Many of the patients I treat are coming to physical therapy for care of pelvic pain, low back pain or both. And one of the most useful things they can tell me during their evaluation or session is if, when and where they had an abdominal surgery, injury, or pregnancy history. Even if it was deemed minor and many years ago.

In a time where we are fed article titles that boast ‘best ergonomic chair’ and ‘standing desks for home office’, we have become obsessed with the idea of ‘perfect’ posture and those devices marketed to us to correct ‘bad posture’. But what are we really looking for with these devices and what are we getting out of them?

Chronic Pelvic Pain (CPP) is a multifaceted condition affecting 20% of women in the United States. Treatment includes pharmacological interventions, physical therapy, and lifestyle modifications. Studies have shown that yoga is an effective intervention to help both improve pain and quality of life in women with CPP. ‍Many times those suffering with chronic pelvic pain experience high levels of both anxiety and stress.

When Activcore and CORE merged earlier this year in Atlanta, we introduced a new movement method to our suite of services: the Gyrotonic Expansion System®. This system has two parts: 1) Gyrotonic® exercise which is performed on specialized equipment, and 2) Gyrokinesis® work which is performed on a chair and/or mat.‍ If you’ve been at Activcore lately, you might have seen the equipment in our back room. The Gyrotonic® equipment uses a system of weights and pulleys to simultaneously offload body weight, similar to the Redcord suspension system.

In this video, I am performing a side-lying hip abduction (side plank) exercise utilizing the Redcord suspension system to assist me. This is an excellent way to target the hip abductors, and more specifically the gluteus medius! Research continues to grow discussing how important the hip abductors are for optimal function in sport and everyday life.

The serratus anterior is commonly referred to as the Boxer’s Muscle. It is a fan-shaped muscle that originates on the superolateral surfaces of ribs 1 to 8 (or even 9 in some people) at the lateral wall of the thorax, and inserts along the superior angle, medial border, and inferior angle of the scapula.‍ Given its anatomical location, origin and insertion, and extensive documentation, we know that the serratus anterior muscle is critical in healthy shoulder function.

"Inhale into the low belly, then exhale"... We hear about diaphragmatic (or belly) breathing in yoga, fitness, relaxation techniques, and improvement in lymphatic flow. But why? There are several anatomically related reasons why, here are two...

Have you ever had back pain? Have you tried stretching and doing some core exercises, but the problem persists? If so, you're not alone. The "old" way of correcting back pain is out; breathing is where it's at. What if you are not breathing correctly? Yes, that is a thing.

So here’s a very recent article about the use of lumbar fusion for chronic low back pain. The conclusion is very clear: “The present meta-analysis determined that fusion surgery was no better than nonoperative treatment in terms of the pain and disability outcomes either at short- or long-term follow-up.”

After recently spending 3 days caretaking for my at-risk, elderly family members, I was humbled by the physical toll wearing a mask for 12 consecutive hours each day had on my body. As I was helping with household chores such as dishwashing, laundry and mail opening, about every 30 minutes I became aware of growing tension developing in the back of my neck. This was a result from looking down –– and over my mask –– for extended periods of time.