The Phit Physio

Love this from 👏🏻

Great simple framework to guide your exercise prescription 📈📝

Keeping it simple is often the best approach, and yet, overcomplicating things is where a lot of us fall down when guiding our patients on the path to recovery ✅

https://www.instagram.com/reel/CbjMJ-plEaO/?utm_medium=copy_link

Watch this reel by the_phit_physio on Instagram : “NOCEBIC LANGUAGE - JUST STOP 🛑✋🏻 “You have the knees of a 90 year old” 🤦🏻 “This is the worst…”

NEW CLINIC ☀️🏥

I’m delighted to announce that I will be joining the team at Cassowary Coast Physiotherapy in Mission Beach, Far North Queensland 🏖

After more than 5 years in Melbourne, the time has come to say goodbye 😢 (for now). I would like to say a massive thank you to Tom Bosna, Josh Lambert, & everyone Pinnacle Health Group who’ve helped me develop and grow as a clinician over the course of my time here. ❤️

It will be difficult to leave, however I am incredibly excited to join Rob Harris and his team, and look forward to the challenge ahead, providing top level Physiotherapy services to the community of Mission Beach 🏋🏻🤸🏼

I will be continuing to remain active on Social Media, so please feel free to ask me any health/injury/Physio related questions (no matter where in the world you are 🌎)

Exciting times ahead 🔝

Peace ✌🏻

NEYMAR ANKLE INJURY 😫⚽️🇧🇷

have today confirmed that Neymar has suffered “ankle ligament damage” (pretty obvious from the above footage eh?) and will be out of action until the new year. ❌

While the exact diagnosis (from what I’ve read) has not been provided, given the mechanism of injury, it seems like a pretty obvious lateral ankle sprain, likely involving multiple ligamentous structures. 😭

Lateral ankle sprains are among the most common musculoskeletal injuries sustained by the general population, with up to 70% of individuals reported to have sustained this type of injury at some point in their life. 🤕

The 2019 ROAST consensus statement (pictured above) provides us Physiotherapists and Rehab professionals with a solid framework to guide our assessment and treatment of these common injuries. 📑✅

It seems clear that exercise-focussed rehabilitation, looking at range of motion, muscle strength, postural balance, and proprioception, play a key role again here. 🤸🏻‍♂️🏋🏻🧘🏻‍♀️

Wishing all the best with your recovery 🙌🏻

HOW LONG WILL NY *INSERT INJURY HERE* TAKE TO RECOVER?…

https://www.instagram.com/reel/CWr8PRWFoIM/?utm_medium=copy_link

Watch this reel by the_phit_physio on Instagram iknowforrest • Original Audio

FROZEN SHOULDER - TREATMENT OPTIONS 🥶👨🏻‍⚕️🔪🏋🏻

Frozen Shoulder is a tricky condition to manage…

The duration of symptoms ranges from 18 months to 4+ years, with high levels of pain/discomfort and gross losses of range of movement being common. 🤯

From my experience, setting a patient's expectations for the long road ahead is key in the early stages of management. 🛣 Rangan et al (2020) compared three different interventions that may be used during this rehabilitation journey, in a large multicentre RCT. They compared:

- Manipulation under anaesthetic 🔪
- Arthroscopic capsular release 👩🏻‍⚕️
- Physiotherapy with Steroid Injection 🏋🏻💉

Their results showed improvements in OSS (Oxford Shoulder Scores) across all 3 groups after 12 months, with no significant differences between groups.

This is important, as surgical interventions are typically more invasive forms of treatment, and therefore present more risk to the individual. If a structured Physiotherapy program can provide similar results, while being less invasive, this is definitely encouraging. 👍🏻😀

For more info, check out the FROST trial, and if you have any questions, shoot me a message 📲📩

Peace ✌🏻

https://www.instagram.com/reel/CWU2ulEluz0/?utm_medium=copy_link

Watch this reel by the_phit_physio on Instagram masondenverr • Original Audio

CALLING OUT THE BU****IT 💩📢

Shoutout to all my Physio colleagues who are consistently calling out all the nonsense that is sadly still rife within our profession 🤦🏻‍♂️

We must continue to do this in order for our profession to move forward. Keep it up folks 💪🏻🔝

RUNNING INJURY RISK FACTORS 🏃🏻🤕

We, as Physiotherapists, and other healthcare practitioners, often ask our patients about recent changes in their training load, in search of a potential injury mechanism 🔎. While this is important for us to understand, can we confidently link certain changes in training intensity, frequency, or duration, to injury? 🤔

A recent systematic review by Fredette et al (2021), suggests that running related injuries are not consistently linked to changes in training parameters and therefore we should be cautious when recommending 'optimal' training plans or loading protocols. 📑

