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We love that our staff is as active as they are. It helps to show our patients that our staff's understanding comes from a place of actually doing not just hearing.
Robert Duncan-
PT Tech, Personal Trainer, USAC Level 3 Cycling Coach, and Professional Triathlete
Working out is a large part of Rob's everyday life. Being a professional triathlete, he spends over 25 hours a
week exercising and training for races. Keeping strength and fitness is crucial when it comes to a professional triathlete's
health. Rob is currently training for Challenge Roth where he will be competing with some of the best
triathletes in the world this July.
Read more of how our staff Walks the Walk in our upcoming newsletters!
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In next month's issue, you will be able to read the first article from one of our newer physical therapists, Lindsey Rose
Physical Therapy Corner:
Lindsey Rose, PT, DPT, BS
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We are happy to announce that we are now part of the Naperville Area Chamber of Commerce!
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Congratulations to Darien Swarm Football for winning the 2015 Midwest Regional Championship and competing in Disney World for the 2015 Pop Warner Super Bowl! Looking forward to amazing things again in the 2016 season!
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CPR
re-certification and Certification
classes now available!
-BLS for the Healthcare provider
-Heartsaver
-Family & Friends CPR/Choking basics
Classes provided through
American Heart Association
for more details!
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We've redesigned our website!
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Ariana Grymski
Figure Skater
Our focus this month is on one of our most tenacious, driven and dedicated patients to date: Ariana Grymski. She is an elite-level figure skater, with hopes and dreams to, one day, not only make our national team, but also vie for a spot to represent the US at an Olympic Games. In the meantime, majoring in Physics at Loyola and having a small, personalized cupcake baking business on the side fills the hours that she is not at the rink. We have had the pleasure to stand by her in her darkest days and support her to rise to her greatest success, all in the year that we have known her. Through two hip surgeries, over a hundred hours in PT, and countless reps of rehab exercises, she has made an impression on each of us... and will for you, too.
For Grymski, the love of her sport of figure skating did not start from being a natural on the ice. In fact, her love for the sport started when she was two years old at Navy Pier and could not even stand up on the ice without help, but she loved it! Ariana was excited to finally be able to take classes after she turned four, and at first it was just to try and see if she wanted to continue with them. However, it did not take long for her to know that she wanted to keep pursuing skating. Ariana tells us, "I always wanted to get to the next skill level, then the next, and then the next."
This drive has gotten Ariana to an elite level, but it also cost her a couple hip injuries. Ariana admits, "I was not very good to my body when I was younger." She continues, "I would work on the same jump for three hours in a row, and the repetitive pounding probably contributed to or caused my injury. This repetition along with not strengthening my muscles before I worked on a skill to prepare my body well was my downfall." In January of 2014, Ariana's hips started to hurt chronically. After waiting for almost a year hoping that the pain would go away, she decided to visit one of the best physicians/surgeons in the Chicagoland area, Dr. Sherwin Ho at University of Chicago, to get an MRI. The MRI revealed that Ariana had a labral tear and that she would inevitably need surgery. Often with labral tears, people choose to treat conservatively, or the physician may recommend various PT and exercises pending the location and severity of the tear, the intensity of the athlete, and the sport-specific demands. In this case, for a high level figure skater, often taking up to 8x body weight (according to researchers at Brigham Young University in 2014), surgery was needed. So, Ariana's hip needed to be prepared to re-enter a sport that was not going to allow her to tread lightly...
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Hamstring Stretching - How do I do it?
Types of stretching and a few basic stretches for anyone
 
Taylor Millican, PT, DPT, ART-Cert. (Left)
Sports Medicine Physical Therapist
Endurance Sports Medicine
and
Gina Pongetti, MPT, MA, CSCS, ART-Cert. (Right)
Sport Biomechanics Specialist
Performing Arts Medicine Program Director
Endurance Sports Medicine Outreach
One of the most frequently asked questions I get from athletes and non-athletes alike is: "How do I stretch?" Often people have misconceptions on stretching or are confused on the correct form/method so the outcome is they just don't do it. There is a great deal of information about stretching and flexibility in magazines and on social media. Who do I listen to? Which expert is right? Which magazine is more reputable? What kind of information do I value? How, when, why, ...you get the picture.
There are different methods of stretching: static, dynamic, partner-assisted, neuro-muscular, tool assisted and more. Not one is necessarily "better" than the other, in general, they are all useful for different reasons. To simplify the matter - static/passive are held for durations of longer than 30 seconds with no motion or change in position. Dynamic/active stretches are done in a controlled manner with specific motion/movement. Typically dynamic stretching is done prior to activity to "warm up" a muscle and prepare it for activity. Static stretching is done after activity (unless preparing for a flexibility-based sport such as gymnastics, dance, etc.). Neuro-muscular stretching is a way to confuse muscles to hyper-relaxing, or letting go, and taking up the slack. Tool-assisted is a combination of tone decrease and muscle relaxation that also helps in recovery, often done with rollers and balls.
If
I had to pick one muscle group that stretching would benefit, for the majority of the population regardless of sport or activity level, hands down it would be the hamstrings. We as PT's get frequent questions about ways to keep this muscle group flexible- some questions from athletes wanting to get an edge, others after injury, and some to simply relieve pain and stiffness. Athletes tend to have less hip joint ROM with tightness in surrounding muscles, including the hamstrings, hip flexors and gluteals, and are more prone to injury from this reduced range of motion. People with desk jobs often get sore low backs from tightness from prolonged sitting, and even cyclists, from biking in flexed positions.
Read the entire article including specific hamstring stretches.
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In the News--- Concussions
By Marissa Parker, MSED, ATC
Actor Will Smith is staring in a new movie titled Concussion. This has once again shined a spotlight on head trauma across the nation. In the movie, Dr. Bennet Omalu, a neuropathologist, discovers a neurological deterioration disease (Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy) in the brain of Mike Webster, a former NFL player. The film highlights Dr. Omalu's undertaking to raise public awareness about the dangers of repetitive head trauma, specifically in football.
Unfortunately, tragedy in football is not something new to Illinoisans. On October 24, 2015, a senior at Bogan High School died after he had collapsed on the football field. According to the Cook County medical examiner's office, the student-athlete "died of blunt force head injuries due to a football accident." During the final play of his Thursday night game, the 17-year-old hit his head. After walking off of the field, he collapsed and passed away the next morning.
Although making the public aware of these tragedies is important, media outlets are very quick to share the "bad news" about concussions but often neglect to share the progress and advances being made.
For instance, the American Medical Association (AMA) voted in June 2015 to adopt policies aimed at reducing the risk of concussion in young athletes.
The new policy addresses the need for prompt diagnosis and appropriate concussion management plans in treating sports-related concussions. Anyone suspected of having sustained a concussion is to be removed immediately from the activity and allowed only to return with a physician's written consent.
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