Lewis Physical Therapy & Sports Rehabilitation

Lewis Physical Therapy & Sports Rehabilitation We help active adults and athletes get out of pain, get strong & do what they love

01/30/2026

Pitchers: Shoulder pain doesn’t start with one bad throw — it typically results from a chronically weak rotator cuff that can’t support high-volume or high-intensity throwing.

As a result, the rotator cuff can’t provide sufficient stability in the shoulder to support throwing at high velocities.

If it can’t do that 👇
• The ball (humeral head) shifts in the socket
• Extra stress hits your biceps tendon & labrum
• You get pinching, irritation, and fatigue
• Velocity and command start to drop

Most pitchers miss this and only focus on bands or long toss.

Instead 👇
✔️ Build true rotator cuff strength
✔️ Train stability in specific positions first, not just motion
✔️ Progress arm care the right way
✔️ Address pain BEFORE it becomes an injury

Shoulder pain while throwing is a warning sign — not something to push through.

📩 DM me “SHOULDER” if you’re dealing with shoulder pain when you throw.

01/27/2026

Shoulder or elbow pain every time you throw? You could be missing a crucial aspect of strengthening pattern in your program

The D2 Extension Pattern is a staple I use with pitchers for rehab and arm care—because throwing isn’t just about the rotator cuff.

Here’s why this matters 👇
• Trains scapular control (not just purely rotator strength)
• Teaches how to produce force anteriorly without overloading the bicep tendon
• Closely replicates the throwing motion

🚫 Common mistake:
Letting the shoulder roll forward and overloading the bicep tendon, which is a common source of pain in throwers with anterior shoulder pain

✅ Instead 👇
• Start in a Y position
• Thumb rotates in → out
• Pull down and outside the hip
• Feel the shoulder blade move—not the shoulder jam forward

This is about control, rotation, and clean movement—not yanking bands for reps.

👉 Can’t throw without arm pain? DM “ARM” to learn about our process that helps injured pitchers get back on the mound.

01/21/2026

Still feel uneven, shifted, or tight on one side when you squat?

If one hip always feels tighter…
If you shift out of the hole…
If depth feels different side-to-side…

👉 You’ll want to check if lateral hip mobility.
When the hip can’t move well laterally:
    •    The pelvis shifts
    •    One side takes more load
    •    The low back and SI joint pick up the slack

🚫 The mistake:
Forcing depth or ignoring the asymmetry.

✅ Instead 👇
Lateral hip mobilization helps:
    •    Improve lateral hip mobility
    •    Reduce shifting and asymmetrical loading
    •    Take stress off the low back and SI joint

➕ Progression:
Add a gentle internal rotation bias
(Not painful, just enough to challenge the range)

And here’s the key most people miss 👇
These drills aren’t just for rehab.
✔️ Use them early if pain or stiffness is flared up
✔️ Use them as maintenance in your warm-up when training consistently
✔️ 1 set before lifting, 1 set after if needed
This is how you keep hips moving well long-term, not just temporarily.

📩 DM “HIP” if you can’t squat without hip or low back pain
We’ll identify what’s limiting you and build a plan that lets you keep training — not shut it down.

01/19/2026

Feel “jammed” at the bottom of your squat?

If you can’t hit depth without:
    •    Hip pinching
    •    Shifting or dumping into your low back
    •    Feeling stuck even though you’re “mobile”

👉 For a deep, comfortable squat, the hip has to glide down in the socket.

When it can’t, you compensate by:
    •    Arching your low back
    •    Shifting to one side
    •    Forcing depth and irritating the hip joint

🚫 The mistake:
Forcing depth or stretching harder.

✅ Instead 👇
Inferior hip mobilization helps:
    •    Create space in the hip joint
    •    Reduce pinching at the bottom of the squat
    •    Improve depth without dumping stress into the low back

Key focus:
✔️ Band high in the groin
✔️ Slow, controlled rock back
✔️ 5-second holds — no forcing range

This is a staple drill for lifters who feel stuck at the bottom of the squat position.

📩 DM “HIP” to book an evaluation today

If you can’t squat to depth without hip or low back pain, we’ll find the exact limiter and build a plan that keeps you training.

01/18/2026

Front-of-hip pain when you squat, bridge, or deadlift?