Does this mean changes in training load don’t matter? 🤷🏻‍♂️

No, not at all. ❌

So what does this mean for us and our patients?…

Well, simply put it means we have lots of options when it comes to advising individuals how to increase their training load safely. We just don't have one 'golden rule' or 'perfect approach' for everyone that offers a minimal injury risk. ✅

Like with all injuries, there are so many factors to consider (sleep, training history, psychosocial, to name a small few). My suggestion - if you're concerned about injury, speak to your Physio to work out a couple of options that may suit your needs. 🙋🏻‍♂️📋📊

If the 10% rule or another approach works for you - fantastic, crack on. If not, don't worry, there's always another way 👍🏻

Peace ✌🏻

CONOR MCGREGOR INJURY 🦵🏻🦴🤕

I’ve seen a lot of interesting discussion and theories circulating on social media over the last couple of days around Conor McGregor’s recent injury at

We’ve seen these types of injuries occur in MMA (and other sports) on several occasions before, most notably with Anderson Silva at UFC 168 and Chris Weidman at UFC 261.

Their injuries, however, appear to have a clear mechanism ie. fractured tibia after having an attempted leg kick checked by their opponent. McGregor’s injury, at first glance, appeared to be a non-contact injury, having stepped back and weight bearing through his left leg.

There are several possible theories for why this injury occurred, some of which I’ve come across are:

1️⃣ Insufficiency fracture as a result of RED-S (relative energy deficiency in sports) - Brad Beer has a great detailed post on this, check it out (Instagram)

2️⃣ Fracture occurred early in fight following a checked leg kick (I personally didn’t see Poirier check any of the early leg kicks from Conor but 🤷🏻‍♂️)

3️⃣ 3 incidents in the final exchange - forceful leg kick by McGregor (1), followed by a front kick which Poirier blocked with his elbow/forearm (2), and finally Conor stepping back and weight bearing through this leg after throwing a left hand (3) 👊🏻

4️⃣ Some reports claim that Conor was carrying a left ankle injury in the build up to the fight that possibly left him more vulnerable to this kind of injury 😮

IMO the most likely scenario is that the accumulative stress on the tibia throughout the round (from the above mentioned events) likely exceeded the capacity of the bone and the final event (planting the leg) was the final straw ❌

What do you guys think? 🤔

Ever been told you need to buy a ‘posture medic’ to make you sit up straight? Or that you need one of those ‘special pillows’ to cure your neck pain?

Check out my latest reel over on Instagram on the topic here:

https://www.instagram.com/reel/CQLAZKcleCg/?utm_medium=copy_link

the_phit_physio on Instagram: QUICK FIXES 🧰 🔧👷🏻‍♂️ Wouldn’t it be great if simple things like changing your pillow, or getting a massage would ‘fix’ pain or injury?…… Harry Belafonte • Jump in the Line

THANK YOU 🙏🏻❤️

Hey folks 🙋🏻‍♂️

I just wanted to say a huge thank you to everyone who’s liked, commented, and private messaged me about my posts/series surrounding UC & IBD.

I’ve been blown away by all of your kind words of support, and Clodagh and I are so grateful for all the feedback and shares we’ve received for the latest episode of The Phit Physio Podcast 💬🎙

I will be continuing to occasionally post about my own journey with UC, as I continue to learn more about the disease, and strive to provide information on management strategies for both myself, and others 💁🏻

For now, however, it’s back to providing you with up to date, evidence based, no bu****it, Physiotherapy & rehabilitation content 😎

With that in mind, if anyone has any specific topics they’d like to see covered, please comment below or feel free to send me a DM 📲📨

And for those of you who haven’t yet listened to the latest episode of The Phit Physio Podcast, check it below 😬

https://open.spotify.com/episode/3WItvM20UU4AFPMDn7Qs8N?si=qlnRuC-cRQCPj7s_Qb91qA

Peace ✌🏻

EPISODE SIX IS LIVE 6️⃣🎙🎧

After a bit of a stint away from recording, Clodagh and I are back with our latest podcast episode. 🥳

In line with International IBD awareness month, Clo and I discuss all things Ulcerative Colitis, to help shed some light on a disease that often doesn’t get talked about 💬

I tell Clo about my own journey with the disease, from initial diagnosis, right up to my most recent hospital admission 🏥🤒

As I continue to gain more experience living with IBD, I’ve realised that one of the most powerful management strategies is to simply talk about it, so thanks in advance to everyone who listens to this episode ❤️

We hope you enjoy the show 😎✌🏻

Link to episode:

https://open.spotify.com/episode/3WItvM20UU4AFPMDn7Qs8N?si=qQysp5EmQzSUuvGtEPNKmw&context=spotify%3Ashow%3A3zNsq4FbU9XheNk9MyHDyB

CAUSATIVE SOLUTION - WHAT DOES THAT MEAN? 🤨🤔

So you’ve hurt your lower back deadlifting in the gym....😤

You go see your physio and after a couple of sessions your back is starting to feel a bit better, and he/she tells you to start deadlifting again 🤷🏻‍♂️
..but isn’t deadlifting what caused the problem in the first place?

