Around 30% of patients I treat have a complaint that is caused by prolonged sitting, commonly in front of a screen. This is mostly neck and back pain caused by things like; getting stuck at the desk too long, long commutes, long-haul flights, binge watching Netflix on the lounge, or looking at the iPad in bed.

This is a relatively new activity for humans and we're just not used to it. From an evolutionary point of view, we're just not adapted to sitting still all day. We've had 100,000 generations of hunting and gathering, moving around, doing different things all day. We've had 50 generations of agriculture, and only 10 generations of industry, where we're expected to sit and do the same repetitive task for prolonged periods of time. We're just not used to staying still from 9-5. Our bodies have evolved to move and be used. Staying still makes us sore.

Are you working from home, self-isolating, or practising social-distancing due to COVID-19? Fit As A Physio offers online physio consultations, available via PhysiApp, FaceTime, or Skype.

The most important parts of any physio appointment can easily be done via telemedicine: history taking, diagnosis, advising, supporting, educating, as well as exercise prescription design and modification.
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The video consultation includes a thorough assessment of your injury, an accurate diagnosis, estimate of timeframe for recovery, and a management plan of the right exercises you need to do to help yourself.

Importantly this includes simple explanations, so you can understand:

• What is it?
• Is it serious?
• Why have you got it?
• Is it something you need to rest, or push through?
• Can you keep training?
• How long will it take to get better?
• Have you done any permanent damage?
• Are you doing something that's making it worse?
• What do I need to do to get it better?​

Video consultations are available on your smart phone, tablet, or a browser on your laptop or desktop.

​Advantages:

• Innovative, secure and easy to use.
• In-call streaming of high quality content.
• Seamlessly integrated with HD-video exercise and education library.
• 3D anatomical images and videos.
• Audio and video are encrypted.
• Instant access to activity prescriptions and outcomes.

Video consultations are booked in 15 minute increments ($39), depending on how long you need.

Email Fergus to discuss. Or book online HERE.

COVID-19 is presenting an unprecedented challenge. Australians are being asked to take measures that we’ve never had to before.

You may be wondering how this affects your physiotherapy treatment?

The Prime Minister has confirmed specifically that physiotherapy is deemed an essential service. In addition, the Health Minister also encouraged private practices to remain open, as it will reduce demand on general practice and the hospitals if patients can still see their physiotherapist for their musculoskeletal and acute care management.

As such, Fit As A Physio is currently staying open to continue offering quality care to my clients.

There are many things I am doing as a registered health professional to minimise risk of exposure, through rigorous hygiene practices, and patient screening to keep you safe.  So, you are welcome to come in for your treatment, subject to the following screening process:

• Have you travelled to, or transited through, an affected country in the last 14 days?
• OR had contact with someone with Coronavirus or who is suspected of having Coronavirus?
• AND have any of these symptoms: COUGH / FEVER / SHORTNESS OF BREATH?

If you answer “yes” to any of the above:

PROTECT YOURSELF AND OTHERS BY STAYING HOME AND CONTACTING YOUR LOCAL GP.

I have recently completed the Department of Health's "COVID-19 Infection Control Training".  I have reviewed all clinic hygiene practices, to ensure optimal safety and care for every person who attends the clinic and have made the following changes:

• If you have been advised to quarantine or self-isolate, please do not come to your appointment.
• There is hand sanitiser on the front desk and all patients are to use this on entering and leaving the clinic.
• I am leaving space in-between appointments to allow time for cleaning, and to minimise patient interaction in the waiting room.
• I will not be greeting you with hand shakes or other contact hand gestures.
• I am wiping down contact surfaces between appointments with Dettol Surface Cleanser.
• I am continuing with my normal hand hygiene measures of thorough hand washing before and after all patient contact.

If you are in self-isolation or would prefer to minimise contact in any way, you may like to consult with me via video. "Telehealth" uses technology that’s readily available on your computer or phone to receive assessment, diagnosis, and rehab prescription. FaceTime, Skype, or PhysiApp are easy options. The standard consultation via telehealth is $39/15mins.

If you would like to talk to me about commencing or continuing your physio through Telehealth, please phone 9969 6925, email fergus@fitasaphysio.com, or book online here.

Stay safe and well.

Kind regards,

Fergus Tilt
Sports & Exercise Physiotherapist
Fit As A Physio | MOSMAN

Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) is one of the most common forms of vertigo, affecting 2% of the population at some point in our lives. 

BPPV is caused by a problem with the inner ear, where a small calcium deposit forms and moves with gravity around the different angled canals of the inner ear. BPPV is “positional” as it is triggered by specific head movements, for example, turning your head to the left with rolling over in bed. Symptoms of vertigo are room spinning, disturbed balance, and nausea.

