Top Places to Visit in Baltimore

When you think of Baltimore, you think: history, art, culture, and fun. Baltimore is unlike most cities and has a ton to offer for young families and adults alike. Baltimore is known as the Charm City, and is home to the world-famous Inner Harbor, endless restaurants, amazing museums, and some very cute and historic neighborhoods that are worth exploring. 

So if you are looking for a new city to explore or already have your Baltimore trip set, check out these 4 top places in Baltimore you really should visit during your stay. 

Walter’s Art Museum

The Walters Art Museum is located in Mount Vernon-Belvedere, Baltimore and has collections of historic art treasures from Africa, America, and Europe. It is a public gallery, so if you are on a budget, visiting this museum won’t break the bank – you can explore sacred wonders and art fantasies without having to spend a dime. Another benefit to visiting the Walter’s Art Museum is all the knowledge you can gain, all while having fun.

National Aquarium

This is one of the biggest tourist attractions in the State of Maryland. The Baltimore National Aquarium has tons of beautiful and educational exhibits. It is a perfect place to bring the family and has tons of great experiences and shows available for young children. The aquarium will cost you some money for admission, but it is well worth it. You could spend a whole day walking around and still leave wanting more. 

Inner Harbor

The Inner Harbor is a family-friendly tourist spot, surrounded by amazing parks, hotels, historic ships, restaurants and shopping. You can spend an entire weekend here and still not see everything it has to offer. The Inner Harbor is home to the National Aquarium, World Trade Center, Port Discovery Children’s Museum and Maryland Science Center.  

M & T Bank Stadium

If you are a sports fan or just looking for a fun afternoon, then the M&T Bank Stadium should be a stop. This stadium is home of the Baltimore Ravens. Most people from Baltimore hold this team in high esteem, so you may want to stop in and really experience the city by sharing in their pride.

Baltimore consists of dozens of other great places to visit, but I’ll leave you with these 4 because they connect you to so many other great places in Baltimore. They are also a great starting point to make sure you have a versatile sampling of Baltimore’s culture and history.

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Bike Fit Tips From an FX Physical Therapist

Cycling is such a great workout! Whether you prefer to head out for a ride or hit the spin studio to burn some extra calories. Although cycling is a universal sport that almost anyone can participate in, each bike fit is individualized based on biomechanical and anatomical uniqueness. Multiple factors such as terrain, event-specific positions, novice vs. elite rider pedal technique, flexibility constraints, and mobility constraints all contribute to an individualized bike fit.
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During the fitting process, the most important aspects are the point of contacts on the bike. Even though there is not a “one-size-fits-all” for bike fitting, below are some tips and tricks to help when fitting your bike.

Foot Position

Your cleat position is based on how your bones and joints are built and your ability to maximize your power output. About 98 percent of your force when riding comes from your hips and your knees. Because of this, it is important for your feet to be placed at a proper position. The more forward your cleat is on your shoe, the more motion (rotation and side to side movement) your foot has. The further back your cleat is on your shoe, the less motion your foot has.

Although no research has shown a significant difference in power output based on cleat position, it may be more beneficial—especially for longer rides and comfort—to place your cleat further back on your shoe to decrease any excessive movement.

Seat Height

Seat height is the measurement from the saddle to the pedals. It is recommended that your seat is high enough so that you have a 20 to 40 degree bend in your knee. This usually correlates with the top of your hip bone lining up with the seat when you stand next to the bike. This large range is due to how dynamic riding is; the speed and terrain can alter your position in the saddle, which in turn alters how much your knee is flexing and extending. Although each bike should be fit especially to the individual’s anatomy, two recommendations can be made if you are experiencing knee pain on the bike:
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If you have pain on the front (anterior) knee, you want more extension of the knee for less compressive force of the patella in the trochlear groove. Try raising your seat height slightly.

If you have pain on the outside (lateral) knee, you want more knee flexion (>30 degrees) to decrease the shear of the ITB running over the femoral condyle.

Saddle Positioning

As mentioned above, most of the power when cycling is generated from our hips—our engine. Like a car, the engine must be placed in an optimal position to work as efficiently as possible. This position is again based on your anatomy. If you tend to have longer femurs, shifting the seat backward so that your knee cap is over your pedal spindle is recommended. If your femurs are shorter, shifting the seat forward so that your knee cap is in line with your toes is recommended.

If you are unsure where you may fit, a relatively neutral position is your knee cap falling between the middle portion of your foot and the end of your toes. These positions can be measure with a piece of string starting at your knee cap and dropping the string straight down towards your foot while sitting on the bike.

Bar Drop and Bar Width

Once your hips have been positioned, then it is time to adjust your handlebars to continue to maximize your power output. Many factors can be considered for bar positioning, but the most import factor is comfort and stability. Different bar positions also place different demands on your hamstrings, low back, and pelvis, which can also affect your comfort on the bike. Slouching more (which can come with fatigue) affects your reach to the bar.

