https://www.facebook.com/HolisticPT.net/

Bike Ettiquette, Road Safety

Bike Ettiquette, Road Safety 3024 4032 Jennifer Lane

As more people are riding bikes around Denver, there’s more risk for accidents involving cars and bikes. Understanding the laws of the road that apply to motorists and cyclists will keep everyone safer. Most recently, Denver passed the “Safety Stop” Bill which allows cyclists to slow down as they approach a stop sign but not come to a complete stop if the intersection is clear. Why is this safer for bikes? To keep some momentum rather than coming to a complete stop gets cyclists out of the way of oncoming traffic faster. Read more at “Safety Stop” Bill.

What else should bikers and motorists keep in mind? Bikers should stay off sidewalks, avoid riding in “turn only” lanes if going straight, use hand signals to make it clear where they intend to go. Motorists should carefully open car doors, looking for cyclists before doing so, give cyclists 3 feet of clearance and avoid driving in designated bike lanes. I find that the best way to stay safe is to make eye contact with people. Before crossing roads, entering intersections, merging in to traffic, I look to make eye contact with the driver coming my way. Once eye contact is made, I feel good that they see me and understand where I’m going. Read more about Bike Laws here.

With E-Bikes and B-Cycles making biking readily available, its important for everyone riding or driving on Denver roads to pay attention and understand the laws so everyone stays safe.

The Holistic Way to a Healthier You

The Holistic Way to a Healthier You 851 315 Jennifer Lane

What does Holistic therapy mean? For me, holistic therapy means working with the body, mind and spirit to improve health and quality of life. As a PT, I have always focused on how to help the body recover from injury or dysfunction. But as I grow my business, Holistic PT, I have started addressing issues of the mind and spirit too. It is my job to help people feel better and to guide them in the healing process. But there are many barriers to this. Emotional issues, bad habits, false belief sets, negative self-talk all impact how a person recovers from physical pain.

In addition to performing a full evaluation of the physical body, I also ask questions about quality of sleep, emotional impact of their injury, previous successes and failures in overcoming pain. Once this is fully understood, a comprehensive program is set up to help my clients feel better. The tool that I find helpful in my PT practice is essential oils. Essential oils can impact our moods, facilitate relaxation, and help with sleep. They can help reduce muscle and joint soreness too. The most common way to use essential oils is through aromatherapy. Some of the health benefits of aromatherapy include its ability to reduce anxiety, ease depression, boost energy levels, speed up the healing process, eliminate headaches, boost cognitive performance, induce sleep, strengthen the immune system and reduce pain.

It is difficult to treat the physical ailment without also considering the whole person. At Holistic PT, the treatment of the whole person comes first.

Biking Should Be How You Get Around

Biking Should Be How You Get Around 2772 2661 Jennifer Lane

My family and I just returned from an amazing trip to Copenhagen and Amsterdam. In both cities, the majority of people get around by bike. For the most part, everyone is riding a one-speed or a three-speed junker of a bike with a basket in the front and saddlebags in the back. For people with kids to transport, they had kid seats on the handlebars or at the back of the bike or they rode a utility bike with a big wagon that sat over the front wheel. People wear normal clothes and shoes, not spandex and bike shoes and they pedal along at a nice pace but they are not racing. What makes it so easy for them to do this is that there is an amazing infrastructure to work with. On all streets, there is a sidewalk, a dedicated bike lane with curbs on either side and a traffic lane. Each lane has it’s own traffic lights so you know when its time to walk, pedal or step on the gas. There is an awareness of others as you navigate the streets and there didn’t seem to be any accidents (although I’m sure they happen). No one wears helmets, except we did see some cool blow up helmets that people were wearing. They looked like neck collars and when I asked someone what it was, they said that if you are in an accident, it will trigger the collar and an inflatable helmet with envelope your face and skull to protect you from damaging your teeth, skin and brain. Check out this video… it’s pretty cool! https://hovding.com/.

My husband and I both commute by bike most of the time. And we had an on-going discussion of why can’t more Americans ride bikes to work and to run errands? To make it safe and accessible the infrastructure has to be there. A dedicated bike lane that is protected on both sides is a must. Currently in Denver they are adding new bike lanes in all the time. But some of them disappear into a turn lane or they are not protected from traffic at all. There have already been 7+ deaths this year which will not help to convince people to ride their bikes to work. Also, both Copenhagen and Amsterdam are pretty flat. I can’t imagine those same people we saw in Copenhagen wanting to ride up a hill from downtown Denver to the Highlands. E-bikes (electric-assisted bikes) may be a good solution for hillier terrain. And finally, there has to be a good option of transportation when the weather doesn’t permit riding. In both the cities we visited, there was an excellent public transportation system in place. It was affordable and time-efficient and got you everywhere you wanted to be.

So for the time being I will continue to ride my bike to work and to the market and around town. I hope you will give it a try too!

Tennis Elbow: not just for Tennis Players

Tennis Elbow: not just for Tennis Players 640 472 Jennifer Lane

Tennis Elbow, also called lateral epicondylitis, is inflammation of the wrist extensor tendons where it attaches at the elbow. More specifically, the tendons involved are the Extensor Carpi Radialis and Extensor Digitorum. For years, tennis elbow has been called tendonitis (which means acute inflammation), but upon examination, there is very little inflammation in the tendon due to the chronic nature of the disorder. A more accurate term is tendonopathy or tendonosis.