Performing the exercise itself may have been when you first felt the pain and noticed symptoms, but that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s a bad exercise/movement. There are a lot of other factors to consider as to why you got injured:

➡️ was the load too heavy for you? 👎🏻
➡️ were you tired going into the session? 😴
➡️ how was your technique when performing the movement? 🏋️‍♂️
➡️ were you dehydrated? 💧
➡️ how were your stress levels on the day? 🤯
➡️ how has your sleep been? 💤

To name just a small few...

In fact, the reality is, there are very few “bad exercises” and it’s very rare that I will tell my patients to ‘stop squatting for your knees’ or ‘you’re not allowed to deadlift because of your back’ ❌✋🏻

In reality, these exercises, when performed at the appropriate LOAD, INTENSITY, FREQUENCY, and TIMING, may be protective against injury! 🤗

This is why we often prescribe exercises that you may originally have thought to have triggered your injury - ie. causative solution 😎

Peace ✌🏻

EXERCISE AS A MANAGEMENT STRATEGY FOR UC 🏋🏻🚶🏻‍♂️💪🏻

UC can be a pretty nasty disease...🤢

The condition itself can leave patients with symptoms of pain, fatigue, nausea, low mood etc. 🤒

While the medication used to treat UC can be amazing in terms of symptom management, long term use of certain medications can also cause some pretty awful side effects such as reduced bone mineral density, acne, weight gain (amongst many others).

Regular exercise (resistance training, cardio, etc.) can have such a positive impact on many of the symptoms/side effects mentioned above. It can:

➡️ improve bone density
➡️ reduce pain levels
➡️ improve mood
➡️ manage weight
➡️ reduce fatigue

So it’s a no brainer for UC patients then right?...🤔

Yes - but there are factors we should consider when it comes to exercise selection. I like to sum them up as follows:

1️⃣ Frequency - How often will you exercise?
2️⃣ Intensity - how tough will the sessions be?
3️⃣ Type - resistance exercise, cardio, HIIT etc.
4️⃣ Time - how long will the sessions be?
5️⃣ Stage of Disease - Flare vs Remission

These will vary when it comes to each individual’s needs & goals.✅

Struggling to stay consistent or work out what might work best for you? Give me a shout, I’d be happy to help! 😀

EXERCISE SELECTION IN UC - FLARE VS REMISSION 🔥💆🏻‍♂️

——————————————————————
Disclaimer: this post is based exclusively on my own personal experience with exercise and IBD and not intended as medical advice
——————————————————————

One of the more frustrating aspects of IBD is the amount of variability in how it presents, how people respond to different interventions, and the uncertainty around what you can/can’t do 🤷🏻‍♂️

I mean how easy would it be if we could say:

➡️ take this medication ✅
➡️ eat these foods ✅
➡️ drink x amount of water ✅
➡️ do this type of exercise ✅

Do this and you’ll be sorted mate 👍🏻

Sadly this is not the case ❌👎🏻

Certain medications, diets, and other interventions may be life changing for some patients, and yet be entirely useless for others - where’s the logic there right? 🙃

When it comes to exercise, from a personal standpoint, I’ve found certain types to be potentially damaging when in a flare. 🏃🏻🤮🤢

As much as I love running and HIIT training, I’ve found them to really exacerbate symptoms of urgency, pain, and nausea, causing increased blood & mucus. Therefore I’ll now lean more towards light resistance/strength training and walking when my body needs some movement during a flare. 🚶🏻‍♂️🏋🏻

If any other IBD patients are reading this, I’d love to hear about your experiences with exercise during a flare ❤️

FAREWELL CLODAGH 👋🏻😢

Yesterday marked the last day Clodagh Burrell and I will be working together Pinnacle Health Group Docklands. ☹️

I wanted to share a quick post to say a huge thank you to Clo for being a mentor, colleague, and most importantly a great friend to me for the past 4 and a half years. 👍🏻

From the early exercise club days, right up to the gruelling step challenge, as well as everything in between, it’s been a great journey, and you will be sorely missed around Docklands (although the Barry’s tea supply will look a lot healthier 👀)

All the best with your next adventure, and looking forward to continuing to save lives via The Phit Physio Podcast 😬🎙

EXERCISE IN IBD – A CONFUSING CONCEPT 🤷🏻‍♂️🤸🏻‍♂️

While medication 💊 is more often than not first line treatment in the management of Ulcerative Colitis & Chron’s Disease (IBD), unfortunately traditional medical intervention does not always lead to a reduction/resolving of symptoms. 😕

Therefore patients will often search for alternative/lifestyle interventions that may assist in disease management.