Therefore, it would be more beneficial to raise the bar height to decrease the demand of forward reaching. If you have adequate hip and spine mobility, as well as strength, it would be more economic to lower the handlebars as long as you do not feel like you are overreaching. Again, comfort is key. It should feel comfortable enough that you are not excessively rounding your low back/unable to maintain a neutral position while sitting on the bike.

Bar width can also impact stability and breathing efficiency. A wider arm position is usually more comfortable, more stable, and allows better breathing due to an open airway position. A narrow fit tends to lend to impaired breathing, rounded shoulder positioning, poor handling/stability on the bike, and increased neck strain due to impaired breathing mechanics.

In short, your bike fit should be specific to you and your anatomical uniqueness! If you’re experiencing pain or limited mobility on the bike, or just feel like you need more assistance, the FX Physical Therapy team is happy to help with your bike fit to ensure a sweaty spin class, a powerful performance, or just a safe ride out with the family!​​

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10 Light Street, Suite 4
Baltimore, MD 21202
(410) 646-8272
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How Physical Therapy Can Improve Youth Pitching Velocity

Whenever I talk to youth baseball teams about injury prevention, unfortunately, this topic resonates the most with the players who are also asking for my business card because they were “shut down” by their coach due to pain, decreased velocity, decreased command on the ball, or dead arm.

Fortunately, there is hope for these players. This is the window of opportunity for them to address the three main risk factors that lead to their decline: overuse, fatigue or lack of strength, and poor or worsening throwing mechanics. This post will highlight these factors behind youth pitching injuries, and how physical therapy can help players recover to increase their pitching velocity.

The Three Risk Factors Behind Youth Pitching Injuries

Overuse

The throwing motion has enough force to dislocate the shoulder every time a player throws the ball hard. As a result, the muscles contract to protect the common structures we often have to rehab with youth baseball players, including the shoulder labrum, growth plate, spine, and the infamous Ulnar Collateral ligament of the elbow (also known as Tommy Johns injury). The more throwing per inning, game, season, or year without rest will lead to decreased performance of these supportive muscles. This results in repeated microtrauma to our musculoskeletal system—better known as overuse. Your physical therapist can educate you on proper rest and throwing volume to limit the effects of overuse.

Lack of Strength

Most youth athletes going through puberty tend to be lanky, skinny, and weak compared to post-pubertal athletes, making this a challenging time for their performance. It can also lead to a high rate of injury due to a lack of muscle mass and strength to protect their joints. The stronger we can make these athletes, the more healthy mass they can gain and the better they will move. This will also make them more durable in the long run and lead to improved performance. The key during this growth period in youth athletes is improving movement quality through neuromuscular training. Simply put, we are training the body to move more efficiently, which leads to improved athleticism.

Throwing Mechanics

More research continues to point to decreased performance and increased injury rates as a result of pitching under increased arm fatigue. This will alter the mechanics of your throwing and often times lead to timing issues during the throwing motion. If you don’t have the foundation to improve upon, your body will fail when it is under high demand. It is imperative that your physical therapist understands the biomechanics associated with the throwing motion in order to structure the rehabilitation process based on the sport specific demands.

How Physical Therapy Can Help

How could a physical therapist improve performance pitching velocity? Don’t physical therapists (PTs) just massage shoulders and stretch you out? PTs start with reducing the risk of an injury by addressing the above factors to make you a more durable athlete and able to perform throughout the season. In short, they help to improve the players’ athleticism.

​Teaching our youth baseball players to move better will help them build the foundation they need for optimal performance. Now yes, I know it is not that simple. Baseball is a very asymmetrical sport and the body will start to adapt posturally, muscularly, and in certain scenarios, structurally, but we need to keep a simple approach when working with youth athletes.

Movement quality has always been a foundation of our physical therapy industry. Once our athletes have mastered the appropriate hinging, double leg tasks, single-leg tasks, rib positioning, breathing patterns, overhead positions, etc., then we can begin to load the system (strength training). Building strength on a dysfunctional system will only strengthen a dysfunctional pattern of movement. Building strength is key, but we must do this in a way that is specific to their sports’ demands.

It is important your physical therapist progresses through all phases of the performance/rehabilitation process, otherwise, premature return to sport will only set you up for another injury. So at the end of the day, if we can teach our youth athletes to move better and get stronger, then we have laid a foundation for athleticism which will allow for performance (velocity) gains.​

The post How Physical Therapy Can Improve Youth Pitching Velocity appeared first on FX Physical Therapy.

10 Light Street, Suite 4
Baltimore, MD 21202
(410) 646-8272
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Is Your “Tennis Elbow” Really Coming from Your Elbow? Here’s How to Treat the Source of Your Pain.

So you’ve had this nagging pain along the outside of your elbow, and you just can’t seem to shake it. Now it even hurts to hold your morning cup of coffee, much less attempt a backhand on the courts. Spring is here, which means before you know it, tennis, softball, and baseball seasons will be starting. You’ll need your arm ready to go. You’ve checked with Dr. Google and all signs are pointing towards the dreaded “tennis elbow.” Here’s the rundown on what this injury is all about, and how to treat the source of the pain.