Tennis players are not the only ones who suffer from this. Anyone who performs repeated movements with their wrist (computer programmers, musicians, carpenters) can have tennis elbow. Traditionally, physical therapy treatment of tennis elbow has included cross friction massage to the tendon, modalities such as ultrasound or electrical stimulation, bracing and therapeutic exercise. More recently, research has shown that the prescription of therapeutic eccentric exercises is a very effective way in treating tendinopathies. Eccentric exercises effectively lengthen the muscle-tendon complex, remodeling the tendon and increasing the tensile strength of the painful tendon.

So, what does PT look like for my patients who have tennis elbow? First thing is to make corrections to posture and body mechanics to take undo stress off the wrist extensor tendons. Second, the use of ice or heat still is effective in reducing some of the pain and soreness that people experience. And finally the teaching people therapeutic eccentric exercises to do on a daily basis at home or at work will effectively help reduce pain and facilitate proper healing of the tendon.

Want more info on the research behind this? Keep reading…

What is Painful Bladder Syndrome (or Interstitial Cystitis)?

What is Painful Bladder Syndrome (or Interstitial Cystitis)? 520 250 Jennifer Lane

Also called Interstitial Cystitis, Painful Bladder Syndrome is a condition of chronic pain in bladder, pelvic floor, lower abdomen and low back that has persisted > 6 weeks with no infection present.  Urinary frequency and urgency are 2 additional symptoms. The average person urinates 7 times per day or every 2-4 hours. With Painful Bladder Syndrome, a person may go to the bathroom every 30-60 minutes. Urinating tends to be painful and incomplete. There is also an increased sense of urgency to get to the bathroom. While there is usually not any incontinence, there is an uncomfortable sense of urinary urgency. Women are 2-3 times more likely to suffer from this syndrome and there are many variables that may contribute to the pain syndrome including irritating foods and drinks, stress and dehydration.

Physical Therapy can help! If someone has been diagnosed with Painful Bladder Syndrome or Interstitial Cystitis, an evaluation by a specially trained PT should be performed. In this exam the PT is assessing for pelvic floor dysfunction including weak and/or tight muscles of the pelvic floor, reports of urinary frequency and urgency, reports of constipation or painful bowel movements, reported pain with intercourse and unexplained pain in pelvic region, bladder and lower back. Tightness, spasming and trigger points may be found in the 3 layers of pelvic floor muscles. These trigger points may refer pain to the bladder, low back or lower abdomen. Through soft tissue mobilization, the muscles can be restored to a normal state and Painful Bladder Syndrome symptoms can be reduced.

The treatment for painful pelvic dysfunctions differs from urinary incontinence issues. Treating a painful pelvic floor involves relaxing and lengthening the muscles of the pelvic floor whereas incontinence issues are treated with strength training. For someone experiencing a lot of pain from tight muscles, strengthening becomes part of the problem, not the solution.

To learn more about what PT can do for you, here is a helpful information from the Interstitial Cystitis Association. Read on…

What is the Core?

What is the Core? 451 256 Jennifer Lane

Core strengthening or stabilization has become the buzz phrase in a lot of gyms and fitness classes. But what is it and what is it’s job? Think of the core as a canister. The top of the canister is the diaphragm. Yes, the diaphragm is a muscle and it is an important one! Not only does it help us breathe but it also is very important in having a strong core. The bottom of the canister is the pelvic floor muscles. There are three layers of muscles and their primary job is to keep us continent and to support our internal organs. The walls of the canister are made up of transverse abdominus, internal obliques, multifidus, gluteus medius/minimus and deep hip muscles. The main foll of all of these muscles are to provide a stable base from which to move. To be able to walk, reach for an object, get dressed or participate in any sporting activity, your core muscles activate to hold you stable and balanced. Weakness and instability in the core muscles leads to injury to joints and soft tissue. Weakness in core muscles can lead you to lose your balance and fall, strain your back or your neck. Peaple with weak core muscles tend to have chronic issues with their spine including neck pain and headaches, poor posture and low back pain.

How do you train these muscles to work properly? It is important to work with someone who can cue you correctly. We are great at compensating with stronger muscles whose primary job is not stabilization and this leads to injuries. A qualified physical therapist, pilates instructor or personal trainer can help you learn how to activate the muscles properly. But here are three tips to start you off.

Tip #1: With your hands on your lower ribs, take a deep breath in feeling the ribs expanding laterally into your hands. As you exhale feel your hands come back together. Practicing this and improving on rib excursion during deep breathing activates the diaphragm, one of the most important muscles in the core.

Tip #2: Stand up with good posture. Don’t force it by sticking your chest out or arching your low back. Stand naturally and then pull your belly button in towards your spine as if you were tightening your belt. Try not to move your rib cage or your pelvis while you do that. This is a subtle move and if you were doing this in a crowd of people, they wouldn’t even notice you doing it.

Tip #3: This may be the easiest. Squeeze your buttocks. In standing, sitting or lying down, tighten up those cheeks. This activates the gluts which are part of your core muscles. When contracting them, neighboring muscles also activate helping you have a more stable core.

For more info or help getting a stronger core, contact Jenn Lane at jennlane@holisticpt.net.

Back to top
Privacy Preferences

When you visit our website, it may store information through your browser from specific services, usually in the form of cookies. Here you can change your Privacy preferences. It is worth noting that blocking some types of cookies may impact your experience on our website and the services we are able to offer.

Click to enable/disable Google Analytics tracking code.
Click to enable/disable Google Fonts.
Click to enable/disable Google Maps.
Click to enable/disable video embeds.
Our website uses cookies, mainly from 3rd party services. Define your Privacy Preferences and/or agree to our use of cookies.