Fit 4 Life Physical Therapy, LLC

Fit 4 Life Physical Therapy, LLC Our team is uniquely equipped to guide active people from recovery to performance.
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Whether you’re a youth athlete, weekend warrior, or competitive runner, we help you train smarter, stay injury-free, and perform at your best.

If you’ve worked with Raven, you know the impact she’s made.Her care, her energy, and the way she shows up for every pat...
04/28/2026

If you’ve worked with Raven, you know the impact she’s made.

Her care, her energy, and the way she shows up for every patient has been a huge part of Fit 4 Life.

Before she starts her next chapter, we’d love for you to join us in celebrating her.

📅 Thursday, May 7th
⏰ 5:00–7:00 PM
📍 Fit 4 Life Physical Therapy

Stop by, say hello, and help us send her off the right way.

Grateful for the season we’ve had with her 💛

Your athlete trains like one…Do they fuel like one?They show up.They work hard.They’re committed.👉 But most young athlet...
04/27/2026

Your athlete trains like one…
Do they fuel like one?

They show up.
They work hard.
They’re committed.

👉 But most young athletes have never been taught how to fuel their performance.

This summer, we’re changing that.

🍽️ Eat Like an Athlete
Hosted at Fit 4 Life with April Thompson

✔️ Hands-on cooking classes
✔️ Real-life, practical nutrition strategies
✔️ Built for young athletes and busy families
✔️ Every session ends with a meal they create

This isn’t just nutrition education—
👉 it’s a life skill that supports performance and longevity.

📅 Registration is open @ www.wtpcs.com
⚠️ Space is limited

Give your athlete an edge that lasts beyond the season.

If you’re a runner dealing with pain that:👉 Doesn’t go away as you warm up👉 Gets worse the longer you run👉 Feels more sp...
04/22/2026

If you’re a runner dealing with pain that:
👉 Doesn’t go away as you warm up
👉 Gets worse the longer you run
👉 Feels more specific and localized

…it might not be “just soreness.”

👉 It could be a bone stress injury (BSI)

🧠 What is a BSI?

A bone stress injury happens when:
👉 Training load > your bone’s ability to adapt

Over time, that stress builds from:
➡️ Stress reaction → to → stress fracture

📊 How common is this?

BSIs account for a significant portion of running injuries—
and many runners will experience one at some point if load isn’t managed well.

⚠️ Not all BSIs are the same:

🔴 Higher-risk areas (need quicker attention):

* Femoral neck
* Anterior tibia
* Navicular
* 5th metatarsal

👉 These areas don’t heal as easily → delayed care can mean longer recovery (or worse)

🟢 Lower-risk areas (typically respond well to conservative care):

* Posterior tibia
* Fibula
* Other metatarsals
* Pelvis / sacrum

👉 Still important—but often manageable with the right plan

🔑 What actually matters:

✅ Early recognition
→ Pain that persists or worsens is a red flag

✅ Load management
→ This is almost always part of the story

✅ Fueling
→ Under-fueling = poor bone health

✅ Strength + variability
→ Bones need different types of stress to adapt

🚨 The mistake we see most:

Runners try to “run through it” too long…

…and by the time they get help,
👉 it’s no longer a small problem.

The earlier you get clarity, the more options you have.

Not sure what your pain means?
That’s exactly what we help runners figure out.

Last week we talked about what growth plate injuries are.Today → let’s talk about how we manage them.Because this part m...
04/21/2026

Last week we talked about what growth plate injuries are.
Today → let’s talk about how we manage them.

Because this part matters.

👉 When apophysitis (growth plate irritation) is missed or pushed too far, it can lead to:

❌ Avulsion injury (a piece of bone pulling away)
❌ Prolonged pain + delayed healing
❌ Changes in bone development

⚠️ Why this happens:

In growing athletes, we often see a perfect storm:

* Rapid growth
* Tight muscles (hip flexors, quads, calves)
* Increased training load

👉 The bones grow fast.
👉 The muscles struggle to keep up.
👉 The growth plate takes the stress.

Add in year-round sports + early specialization… and it’s no surprise we’re seeing more of this.

🧠 So what do we do?

The goal is NOT to shut athletes down completely.

👉 It’s to manage load while allowing healing.

✅ What “acceptable pain” looks like:

Low-level symptoms (≤1/10) may be okay IF:

✔️ Pain returns to baseline within 24 hours
✔️ No change in running or movement mechanics
✔️ Pain doesn’t worsen during activity
✔️ The athlete feels comfortable continuing

👉 And with kids—we tend to be more conservative than with adults.