What Is Tennis Elbow?

The medical term is actually lateral epicondylitis: a painful condition where the extensor tendons of your wrist and hand become overly tight and pull at their bony attachment on the lateral epicondyle of the elbow. This constant pulling creates an inflammatory and highly irritable state that leads to pain. This pain can even keep you from using your arm for the simplest tasks, such as pouring a glass of water or turning a doorknob.

What Causes It?

Tennis elbow is caused by repetitive motions of the wrist and arm that overload the muscles in your forearm. People who are most at risk are those whose jobs or sports require repetitive arm This includes police officers, manual laborers such as plumbers, mechanics, and painters, and of course, tennis players.

Why Did I Get It?

One of the primary causes for tennis players is non-optimal form. However, there is another component that is often overlooked as a driving cause for this condition: neural tension or compression at some point in the nervous system. This could occur in the neck or cervical spine, the shoulder, the upper arm, or the elbow or forearm itself. This is a very important component to rule out in order to ensure that, once treated, this condition does not reoccur.

How Do I Fix It?

If it just started recently, and therefore is still in the acute stage (first 7 to 10 days), ice and rest can help to calm down the symptoms. However, these will not fix the root cause of the pain and it is very likely to come back at some point. Here’s the best approach to treating this condition:

1. Visit a physical therapist first. A skilled physical therapist can determine the source of the injury. They can then ease the acute symptoms and sources of pain, retrain proper muscle recruitment, re-educate your body for optimal movement patterns, and increase your strength and endurance. A combination of techniques such as manual therapy, dry needling, cupping, and blood flow restriction can significantly help the healing and recovery process.
2. Consult with a tennis coach/professional. This person will have in-depth knowledge of the sport, and will be able to work with you to improve specific skills such as your backhand technique. A tennis coach can also make sure you are using your entire body to generate force, not just your elbow and wrist.

Once you’ve rehabilitated with a physical therapist and received comprehensive training from a tennis coach, you’ll be ready to return to the court a stronger, injury-free player. ​

The post Is Your “Tennis Elbow” Really Coming from Your Elbow? Here’s How to Treat the Source of Your Pain. appeared first on FX Physical Therapy.

10 Light Street, Suite 4
Baltimore, MD 21202
(410) 646-8272
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Stuck in a Running Rut? Mix Up Your Running Routine for Optimal Performance

As a former collegiate middle distance sprinter (400m), turned long distance runner (currently running 10Ks, 10-milers, and half-marathons), I know that sometimes it can feel like you are doing the same mundane routine over and over again. But being stuck in a running rut doesn’t have to be looked at as a negative thing. This training lull can be a motivator to try new things and can take you to another level as a runner. Here are some tips to provide new challenges to optimize your running performance…

Cross Training and Strength Training

The body is a dynamic machine. Though runners often like to focus on miles, it’s important to include some non-running days into your workouts. Cross training can positively impact your training routine and decrease your risk of injury or overtraining. Swimming, cycling, hiking, and using the elliptical are all great ways to safely and effectively cross train and still mimic the reciprocal pattern of running.

Strength training should also be an important part of your training regimen. This can range from core and hip strengthening to total-body workouts. Exercises such as planks, kettlebell swings, banded bridges, and clam shells can be great at improving muscle strength in runners. Running only 3 to 4 days per week, and cross training the other days, can be a great way to mix up your running workouts, while maintaining the proper fitness levels and strength. 

Incorporate Sprints, Shorter Distances, and Hills into Your Training

Sprinters use completely different muscle recruitment patterns than distance runners. 

Incorporate speed workouts and/or shorter runs into your training routine, plus cross training and strength training a couple days per week, to provide you with the sprinting power you need to give you that edge when crossing the finish line. 

Incorporate faster runs and hill running to help you get out of the repetition of running the same distance, with the same times, on the same surfaces. This allows you to train the body under different conditions and will prepare you for different elevations on race day. To get even more of a training edge, try challenging yourself by adding in some short races earlier in the season to prepare you for the longer runs and keep things fun and interesting.

Get Social!

​Running with a buddy can inspire you to run longer and push yourself harder. Buddying up can also keep you motivated and accountable, which can be especially important for those longer runs. Running groups are great ways to get on a running schedule, and can provide safe increases in weekly mileage, which can preventing injury down the road. 

And lastly, for me, running with a buddy is a great distraction. We start chatting, and before I know it, I’ve run 7 miles! Don’t let a running rut bring you down, or get you out of running! If you need help along the way, the FX Physical Therapy team is happy to provide a run gait analysis and proper instruction on how to safely perform any cross-training exercises to ensure that you have optimal outcomes on race day. Happy running!

 

The post Stuck in a Running Rut? Mix Up Your Running Routine for Optimal Performance appeared first on FX Physical Therapy.

10 Light Street, Suite 4
Baltimore, MD 21202
(410) 646-8272
https://ift.tt/32t2tqO