Luttrell Physical Therapy

02/12/2022

If your practitioner says they will fix your pain, you should ask what is wrong with pain. I have seen so many promotions and products that promote eliminating pain or being pain-free. Pain is an essential function to life, in fact there are people born without the ability to feel pain and they typically die young because pain is our alarm system. For example, if you step on a nail would you want to know about it? Of course because then we can attend to it so you do not get an infection. This is how our nervous system is designed, constantly accepting feedback from our environment, then amplifies signals that are important or turns down inputs that are not important to us staying alive. So pain is actually an output of our nervous system, not an input. There is no specific sensor for pain in your body but there are pressure sensors, chemical sensors, temperature sensors, etc. this is why pain is unique.

A pain experience is not simply I sent off this sensor and now I have pain, it is much more complicated because it also involves your environment, your current emotional state, previous experiences, how much stress you currently have both physical and emotional, is there another threat that is more harmful to, how well did you sleep, have you been eating and drinking problem and so forth. This is why chronic pain exists and why pain can become a problem. Pain becomes a problem when it disrupts your life and then we need to not only examine what is happening at the source of pain but other contributing factors and how can we control or manage these factors.

If you are seeing a practitioner and they are not at least talking to you about other factors in life that could possibly contribute to your pain experience you need to question your healthcare provider.

🤦‍♀️

12/07/2021

Fix your front squat. Many people struggle with front squats due to lack of mobility. Most people new to fitness or those who work desk jobs struggle to get into a proper front rack position and often complain of wrist pain during front squats. While some tension in the forearm may lead to pain in the wrist most often the reason is due to lack of mobility in the shoulders and thoracic spine. In order to get into a front rack position where we can rest the barbell on our shoulders without pain we need to have shoulder flexion above 90, elbow flexion and good shoulder external rotation in that position. In other words we need to be able to touch our thumb to our shoulder with our shoulder above shoulder height. Then we also need to have the ability to rotate our forearms away from our shoulders so we can help balance the bar on the shoulder. Most times what I see is lack of shoulder external rotation and poor lat mobility being the biggest limiting factors to proper front rack positioning. Often the compensation will be over extension at the lower back or just not able to get the bar to rest on the shoulders so it is held in the wrist. The other part of the front squat that people often struggle with is the same as any squat: poor ankle mobility so they are not able to keep heels on the ground and squat down. I did a little mobility workout to work on these areas. Check it out below

15 min EMOM
Min 1 30 secs ea side banded lat stretch with external rotation of shoulder
Min 2 Load mobilization w/ KB (hold shoulders against the ground, do not press up)
Min 3 Same as 2 switch arms
Min 4 Banded ankle distraction (all directions)
Min 5 Same change legs

If you have any questions or need more help with mobility please reach out. Call/text (737) 757-0130 or email cody.luttrelldpt@gmail.com

11/18/2021

Sexy does not equal healthy. Exercises for health vs the “sexy” exercises. Often fitness enthusiasts, get excited by the complex movements and tell their coach my goal is to do a muscle up or sn**ch 300 pounds. Coaches have limited time in class to help with these goals so people end up doing stuff on their own based on what they see on social media. This is great but most times the average person does not have the full range of motion for a quality overhead squat position or can not do a strict pull up but want to do butterfly pull ups. I was one of these people (I still struggle with mobility issues). When I started Crossfit I wanted to do the movements I saw at even if I was not prepared or skilled enough. Instead of taking the time to focus on the “boring” stuff stretching and strength of stabilizing muscles I pushed through and had a constant revolving door of injuries. This is the reason I got into the physical therapy field to help others avoid the path I traveled and help others stay healthy.

I am not trying to focus on the simple exercises and stretches that will help me maintain health for the long term and spend less time on the “sexy” exercises. Try to avoid doing that extra metcon or maxing out on your lifts every day and instead take some time to work on your shoulder external rotation strengthening/mobility or the flexibility of your ankles. I understand because I have a hard time reminding myself to do this but my goal for this next month is to avoid doing extra conditioning or strength work and focus on my accessory work.

Here is an example accessory workout
12 mins EMOM
Min 1-15/15 side-lying shoulder ER
Min 2-16 Bent knee calf raise on step
Min 1-15/15 side-lying shoulder ERith PVC
Min 4-Banded ankle distraction/calf stretch

Comment below other areas that mobility help

Want to make your home exercise program more fun contact me and I will make a workout out of your HEP. Call or text (737) 757-0130 or email me at cody.luttrelldpt@gmail.com. Also, check our gym https://elevatefitnessclub.com and join us for a free week!

10/28/2021

As a physical therapist I know that it is important to complete exercises for accessory muscles, those small muscles, improve mobility and improve mechanics in order to maintain a healthy body for the long term. At the same time I find it difficult to stay consistent with these because they are not as fun as doing a workout and doing things like stretching is just uncomfortable. That being said this is something I am trying to get better at.

This video is my attempt to make some of my accessory exercise or if you have been in PT before home exercises a little more fun.

Workout
21-15-9
Banded hip hinge
Cals on bike
Banded W’s to OH w/ ecc Y

This is for quality and not time so movements should be crisp. It was a good way to get movement work in with little fatigue and strength overhead under fatigue.

I am going to try to get more post like this out is if I can make this stuff a little more fun and easier to commit to.

Have questions or want to make your home exercise program more fun contact me and I will make a workout out of your HEP. Call or text (737) 757-0130 or email me at cody.luttrelldpt@gmail.com. Also check our gym https://elevatefitnessclub.com and join us for a free week!

10/19/2021

Knee pain during or after squatting?

