MAXIMUM VELOCITY PHYSICAL THERAPY: A FRESH APPROACH TO HEALTH CARE
What if the person you met during your next health care visit taught you that you didn’t need their services? Wouldn’t it be nice if you booked an appointment with a health care provider and you knew exactly what he or she were going to do? How much it would cost? Wouldn’t it be nice to know there were no huge bills coming down the pipe after the care? What if you knew up front that the goal of the health practitioner was to get you discharged as soon as possible? Are you worried about the health care provider telling you that what you are doing is bad for you? Barbells are bad for you right? Running is hard on your knees, correct? Squats are the enemy, right? NO. After 15 years of experience, reading volumes of research, attending continuing education classes with the brightest and most accomplished practitioners of a wide variety of disciplines, a primary theme surrounding health care is: Quality care is hard to come by. You will not find quality care in the corner health care facility. The average health care provider is inundated with managed care hoops to jump through. If you are an athlete, the “sports doctor or PT” who spends a quarter of their time with Medicare patients is not skilled in sports care. If they spend ¼ of their time on total knees and hips, they don’t have the experience to help you. You need someone who spends 100% of their time with active people.
At MVPT we spend our time with all kinds of active people of all walks of life. Kids in team sports to “elderly” who run or hike(by the way, I would put these “elderly” up against any of our kids - so impressive). Here is a list of athletes (but not limited to) that we at MVPT have had the pleasure of assisting:
• Obstacle Course Racers (OCRs)
• Triathletes
• Runners
• Crossfitters
• Gymnasts
• Cyclists
• Track runners
• Hikers
• Power lifters
• Swimmers
• Rock Climbers
• Team sports-Lacrosse, football, soccer, basketball, baseball, etc
“I am a rock climber. Three and a half years ago, my hand went numb. I have been to countless doctors and physical therapists since then without relief. Ron is the first PT/medical professional to really examine me from head to toe, as opposed to jumping to conclusions based on limited information or judgements on my athletic pursuits (like “You’re a climber? Tendonitis.” or ”Your hand is numb? Carpal tunnel.”). He made connections between what I thought were unrelated aches and pains, and all of the pieces are finally coming together. Ron gives each client a personalized training program, which he constantly tweaks based on your physical response and changing body. Even with multiple patients training simultaneously, Ron always manages to give personal supervision to each of us. Ron is also honest about your progress, and he is not one of those PTs who prescribes ongoing sessions; instead, he evaluates the benefit of continuing therapy on a daily or weekly basis. Because of the training provided by Ron, my strength and endurance are returning, people are noticing my muscles again (woohoo!), and yesterday I had my best rock climbing day in over 2 years!” –JEN
What does MVPT do that other related health care professionals don’t do? We listen and inspire, first of all. We spend time with you. We use 15 years of clinical experience to treat the origin of the problem, not mask the problem. We use active treatments for active problems. Passive treatments feel good, but they do not get the source of the symptoms as fast as progressive loading does. Your sport or activity is very rarely bad for you. The problem is you don’t have the range of motion (ROM), strength, or mechanics to do the job you are trying to do. Rest will not give you the skills to return to activity quickly. If you are here for a running problem then you need your run evaluated. Walking mechanics are not running mechanics; rolling or sit-to-stand mechanics are not running mechanics. You have to run to understand the biomechanical errors you are making during running. After hundreds of hours of continuing education in running and gait training alone, we have the book knowledge/science background in all things running. We back up that knowledge with over 8 years of treating runners daily through rehab, strength training, and coaching. We recognize the difference between “feeling good” and resolving the problem. There are many interventions that feel good. There are a select few that can that get you back to performing at a high level quickly. Most athletes agree, performing your best without pain or injury is what really feels good.
As an Athletic Trainer, it is difficult for me to admit something is an injury, let alone seek out another professional for my own rehabilitation. After a grueling attempt at World’s Toughest Mudder in November of 2015 – and I use the word “attempt” loosely, as I was an official finisher – I was left with nagging tibialis posterior (i.e. the inside of my ankle) pain that just was not resolving. I had heard about Ron through a friend, and figured it couldn’t hurt, especially as I refused to allow my MD to immobilize the ankle in a boot. Admittedly, I was a bit nervous, as I have a particular approach to dealing with injuries, and was afraid he might be another run-of-the-mill, protocol-rooted PT; fortunately, I was wrong, and his knowledge of the anatomy as it related to running (and vice-versa) was impressive to say the least. Within six weeks, not only was I pain-free, but I placed sixth at BattleFrog’s inaugural BFX24, another 24-hour Obstacle Course Race (OCR), with 55 official miles. Not only had Ron gotten me back to 100%, but he completely changed my running mechanics for the better, and, dare I say it, made me stop hating to run!
