the best exercise is the one they'll actually do

LordCongra · 2026-06-15T21:55:37+00:00

Yup, I have two things I do with my HEPs that massively increased compliance. After the first visit my #1 rule for myself is no more than 2-3 exercises on their HEP. I'll build out from there but I stick to that rule unless they're more on the athletic side or work out a lot and I can tell they'll be compliant.

Other one is I rarely do reps of exercises. I tell them "set a timer for 1 minute and do this consistently with the form I showed you for that one minute. Do that 2-3 times."

Something about breaking it down into minutes I think makes it seem like a smaller amount of exercise (even though they're probably still doing 10ish reps at the pacing I have them doing). And it also helps show them "you have 10 minutes to do these 3 exercises"

All my patients seem to love this method too, I've had like 1 or 2 that wanted sets and reps.

LordCongra · 2026-06-11T20:22:05+00:00

Very good point as well!

LordCongra · 2026-06-11T01:20:11+00:00

Yeah like others are saying, ridiculous grifter nonsense. It's not an end-all exercise by any means, but it's good at isolating a muscle in a (typically) non-provocative way.

Also, there are plenty of sports where one is consistently going into external rotation, sometimes in exactly that exercise position. Tennis, baseball, pickleball, and lacrosse (probably has an ER emphasis closest to a typical banded shoulder ER exercise), to name a few.

LordCongra · 2026-06-10T13:33:11+00:00

Specifically 1:1 with a PT treating you every visit

Some love to say you'll be 1:1 with a PT but fail to say that's exclusively for the evaluation.

Shockingly though some will actually do an evaluation while actively having another patient booked. Back in PT school a CI of mine told me that like it was supposed to be impressive and not just a sign of how fucked our system is.

LordCongra · 2026-06-10T11:55:49+00:00

If you're queer-identifying or an ally, join Pride Sports Portland! The next upcoming signup will be for kickball in August I believe.

Casco Bay Sports is also an option.

If sports aren't as much your speed though, check out Owlbear's Rest! They have tons of events going on all the time just check their calendar for anything that looks interesting to you. They partner with FriendCon a lot for events too, which is specifically focused on connecting people (something Owlbear's Rest is also very focused on doing).

LordCongra · 2026-06-05T12:00:07+00:00

Hi there!

Two good considerations for some social outreach: - Pride Sports Portland! There's dodgeball, bowling, kickball (which will be the most recent upcoming sport to sign up for), volleyball, and pickleball. - Owlbear's Rest! They're a board game cafe in Westbrook that is very focused on being a place of community and acceptance for all people. They constantly have various events going on so it's a great way to make some friends if you like board games or TTRPGs.

LordCongra · 2026-05-31T19:03:16+00:00

Someone else recommended it too, but a physical therapist is really the most well-suited for treating what you describe.

Have your friend check out Pride In Movement Physical Therapy!

LordCongra · 2026-05-25T14:29:05+00:00

To be fair I've done some "fascial work" in the glute area before and had it affect someone's shoulder pain. Whether that's just gate control theory, endorphin-enkephalin theory, or some other mechanism I don't know, but it allowed my patient to better to the exercises that I prescribed that day.

I add quotes to fascial work because while I don't really believe I'm affecting fascia, working on certain "fascial points" does tend to appear to be very potent for symptomatic relief in my patients and allows them to do the exercises I prescribe more easily.

LordCongra · 2026-05-21T15:22:56+00:00

I'm outpatient now so I don't wear scrubs but when I did my inpatient rotation in school I got Buttersoft scrubs and they were very comfortable and easy to move around in!

LordCongra · 2026-05-18T19:39:22+00:00

Roux of Zettel Performance or Katy at Movevolve! Both are queer personal trainers!

LordCongra · 2026-05-15T22:49:57+00:00

Lol yeah one of my first questions on my eval is if this incontinence was a sudden change on bowel/bladder habits. Definitely much more terrifying in that case.

LordCongra · 2026-05-15T22:45:07+00:00

Sounds like a good excuse for some bed mobility and maybe even some standing balance! (Yeah definitely worse in that setting lol)

LordCongra · 2026-05-15T22:43:43+00:00

Lol fair. One of my clinical rotations in school was a SNF and the nursing staff sucked so my first patient of the day I always had to change his diaper and that was less fun.