➡️ Exercise is very much one of these interventions!

It is generally accepted that a sedentary lifestyle, and increased visceral fat is one of the leading causes of systemic inflammation. So it makes sense then that exercising or being physically active has the potential to reduce this inflammation right? 🤔

➡️ Well yes….but it’s not that simple 🙃

Higher intensity bouts of exercise may trigger systemic inflammation and enhance pro-inflammatory cytokine release, thereby worsening gastrointestinal symptoms. 🤢🤒

So while exercise has the potential to have HUGE positive effects on disease symptoms and management in patients with IBD, in order to reduce the risk of flares/aggravation of symptoms, guidance is required looking at the following:

1️⃣ FREQUENCY
2️⃣ INTENSITY
3️⃣ TYPE
4️⃣ DURATION
5️⃣ CURRENT SYMPTOMS

Some preliminary guidelines for PA in IBD patients are outlined by Ball et al (1998). In the coming posts, I will aim to look at some more recent research and provide details of my own personal experience with exercise while in a flare and when in remission. 🤓💪🏻

SO WHAT IS ULCERATIVE COLITIS? 🤷🏻‍♂️🤔

So before we get into any specifics of exercise and IBD, I thought I’d first do a post to provide some basic detail as to what UC actually is 🤓

➡️ Form of Inflammatory Bowel Disease (not to be confused with IBS)
➡️ Believed to be an Autoimmune Disorder of unknown cause
➡️ Diagnosed by Colonoscopy (biopsies of tissue are taken during procedure)

The condition tends to be Relapsing and Remitting in nature, meaning that patients will go through periods of severe active disease (Flares), and periods where symptoms can be mild to non-existent (remission) 📈📉

Medication is often prescribed (see slides above), at different stages of the disease, with dosages generally increasing in response to acute flares in order to control symptoms 💊💉

Identifying ‘Triggers’ plays a key role in managing UC. These are not the same for everyone, and a lot of trial and error is required to discover what will work best for you. Some common triggers include:

➡️ Certain Foods (best to discuss dietary interventions with a certified Dietitian 🍎)
➡️ Stress
➡️ NSAIDS
➡️ Certain types of exercise

Like a lot of similar conditions, the best management plans will involve a collaborative effort between patient, GP, specialist (Gastroenterologist), Dietitian, etc. 😀💪🏻

DISC PATHOLOGIES 💿🙃

So you’ve been told you have a disc injury....

You’ve been getting these funny sensations in your leg and all of a sudden been told it’s actually your back that’s the issue, weird right? 🤷🏻‍♂️

So where do you go from here? 🧐

The good news is that disc pathologies are common and there are a number of ways we can go about treating them 👍🏻:

1️⃣ Non-surgical/conservative management (physio, exercise etc) 🏋🏻
2️⃣ Injection Therapy (Epidural Steroid injection) 💉
3️⃣ Surgery (spinal fusion, discectomy) 🔪

My advice? ✋🏻

If this sounds like you or someone you know and you’re wondering which option might be best for you, check in with your Physio for a full assessment to see which category you might be best suited to. 🤕

In most cases it’s best to try a conservative/non-invasive approach first before considering injections or surgery 😀

Have any questions? Feel free to reach out, I’d be happy to help

Peace ✌🏻

DAY IN THE LIFE OF AN MSK PHYSIO 👨🏻‍⚕️☕️

I’ve been getting a lot of questions from people recently asking for advice on whether or not to pursue a career in Physiotherapy...

While the idea of certain jobs and careers may sound appealing, you need to ask yourself:

➡️ What will the DAY TO DAY look like? 🤔
➡️ Is that something I can see myself doing and enjoying daily? 🤷🏻‍♂️
➡️ Will I be fulfilled?

I’m very lucky that I enjoy what I do and there is definitely a lot of variety🤸🏼‍♀️

Check out the reel below for a sample of what my day in clinic often looks like and see does it look like something you might want to do 😀

Peace ✌🏻

https://www.instagram.com/reel/CMu9bmilBOl/?igshid=j4fjd6nxbp6e

Instagram