Our Specialized Method

McKenzie and SFMA

A woman lifting a barbell in a gym with brick walls and large windows.

We know that life does not stop just because you are in pain. You don’t have to wait to start moving and feeling better.

If you answer yes to the following questions a MDT and SFMA assessment and treatment is what you need to improve

  1. Does your pain every change in intensity or location?

  2. If you have pain going into your leg can the pain move to above your knee at times? 

  3. Does different movements change your pain?

How do I know I am safe to Participate?

IF your symptoms Fluctuate throughout the day, change intensity, even if they do not go away completely and you have Tried other forms of Physical Therapy without any change, You owe it to yourself to try this method.

In fact those chances are in your favor with 90% people being able to immediately respond to some kind of movement. This movement is best identified by a specialized clinician in a mechanical specific assessment, which is achieved with a combination of McKenzie (MDT) and SFMA.

Imaging is Not the Whole Story

It is unclear the exact cause of back pain with several imaging studies and tests they have found the host of findings listed above, however they seemed to increase with age and were in people who both had and did not have back pain. 

This is why a movement is so important. On your good days do you think that the degenerative changes on your images changed? No, that is the definition of degenerative, it will only get worse. So if the symptoms are changing there must be something else going on as well. Something is moving in your back, whether ligaments, discs or muscles.

People participating in a yoga or stretching class lying on their stomachs on yoga mats in a room with wooden floors and white walls, with a window and a small kitchenette in the background.
An older man with gray hair wearing a teal long-sleeve shirt, black pants, and gray sneakers is doing a squat exercise against a white tiled wall, holding a resistance band around his thighs.
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Line graph showing imaging findings in asymptomatic individuals, with age on the x-axis (20 to 80) and percentage on the y-axis (0 to 100). Lines represent disc degeneration, disc bulge, facet degeneration, disc protrusion, annular fissure, and spondylolisthesis.

What Does All of This Mean?

Chances are if you have had imaging taken you may have had one or more of the following results:

Disc Degeneration

Disc Bulge

Facet Degeneration

Disc Protrusion

Annular Fissure

Spondyolthesis

Presence of an L6 And many More

  • All of these are common side effects of aging, are not abnormal and are found in a lot of people of people who don’t have back pain. Meaning; These findings do not mean you are doomed to a lifetime of pain, and you have a large potential to reduce your symptoms, regardless of what the images say. If you respond to movement you CAN be helped.

A portion of Extremity pain could be coming from the Spine

Does your pain move up or down?

Is there EVER a change in the geographical location of your pain?

If yes you could be amongst a category of people that would benefit from a Mechanical Evaluation to reduce you symptoms!

47% of shoulder pain is NOT coming from the shoulder 

Lots of hip and knee pain is coming from the back (hip is 71%) Knee is 49%

A man on an outdoor running track stretching while sitting on the red track surface with trees and a fence in the background.
A woman practicing yoga on the beach, balancing on one leg with her other leg bent and raised, wearing black athletic wear against a clear blue sky and ocean background.