If hip extension feels tight or pinchy, most people do this 👇
🚫 Aggressively stretch their hip flexors
🚫 Jam into end range
🚫 Arch their low back to “fake” hip motion

And all that does is drive the front of the hip further into the socket — making the pinching worse.

✅ Instead 👇
Banded hip extension mobilization helps:
    •    Restore hip extension without front-of-hip pain
    •    Improve pelvic control during squats, bridges, and deadlifts
    •    Take stress off the low back when you extend under load

The key isn’t forcing range — it’s:
✔️ Core engaged
✔️ Light glute squeeze
✔️ Controlled movement (not letting the band yank you forward)

This is a go-to drill for lifters who feel hip pinching during training.

📩 DM “HIP” to book an evaluation today

If you can’t squat, hinge, or train without hip or low back pain, we’ll identify what’s limiting you and build a plan that keeps you training — not shutting you down.

01/14/2026

Can’t hit depth without hip or low back pain? Start here.

One of the most overlooked reasons squats feel stiff, pinchy, or jammed at the bottom isn’t your hamstrings or your ankles…

👉 It could b berestricted posterior hip capsule.
When the back of the hip has limited mobility:
    •    The femur can’t glide properly in the socket
    •    You lose depth and control at the bottom of the squat
    •    Stress gets dumped into the front of the hip, low back, or SI joint

🚫 The mistake:
Cranking aggressive stretches or forcing depth — which usually makes the pinching worse.

✅ Instead 👇
Posterior hip capsule mobilization helps:
    •    Restore hip motion without front-of-hip pain
    •    Let the hip sit back and down in the socket
    •    Take stress off the low back during squats and deadlifts

This is often one of the first drills we use with lifters who can’t squat pain-free.

📩 DM “HIP” to book an evaluation today

If squatting still causes hip or low back pain, we’ll identify exactly what’s limiting you and build a plan that keeps you training — not sitting out.

01/10/2026

Shoulder pain when throwing?

Most pitchers think rotator cuff work = light bands + endless reps.

That’s NOT what prepares your shoulder to decelerate a high-velocity arm.

Here’s what this TRX 90/90 isometric actually trains 👇
    •    ✔️ True rotator cuff stability in a throwing-specific position
    •    ✔️ Scapular control without over-arching or collapsing
    •    ✔️ End-range strength where pitchers break down most
    •    ✔️ Tissue tolerance for late cocking & deceleration

🚫 Common mistakes I see all the time
    •    Falling into your low back
    •    Letting the shoulder dump forward
    •    Treating this like a burnout instead of a quality hold

👉 Instead 👇
    •    Stay tall and stacked
    •    Lock the shoulder blade in
    •    Control the position
    •    Build duration over time (short → long holds)

This is one of my go-to drills for pitchers coming back from shoulder or elbow pain — because it actually transfers to throwing.

📩 Having shoulder pain when you throw?
DM me “SHOULDER” and I’ll help you figure out your next step.

01/02/2026

This is how we reintroduce deadlifting BEFORE you’re ready to pull weight off the floor.

When your back is irritated, movement & graduated loading is almost always the first answer.

That’s where isometric rack pulls come in.

Here’s why I use them early 👇
• They reduce pain sensitivity
• They expose your back to deadlift-specific tension
• They rebuild confidence without movement
• They let us load the glutes & hamstrings safely

This isn’t yanking on the bar.

The focus 👇
• Drive your feet through the floor
• Use your glutes and hamstrings
• ZERO pulling from the low back
• No bar movement — just intent

How we progress it 👇
• Early: 3–4 sets of 30–45s (low intensity)
• Later: shorter holds (20s → 10s → 5s)
• Higher effort as tolerance improves

Same exercise.
Different stimulus.
Progressed intelligently.

⚠️ The biggest mistake lifters make is guessing when to load again.

👉 If you’ve been avoiding the bar because you’re afraid of reinjury, that’s your sign you need structure — not more rest.

📩 If pain is keeping you from training, DM me “EVAL” to book an evaluation today.

12/30/2025

Injured your back deadlifting and looking for ways to keep training?

After a back injury, most people jump too fast — or avoid loading altogether.
Both keep you stuck.
The landmine helps fix that.

