Superpowers

Movement requires a strategy, in one form or another. In a given situation we all have options for how we choose to go about moving. As our lives progress in time, these options become more limited as we fall into particular patterns that have been successful in the past. Eventually this predominant pattern becomes a superpower, and we can wield it at will. This becomes problematic if that strategy begins to fail.

We all have movement capabilities, some of us have more options than others, and some of us can use them to do incredible things. Things like leap from the free throw line to dunk a basketball or run one hundred meters in under ten seconds. The thing that lands most people in front of me, is if they have exhausted their movement options. As we move through our lives, consciously or subconsciously, we make decisions on how to move. Over time, these decisions become hard wired. We continue to move this way, however if we reach an error signal (pain), we must pivot and move differently. Most of the time this is no problem, but sometimes, we have no other route.

Compensations then develop to accommodate the movement need. We start putting a square peg in to a round hole, and this may work for a while, but typically something has to give. Once pain has reached a certain threshold, we need to learn a new way to move, but what if you cannot sense how to get there?

My work as a physical therapist centers around teaching clients new movement strategies. It often begins with me using my hands to induce a new sensation that opens up the potential for additional options, or options that have been forgotten. Then the coaching begins. We work together to develop strategies that reduce the need for compensations. Now that you have the ability to sense alternatives, you can start to carry them over to daily activities, and the forces associated with those activities can be distributed to a wider range of tissues. It is not easy, but I see clients succeed every day.

Austin Ulrich, Physical Therapist