In September, with less than a month before OCR World Championships, he helped to quickly resolve a groin injury that threatened to end my season early. Whenever a friend or fellow athlete has asked for a recommendation, or mentioned a nagging injury, I never hesitate to recommend Ron – he has a phenomenal understanding of the capabilities of the human body, and will have you leaving better than you were pre-injury. -STEPHANIE, professional OCR
What is progressive loading? Progressive loading is a progressive approach to loading the tissue in trouble and creating an environment in which the structure can learn to handle the stress of the activity. Or simply put: training/treating your body gradually and increasingly. No visit is the same. We use 15 years of clinical experience to identify the tissue in trouble, examine the biomechanics of the activity in question compare it to the movement of the body in trouble, and build an individualized plan to restore the activity as soon as possible. There is no evidence a cookie cutter movement screen or plan will identify an injury or aid in performance. The needs of the individual patient cannot be generalized. Let’s simplify things. Our medical system has so many specialists that the entire body system is rarely taken into consideration. Medical education has no contact with barbells whatsoever. A barbell is not your enemy. All athletes require strength. All humans require strength. There is no situation whatsoever where too much strength is a problem. Crossfitters are not performing a dangerous sport. They are mishandling loads. They are moving the bar too fast, too soon, or with too much weight. We team up with their coaches to ensure the athlete progresses well enough to get back to full activity as soon as possible. Chances are the athlete does not possess enough ROM, strength, or biomechanics. If you have a problem with your over head squat, for example, will a traditional PT have a barbell around so you can show them how you are doing it? If they tell you that is a bad motion for you, they are misinformed.
“When I walked into Max Velocity I had been struggling with pain for over a month that disrupted simple daily activities. Tying my shoes became a near impossible task. On my first visit, Ron was not only able to diagnose the cause of the pain, but he also took the time to explain why it was not an assortment of other issues. His demonstrated knowledge gave me confidence that I would soon be feeling healthy again. I continued to do the exercises he recommended and within days the pain began to subside. It’s just a few weeks later, and I am now pain free and back into my full training (and also hitting some new prs). Thank you Ron!”
- Lauren, Crossfit Regional Qualifier
Coaching
Wait, you coach too? Yes. Coaching is not our primary objective. We coach out of necessity. We decided that if we are going to be training experts then coaching credentials are necessary to ensure the knowledge base of what it takes to complete certain tasks is obtained. Has your current PT asked you what the distances are for an Olympic triathlon? Do they know what is required of you from a training point of view if you are trying to qualify for Boston in the marathon? If you are 12 weeks from a marathon wouldn’t that load be different than if you are 2 weeks away? Wouldn’t you want your PT to know the difference? A Physical Therapist who has finished a full ironman, 5 half irons, 4 full marathons, 20ish half marathons, and a lifetime of sport participation knows what it’s like to be an athlete. 2 years of Division 1 coaching in cross country and track, while developing friendships with NCAA champions, national championships, and Olympic caliber coaching experience makes us an ideal resource to help you return to full activity. Wouldn’t you want your health professional to program your treatment to help you attain that goal rather than unnecessarily shut you down? HYPERSPEED LV is in place to help the young athletes of the valley cross train intelligently. Remove the one-sport over-specialization that is plaguing our youth. The primary swimmers of the group have decreased times by the minute by removing 2 days a week of swimming and adding progressive loading. If we gripe to parents about how their kids train then we should offer a solution. WE DO NOT INTEND TO POACH athletes. We intend to make the patient the center of the situation and use a team approach to the athletes success. Our goal is to teach you to not need physical therapy. We would rather see you and 2 of your friends for 3-4 visits than 1 person for 12 visits. WE understand athletes, we want to take care of our own. Traditional medicine is set up for treating the sick and NOT to treat the near healthy. Help us create a paradigm shift in health care. Please feel free to interact, ask questions, and get informed. If you are interested in making an appointment please call the clinic 702-998-2900 or go to maxvelocityPT.com to “request an appointment,” and I will call you back.