Here’s why 👇
• It gives you more stability than a barbell alone
• You can load the glutes & hamstrings without over-stressing the back
• It lets you rebuild confidence before going heavy again

The mistake I see all the time 🚫
• Back foot way too far behind
• Weight shifts backward
• Turns into balance work instead of a hinge
That defeats the entire purpose.

Instead 👇
• Outside leg = working leg
• Inside hand holds the bar
• Back foot lightly on the toes — just a kickstand
• Same RDL cues: slight knee bend, hips back, stop around mid-shin

This lets you:
✅ Load heavier than single-leg
✅ Stay controlled
✅ Progress without flaring up your back

👉 Stay tuned for Part 3, where I break down how I use isometric rack pulls to reduce pain and rebuild deadlift confidence even earlier in rehab.

📩 If back pain is keeping you from training — or you can’t throw without shoulder pain — DM me “EVAL” to book an evaluation today.

12/22/2025

Hurt your back deadlifting… and worried it might happen again?

You’re not weak.
You’re not broken.

Here’s what happens 👇
• You tweak your back once
• You rest longer than needed
• You avoid deadlifts completely
• Your confidence drops… and so does your tolerance to load

The problem isn’t the deadlift.
The problem is never rebuilding it the right way.

⚠️ Most lifters are told to either:
• “Just rest”
• “Stretch it out”
• Or avoid deadlifting forever
None of those actually prepare your body to lift again.

Instead 👇
You need a graded reintroduction:
• Start with controlled hip hinges
• Use the right RDL setup & cues
• Load the glutes and hamstrings without irritating the back
• Build confidence before intensity

That’s exactly what this series is breaking down.

👉 Stay tuned for Part 2, where I break down why I how & why we use a Landmine RDL for returning to deadlifting safely.

📩 If you can’t deadlfit without back pain — or pain is keeping you from training the way you want — DM me “BACK” today
We’ll map out a clear plan to get you lifting & training pain-free again.

12/17/2025

Still Guessing With Shoulder Rehab? This Is the Missing Piece
Most adults with shoulder pain never actually load the shoulder correctly — which is why the pain keeps coming back.
To finish this rebuild sequence, we add a scaption-based isometric — one of the most effective ways to build rotator cuff strength without flaring symptoms.
Here’s what matters 👇
✅ Arm slightly off the side of the hip (~15°)
✅ Thumb up
✅ Shoulder blade set down and back
✅ Neck relaxed — no shrugging
✅ Pressure goes up into the band (no swinging)
If it’s wrong, you’ll feel:
❌ Pinching in the front or side of the shoulder
❌ Upper trap and neck takeover
If it’s right, you’ll feel:
✅ Deep rotator cuff engagement
✅ Better shoulder control
✅ Less pain overhead
Programming that actually works:
• 2–3 sets of 30–60+ second holds
• Short rest (15–20 sec)
• Long-duration isometrics = better pain response + real loading
• Bonus: BFR to accelerate adaptation
These three isometrics (ER, IR, Scaption) are where I start with many shoulder pain cases — but they only work when matched to the right shoulder problem.
👇 DM “SHOULDER” to book an evaluation today if shoulder pain is holding you back from throwing or lifting pain-free.

12/13/2025

Still dealing with shoulder pain after weeks of “working through it”? It’s time to build a stable foundation.

After dialing in ER isometrics, the next step in rebuilding a stronger, more resilient shoulder is the internal rotation isometric — and most athletes have never been coached to do this correctly.

Here’s what you’re aiming for 👇

✅ The movement is inward, toward your belly
✅ Tension should feel deep in the armpit — that’s the true IR musculature
✅ You may feel a little forearm — but it should be minimal
✅ Most of the load comes from the pec + deep internal rotators

❌ If it’s all elbow? You’re doing it wrong
❌ If you don’t feel it in the armpit? We need to adjust your setup

ER + IR isometrics together create the foundation of shoulder stability — especially for
pitchers and CrossFit athletes dealing with front-of-shoulder pain.

👇 DM “SHOULDER” to book an evaluation today if shoulder pain is holding you back from throwing or lifting pain-free.

Address

824 Route 88
Point Pleasant Beach, NJ
08742

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Thursday 12pm - 6pm
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Website

https://linktr.ee/lewisptsr

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