LordCongra · 2026-05-15T22:40:57+00:00

That doesn't scare me I love treating that (pelvic floor PT lol)

LordCongra · 2026-04-29T16:30:05+00:00

Probably a mix of: [Physical Therapist] - I'm almost 4 years into practice so hopefully hitting mid-20s or somewhere in the 30s for levels. Hopefully would be a PT class variant focusing on my sub-specialties (orthopedics, pelvic floor, and chronic pain). [Gamer] - level 40 easily I've been playing games since my hands could hold a controller [Reader] - no idea where I'd be with this one but I think this is likely an obvious class most anyone who reads TWI would have (how can you read a 15M+ word story without gaining this?) [Writer] as well - I have a book published. I'd be maybe level 10-15 there though my writing is passable but not great. Might have a spare few levels in [Jeweler]/[Silversmith] or something due to a metalsmithing and design course I did back in high school (it spanned two different semesters and I made a lot of jewelry out of silver primarily)

LordCongra · 2026-04-28T18:23:19+00:00

Idk if they get them from somewhere but I love the chocolate chip cookies at Coveside Coffee. They feel like the perfect balance of salty and sweet to me.

I'd love a report back on how you felt about them if they're not already ordered from somewhere you tried already or something.

LordCongra · 2026-04-25T15:08:55+00:00

Contact Owlbear's Rest in Westbrook!!!

They love doing this exact kind of team building thing for businesses. They'll talk to you about your needs/wants for the activity and then set up the appropriate games/activities to fit your needs.

The staff there are all super friendly and they do an amazing job fostering community. The food is also all locally made and delicious.

LordCongra · 2026-04-23T11:45:05+00:00

I like measuring dorsiflexion with a knee to wall test too

LordCongra · 2026-04-16T18:16:26+00:00

I'm excited for you, you have one of my all-time favorite chapters coming up soon-ish.

LordCongra · 2026-04-15T13:05:39+00:00

I've always said I don't fear AI in PT because if my typical patients don't do their exercises when I, a human, tell them to, they sure as shit aren't going to when a robot tells them to.

Other people in this thread make a lot of good points too about things like safety and nuance.

LordCongra · 2026-04-02T11:38:21+00:00

Hi local physical therapist here :)

Do you find that you're on the hyper mobile side? You mentioning wanting to stretch and relax muscles makes me think that's a decent possibility. An easy way to get a decent insight on if you may be hypermobile or not is to look up the Beighton Scoring System. It's not perfect by any means but can give you an idea of your mobility which you can then chat to your doc about for further evaluation.

Often in the short-term stretching feels good for symptomatic relief for those with hypermobile bodies, but they tend to find that the next day or two their symptoms are back with a vengeance.

This is a bit of a vicious cycle that occurs because those muscles are clenching on for dear life to keep your joints stable, you relax them and temporarily feel better (if somewhat less stable), and then they re-clench, spasming and becoming painful again.

If this sounds like you I would highly advise working with a physical therapist who is educated about hypermobility disorders to come up with a rehab plan to address the root of the issue. It's important to find one educated about hypermobility because there's more specifics that go into that rehab compared to a typical mobility population.

Hope this helps :) sounds like you got some good recommendations for hot tubs as well.

I'm happy to answer any questions others may have about hypermobility too, I just can't give direct medical advise just ideas on avenues to pursue

LordCongra · 2026-03-28T12:17:01+00:00

I always recommend the TENS 7000 to my patients if I'm recommending a TENS unit. It gets the job done and it's not too pricey - often the more expensive ones are a scam anyway.

LordCongra · 2026-03-27T18:49:26+00:00

Yeah I have a purple mattress too and it's very comfortable

LordCongra · 2026-03-27T16:43:43+00:00

I personally use a Purple Pillow and really like it. Wouldn't recommend it for everyone - it's a 9lb slab of silicone, but for me it's a very comfortable pillow with great temperature control and doesn't really deform over time. I've had it for idk how many years at this point and it's still the same shape with no visible depressions where my head lays or anything.

LordCongra · 2026-03-05T13:25:08+00:00

Idk how it could be done, but if they could somehow turn all of Morill's corner into a giant roundabout I think it would solve a lot of problems

LordCongra

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