Check out these quick easy self assessments to see if you are lacking in mobility that could be hindering your squat mechanics.

The most common reason for pain during squatting is poor technique and poor technique is often due to lack of necessary mobility. As a physical therapist two common areas I see limiting athletes from normal squat movement patterns are the ankles and the hips. The two assessments in the videos are a quick way to screen to see if you need to improve your mobility or maybe change up your squat stance.

The first video is looking at what is called closed chain dorsiflexion which is how far can the knee go over the toes without the foot coming off the ground. In this test you will be one hand width away from a wall or pole. Your goal is to be able to touch your knee to the wall without your heel coming up off the ground. If you can do this then you should be able to get into proper squat depth but if you can not you may need to work on calf muscle flexibility or ankle joint mobility.

The second video assesses hip flexion and what hip width is best for your squat stance. Everyone is built differently so it stands to reason not every squat stance is created equal. Your goal is to be able to flex your hip past 90 degrees without a pinch sensation in your hip or your butt coming up off the ground. If you feel that sensation then play around with different angles of the hip. If you are limited with all angles then you may need to improve hip flexor mobility or do some distracted hip flexion exercises.

Give these quick assessments a try to improve your squat mechanics and figure out what areas you may need to workout to eliminate pain during squats.

If you are experiencing pain or would just like to improve your mechanics to set a new PR contact me at Cody.luttrelldpt@gmail.com or visit my website at https://codyluttrelldpt.wixsite.com/luttrelldpt for a Free 20 min assessment

10/14/2021

The shoulder is the most commonly injured body part for those who participate in any type of exercise. When was the last time you put your arms over your head, like all the way over your head beside the gym? Most likely you lift your arms up to wash your hair or put dishes away in high cabinets, maybe use the hand grip to get out of your truck but considering how many hours there are in a day that is not much. Therein lies the problem, if we do not use it we lose it and our body does not get stronger or aware of full motion so in turn the brain sets off its alarm system, pain. Most times the alarm is not a real issue but when we do something like return to the gym after an absence or our coach programs push press, pull ups, push ups, sn**ch, wall balls and strict press all in the same week that is a lot of demand on our shoulders and big spike in training volume. As a coach and physical therapist this is usually when I hear “my shoulders have been bothering me” or “I think I did something to my shoulder”. In most cases we have not done any permanent damage rather just irritated the tissues.

So what do we need to do? We need to train our shoulders to tolerate and be prepared for end ranges of motion and an increase in volume. This video shows an example of an exercise I like to use to help improve your shoulder stability, try to incorporate this exercise into your normal routine.

Complete 2 times a week for 6 weeks. Each side you will do 2 sets of 15 reps increasing that to 3 sets of 12 reps in 3 weeks.
I love this exercise because it is so simple but has a huge impact not only are we getting into our end range of motion but we are also working on the often underutilized and forgotten muscle the lower trap. This will help us not only to be more stable overhead but create a safer pattern for us to perform exercises overhead diminishing the risk of serious injury.
I love this exercise because it is so simple but has a huge impact not only are we getting into our end range of motion but we are also working on the often underutilized and forgotten muscle the lower trap. This will help us not only to be more stable overhead but create a safer pattern for us to perform exercises overhead diminishing risk of serious injury.

Make sure to keep your head down on the bench and perform one arm at a time and move within your comfortable range of motion to start.

If you have any questions or you are experiencing pain and want a licensed professional to check out your shoulder email me at Cody.luttrelldpt@gmail.com or check out my website to set up a free consultation. https://codyluttrelldpt.wixsite.com/luttrelldpt

10/08/2021

I wanted to talk a little about the concept of “sore but safe”. Oftentimes when people get back into working out or starting fitness for the first time they are very fearful that they are going to hurt themselves. The best way to know the difference in soreness vs pain is the way the body reacts the next day or following days. For normal soreness you would expect to be sore the next day and most likely the following day especially as you start out. Oftentimes the third day could be the worst. This is normal and in no way have you done damage to your tissues that is cause for concern. I see this many times after treating patients in the clinic that come back on the next visit saying they were so sore and felt worse when really they were just sore because it is new for their nervous system. Our nervous system acts like an alarm system so when it experiences something new often it sets off the alarm. Understanding that the soreness is normal and no tissue damage has occurred, along with proper rest (sleeping 7-8 hours), eating adequate protein (.75-1 g of protein per lbs of body weight depending on female or males), and plenty of fluids. Movement also is important the more blood flow through your body the better the body can move inflammation to help reduce soreness as well.

It is important not to push too hard too fast, this is why we often recommend 3 times a week to start because you will start to create the habit of working out but are able to give your body adequate rest to adjust to the new demands.

At the same time it is important to monitor your body for recovery because if the soreness is not going away after 2 days or your soreness is getting worse then you may need to be assessed for possible tissue damage by a medical practitioner like a physical therapist. This is rare when performing exercise with qualified coaches and programming that is designed with proper progressive overload.

If you have any concerns of tissue damage or are trying to play it safe contact me for a free consultation or movement assessment at Cody.luttrelldpt@gmail.com or visit my website https://codyluttrelldpt.wixsite.com/luttrelldpt.

09/16/2021

I was unsure of joining the chamber of commerce but the Leander Chamber is Awesome so happy I joined!

Welcome to the chamber, Cody Luttrell PT, DPT!

Luttrell Physical Therapy is owned by Cody Luttrell Doctor of Physical Therapy, TDN cert, SFMA, CF-L1. Cody's goal is to help anybody regardless of their current level of function to optimize their movement patterns in order to do what they love to do.