What is Sports Therapy?

Want to know more about sports therapy? Take a read of this blog post from The Shire Clinic!

Taken from The Society of Sports Therapists sports therapy is:

“Sports Therapy is an aspect of healthcare that is specifically concerned with the prevention of injury and the rehabilitation of the patient back to optimum levels of functional, occupational and sports specific fitness, regardless of age and ability. It utilises the principles of sport and exercise sciences incorporating physiological and pathological processes to prepare the participant for training, competition and where applicable, work.”

What can a Sports Therapist do?

• utilise sports and exercise principles to optimise performance, preparation and injury prevention programmes
• provide the immediate care of injuries and basic life support in a recreational, training & competitive environment
• assess, treat and, where appropriate, refer on for specialist advice and intervention.
• provide appropriate sport and remedial massage in a sport & exercise context
• plan and implement appropriate rehabilitation programmes

Why did I choose Sports Therapy?

After having an Achilles tendon injury at age 16 I went down a long relentless rehabilitation programme without which I would not have been able to carry on playing sport, or be playing sport now with no issues in my Achilles. This meant I was in the presence of qualified Sports Therapists and Physiotherapists which allowed me to see what I wanted to be.

I chose the Sports Therapy pathway as when looking at the degree programmes the modules for Sports Therapy were more suited to my interests and goals. Modules were focused on sports science, rehabilitation, manual therapy, electrotherapy and much more highlighting the key areas in musculoskeletal science and its rehabilitation.

My skills in this area are transferable in helping people of any age, any fitness levels and not just those in the sporting population, making the job so varied and a lot of fun.

What do we treat at The Shire Clinic?

At The Shire Clinic we have new patients, long term patients and “MOT” patients. With new clients, we carry out a full assessment to really get to know the injury and our client, this is then followed up with a series of treatments and rehabilitation programmes to get them back to their goals. Our long-term clients come mainly for regular sports massage to aid their training, sport and even their occupation. Our MOT patients are those that come in ever 4-6 weeks for a general check over and a release.

As a Sports Therapist I am regularly confused with being a massage therapist (which is a great profession) however there is a difference. As a Sports Therapist I am able to offer assessment and rehabilitation plus many more forms of treatment to help you with you injuries.

Treatments available at The Shire Clinic

• Sports Massage
• Soft Tissue Release
• Dry Needling/Acupuncture
• Myofascial Cupping
• Therapeutic Ultrasound
• TENS/Interferential
• Strength & Conditioning
• Prevention programmes
• Rehabilitation programmes
• Kinesiology Taping

Emma - The Shire Clinic. For a free phone consultation, to book your first appointment, or to get a quote please call The Shire Clinic on 07511560497.