🛠️ Treatment priorities:

1️⃣ Settle symptoms first
→ Pain-free daily activity is the starting point

2️⃣ Modify training load
→ Not always full rest, but strategic reduction

3️⃣ Support the system
→ Strength, mobility, cross-training (when appropriate)

4️⃣ Give it TIME
→ This is the hardest part—and the most important

💬 The real challenge:

The timeline for healing…
👉 doesn’t always match the athlete’s season.

And that’s where tough decisions come in.

But long-term health > short-term participation. Every time.

We help families navigate this every day— because knowing what to do (and when) isn’t always clear.

👉 Questions about growth plate injuries? Drop them below.

Today we’re continuing our series on common injuries in growing runners.Last week → tendon painThis week → growth plate ...
04/18/2026

Today we’re continuing our series on common injuries in growing runners.

Last week → tendon pain
This week → growth plate injuries

And this is a big one.

👉 Because young athletes aren’t just “small adults.”

Their bodies are still developing—and that changes what’s vulnerable.

🌱 Let’s start with the basics:

Bones grow from areas called growth plates.

During the growing years:
👉 These areas are still open
👉 And they are weaker than the surrounding muscle and tendon

In fact—growth plates can be 2–5x weaker than the tissues around them.

⚠️ What does that mean?

When stress increases (running, jumping, training volume)…
👉 The growth plate is often the first place to get irritated.

This is called apophysitis
→ irritation at the site where tendons attach to growing bone

📍 Common spots we see in runners:

* Below the knee (Osgood-Schlatter)
* Back of the heel (Sever’s)
* Front of the pelvis (hip flexor attachment)
* Top of the hip (iliac crest)

🧠 Why this matters:

If we don’t recognize this early, we risk:
❌ Misdiagnosing it
❌ Managing it incorrectly
❌ Prolonging recovery

👉 Accurate and timely diagnosis matters.

A lot.

We’ll dive into how we treat these next week—
because the goal isn’t to shut athletes down…

👉 it’s to keep them progressing safely.

Has your young athlete dealt with something like this?
Drop your story below 👇

When a young runner develops tendon pain, one of the most important things we can do is:👉 Listen to their story.Because ...
04/18/2026

When a young runner develops tendon pain, one of the most important things we can do is:

👉 Listen to their story.

Because tendons don’t just “flare up” randomly— there’s almost always a reason.

Most often?
👉 A mismatch between training load and what the body is prepared to handle.

In young runners, we commonly see:

🔹 Patellar tendon pain – just below the kneecap
🔹 Achilles tendon pain – back of the heel
🔹 Gluteal tendon pain – outer hip

And here’s where things often go wrong…

🚨 Rest alone isn’t the solution 🚨

Yes, we may need to calm things down initially— but tendons don’t get better by doing nothing.

They get better by being loaded correctly.

At a high level, rehab follows three key phases:

1️⃣ Settle it down
→ Reduce irritation, adjust load

2️⃣ Find the “why”
→ Training errors, weak links, movement patterns

3️⃣ Build it back up
→ Progressive loading to restore strength and resilience

This is where:
✔️ Isometrics help manage pain
✔️ Strength work builds capacity
✔️ Movement analysis reduces re-injury risk

The goal isn’t just to get them out of pain—
👉 it’s to build a body that can handle their sport.

If your runner is dealing with something that just won’t go away,
it’s worth getting clarity early.

Comment RUNNER if you want help figuring out next steps.

One of the biggest things we consider when working with runners:👉 Age and stage of development matter.The type of injury...
04/16/2026

One of the biggest things we consider when working with runners:

👉 Age and stage of development matter.

The type of injury we see in a middle school runner looks very different from what we see in a high school or adult runner.

At a high level, most running injuries fall into three buckets:

👉 Bone stress injuries
👉 Tendon-related injuries
👉 Growth plate injuries (in younger athletes)

And each one behaves differently.

Here’s how we start to differentiate:

🦴 Bone stress injuries

* Pain can be local or more diffuse
* Doesn’t “warm up”
* Progressively worsens
* Pain with impact or weight bearing

💪 Tendon-related pain

* Localized to the tendon
* May warm up with activity
* Can vary day to day
* Aggravated by contraction or stretch

🌱 Growth plate pain

* Localized to tendon attachment sites
* Common in growing athletes
* May warm up initially
* Often tied to spikes in training volume or intensity

Why this matters 👇
If we don’t correctly identify what’s going on, we risk either pushing too hard… or shutting things down unnecessarily.

