Physical Therapist at Southwest Health. Knee and hip osteoarthritis (OA) continues to be a growing epidemic in the United States (US). It has been estimated that 12.2% and 7.4% of the US population have knee and hip OA, respectively. Osteoarthritis is a joint disease that causes a breakdown [read more]

Sports Massage – Healing On and Off the Field

By Aurora Buschkamp, ATC, LAT, LMT, Licensed Massage Therapist and Certified Athletic Trainer. What is Sports Massage? Sports massage concentrates on muscles pertinent to an athlete’s sport or event. For an athlete who trains year round, the goal is to increase endurance, lessen injuries and shorten the recovery time needed between events or workouts. The [read more]

5 Tips to Achieve Your Health and Fitness Goals

By: Ryan Siegert, Sports Performance Trainer at the EDGE at Southwest Health. The top New Year’s Resolution goal is losing weight and/or eating healthy. However, only 8% of the U.S. population actually reaches their resolution goals. So ultimately, much of the population sets self-improvement goals, without a clear plan for achieving these goals, and then [read more]