Ashley was dealing with some shoulder pain that was really getting in the way of her exercise routine. When she came in to see us at Dynamic Sports Physical Therapy in New York City, Ashley told us that this pain in her left shoulder was preventing her from attending SoulCycle and barre classes, and was also interfering with her sleep.
To get to the root of Ashley’s problem, her physical therapist asked her some additional questions and performed a thorough evaluation of her shoulder. The therapist noticed that Ashley was experiencing pain when moving and rotating her shoulder in several directions. She also had some shoulder weakness and limited mobility of the shoulder joint when performing certain movements, which was responsible for preventing her from completing her classes. Based on these findings, Ashley’s therapist diagnosed her condition as left rotator cuff tendinitis (which you can read more about in our last blog).
Ashley stated that her goals from treatment were to return to both SoulCycle and barre classes, as well as sleep at night, all without having shoulder pain.
How Dynamic Sports Physical Therapy in New York City helped Ashley improve
After completing the evaluation, Ashley’s therapist created a six-week treatment program that was based on her condition and goals. The program included soft tissue techniques, ultrasound, ice therapy, and electric stimulation to decrease inflammation and tone in the inflamed muscles around her shoulder and neck. This was followed by three techniques, the Active Release Technique, Graston Technique and joint mobilization, which were all designed to help restore Ashley’s full shoulder range of motion without pain.
Next, Ashley performed a series of strengthening exercises that targeted a specific muscle group called the shoulder stabilizer muscles. As she progressed with these exercises, Ashley was eventually able to start doing shoulder exercises to strengthen all of her shoulder muscles and continued to build back strength. Finally, Ashley’s therapist made sure that she was able to perform all SoulCycle and barre exercises with proper form so that she could return to these classes without pain once therapy was complete.
After completing these six weeks of therapy with us, Ashley was in fact able to return to her SoulCycle and barre classes pain-free. She had this to say about her experience: “I felt that my program at Dynamic Sports was designed specifically for my injury and my goals,” she said. “I’m happy to say that I am now exercising four days a week now without any shoulder pain.”
As you can see, here at Dynamic Sports Physical Therapy in New York City, we ensure that every treatment program we create is tailored specifically to the individual and their personal goals and abilities. We are pleased to see such a significant improvement in Ashley after six weeks of treatment, and encourage you to seek out our services as well if you’re experiencing any pain of your own. Contact us at 212-317-8303 to schedule an appointment today, or click here to read our last blog on rotator cuff tendinitis.