And neither leads to good outcomes.

This is just the starting point—
we’ll be diving deeper into each of these in the coming weeks.

👉 What questions does this bring up for you?

Most runners know they should strength train…But where do you even start?👉 This blog breaks it down simply: • Why streng...
04/15/2026

Most runners know they should strength train…
But where do you even start?

👉 This blog breaks it down simply:
• Why strength training matters for runners
• What actually needs to be included
• How to keep it simple (and sustainable)

No fluff. No overwhelm. Just what works.

If you want to run stronger, longer, and with fewer setbacks—this is for you.

🔗 Read it here:
https://fit4lifephysicaltherapyohio.com/2025/07/06/why-runners-need-to-strength-train-and-how-to-keep-it-simple/

One of the most important things to understand with young runners:👉 Their bodies are still growing.Growth plate injuries...
04/13/2026

One of the most important things to understand with young runners:

👉 Their bodies are still growing.

Growth plate injuries (often called apophysitis) are one of the most common things we see in middle school and high school runners.

Here’s what to look for:

👉 Growth plate pain:
• Localized to where the tendon attaches (growth zones)
• Often “warms up” with activity
• Increases with spikes in training volume or intensity

This is different from:

👉 Bone stress injuries:
• More constant pain
• Doesn’t warm up
• Worsens with weight bearing

👉 Tendon-related pain:
• More load-dependent
• Irritated with contraction or stretch
• Can vary day to day

Why this matters 👇
If we misinterpret growth-related pain as something else…
we either underreact or overreact.

Neither helps the athlete.

The goal :
👉 To understand what their body is telling us and adjust appropriately.

This is exactly what we help families navigate every day at Fit 4 Life.

If your runner is dealing with something and you’re not sure what it is—
that’s where we come in.

Comment RUNNER and we’ll help you figure out next steps.

Many of our patients want to know how to prevent pain. Is it possible to prevent XYZ pain? We believe very often the a...
04/10/2026

Many of our patients want to know how to prevent pain. Is it possible to prevent XYZ pain? We believe very often the answer is yes. We usually have signs present before symptoms start.

Your posture is an outward sign of what's going on inside your system, aka machine of a body. A skilled PT can look at your posture and get a pretty good idea that something is going on that may lead to injury.

Here are our top tips for preventing pain:
1- KEEP MOVING -> movement is medicine.
2- Learn about what good posture looks like. (see the Blog section of my website)
3- Check your motion.
To learn more you can watch a video blog we did recently.
https://fit4lifephysicaltherapyohio.com/.../can-xyz-pain.../

Interested in speaking with us directly about your specific pain problem, click the Ask About Availability Button also on our website.

Your athletes are high-achieving rockstars.Their bodies? A high-performance machine.But here’s the gap we see all the ti...
04/07/2026

Your athletes are high-achieving rockstars.
Their bodies? A high-performance machine.

But here’s the gap we see all the time…

👉 They train hard…
…but don’t know how to fuel it.

This summer, we’re changing that.

🍽️ Eat Like an Athlete
Hosted at Fit 4 Life with April Thompson

✔️ Learn how to cook simple, performance-based meals
✔️ Understand how to fuel for energy, recovery, and growth
✔️ Interactive classes → hands-on meal prep
✔️ Every session ends with a nutritious meal

And here’s the part your athlete will love…

👩‍🍳 Chef April has worked with professional athletes—including the Cavs and Browns—and is bringing that experience directly to YOUR future superstar.

📅 Registration is NOW OPEN
⚠️ Space is limited (by design)

Help your athlete perform better, recover faster, and stay in the game.

🔗 Register: www.wtpcs.com or scan the QR code above.

Address

7555 Fredle Drive Suite 240
Painesville, OH
44077

Opening Hours

Monday 8:30am - 2pm
Tuesday 8:30am - 5:30pm
Wednesday 8:30am - 2pm
Thursday 8:30am - 8pm
Friday 8:30am - 5:30pm

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We Believe Your Story Matters

At Fit 4 Life Physical Therapy in Concord, Ohio, we believe your story matters. We help active people stay healthy, strong, and fit. Should you experience pain or injury, we help you recover so you can get back to your passion, exercise and enjoying life as soon as possible.