Flexible Sports Team
Treating a variety of performers
The experts at SSM Health Physical Therapy specialize in treating performing artists who suffer from a variety of complex conditions. Dancers are a special type of athlete because their sport requires a balance of flexibilty and strength that other sports do not. This is an important factor that needs to be considered when recovering from injuries.
Flexible sports, such as dancing, gymnastics, cheerleading and figure skating, can lead to injuries such as:
- Spondylolisthesis
- Patellar tendonitis/Jumper's knee
- Trochanteric bursitis
- Stress fractures
- Plantar fasciitis
How physical therapy can help
Physical therapy can help with common dance injuries by restoring strength and flexibility, reducing irritation and improving stability. Our therapists use hands-on techniques to decrease pain and restore mobility so you can move into the extreme ranges required by your sport. Therapy also works on core strength, position and movement of the joints to return to pain-free performance and reduce the risk of re-injury.
A dancer's sense of body awareness is key to success. Our trained therapy team can help identify possible problematic areas that could lead to injury. We can also help to re-train the dancer's body to reduce the risk of future injury.
Preventative screenings
To help avoid injuries, we perform preventive screenings to evaluate your strength, flexibility and technique. Based on our findings, we provide tips and educational information to help strengthen muscles used on a regular basis, enhance your technique and partner with you to develop a healthy rest regimen. Some of these screenings include the Pointe Readiness Screen.
Contact us to learn more about our preventative care services.
Conditioning for the dancer
Our specialized therapists will develop a personalized conditioning program for an individual or group setting. Pre- and post-testing is performed on each athlete to help tailor the program to the athlete's unique needs.
For more information, please contact us at [email protected].
Your Therapy… Our PassionTM