BPPV typically resolves within a few weeks, but can be recurring.

Your GP can give you anti-nausea medication, and Physiotherapists treat BPPV with a sequence of movements and positions, called the Epley Manoeuvre, that uses gravity to re-position the calcium crystals.

Do you have vertigo? Book a physiotherapy appointment in Mosman to perform the Epley Manoeuvre HERE.

​Success in sport is dependent on a number of factors (eg, skill, fitness, squad size, tactics, and psychological factors). Athlete durability is also a key component of success.

In team sports, research shows a strong link between player availability and the success of the team, and that injuries and illness are the most common reasons for athlete unavailability in training and matches (REF). Research in team sports demonstrates an inverse relationship between injury burden and success of the team. Lower player availability is associated with failure to achieve key performance indicators. Injuries detrimentally affect the final ranking position in team sports (REF). And, research from professional European football shows lower season injury rates results in more successful seasons (REF).

Injuries and illnesses also affect success in individual sports. In elite track and field athletics, injuries and illness and their influence on training availability during preparation are major determinants of an athlete's chance of performance goal success or failure. Research shows the likelihood of achieving a performance goal increases by 7-times in athletes who complete >80% of planned training weeks. And, training availability accounts for 86% of successful seasons (REF).

So, injuries can determine success of failure in team and individual sports. Therefore, injury prevention strategies should be a focus for success-driven athletes and teams. 

​A number of sporting bodies have developed standardised injury prevention programs that are very effective at reducing injury rates. Sports that include these programs into their training have been shown to have between 50-80 per cent fewer injuries. These injury prevention programs are a series of exercises that are reasonably quick and easy to perform as part of a warm up. They include plyometric (jumping and landing), neuromuscular control (challenging balance, agility, addressing poor movement patterns), and strength exercises.

​For every 1,000 hours of game play, elite football players suffer between 12 – 35 injuries (REF). The most common types of injury sustained during a football game are muscle strains, ligament sprains, and contusions. Ankle, knee, and groin have the highest incidence of injury, and the greatest risk for sustaining an injury is during a football game as opposed to during a training session (REF).

The warm-up program “FIFA11+” is an injury prevention program designed by the Federation Internationale Football Association (FIFA) Medical and Research Centre (F-MARC) in 2006. It was designed to reduce the occurrence of injuries associated with playing football. 

The FIFA11+ consists of three parts and 15 exercises in total:

• The first part of the program involves running exercises and active stretching.
• The second part of the FIFA11+ program introduces six sets of exercises designed to work on the athlete’s core strength, leg strength, balance as well as their agility and plyometric ability.
• The third and final part of the FIFA11+ includes moderate to high speed running with planting/cutting movements.

The FIFA11+ program has been studied extensively over the last ten years to determine its effectiveness on injury prevention and physical performance measures, across a variety of populations. The FIFA11+ program has been shown to significantly reduce the risk of injuries in football (REF). This includes a 77% decrease in ACL injuries  (REF), a 48% reduction in lower limb injuries (REF), and an overall injury reduction of 35% per 1000 hours (REF).

FIFA 11+ and more resources for injury prevention in football are available here: footballnsw.com.au/protection-and-safety/injury-prevention/

​Netball Australia has developed the "KNEE Program” to help prevent knee and other lower limb injuries in netball.

Knee and ankle injuries are common in netball, making up three quarters of all injuries. Devastating ACL injuries are unfortunately common in netball, making up 25% of the serious injuries.

The KNEE program offers a range of warm-up exercises that help prevent injury. There are a range of age and experience appropriate exercises for junior, through to elite netballers. They are easily understood by players and coaches, with a number of options offering variability and progression.

It would be great for the KNEE program to be widely adopted by Australia's largest participation sport for females.

​KNEE Program resources are available at: https://knee.netball.com.au

​FootyFirst is a five level progressive exercise training program that has been developed specifically to reduce the risk of common leg injuries in community Australian rules football. 

FootyFirst begins with a warm-up, followed by leg strengthening and conditioning exercises, and training to improve balance, landing and side-stepping skills. It requires only standard training equipment and can replace the traditional warm-up. Once players and coaches are familiar with the exercises, the warm-up should take about 5 minutes, and the strength and conditioning exercises and jumping, landing and changing direction activities about 15 minutes. 

Performed correctly and frequently, FootyFirst will improve performance and reduce injury risk. FootyFirst has been shown to decrease knee injuries by 50% and all leg injuries by 22% (REF). It will improve players’ leg strength and control – from their hip to hamstring, groin to thigh, lower leg, knee, ankle and foot.

Resources include the FootyFirst Coaches’ Manual, a series of posters illustrating the exercises at each level, and the FootyFirst Coaches DVD is available at: aflcommunityclub.com.au/index.php?id=906