Blog | Pain Relief Physiotherapy

How to hydrate for exercise

So, Hydration, your body depends on it. Every cell, tissue and organ require water to survive and work efficiently. Water is the simplest form of hydration and can help maintain its temperature, remove any waste products and lubricate your joints. Increasing your fluid intake is a bigger deal than most of us think. Often, we don’t make the right choices, but increasing our fluid intake should be made a priority throughout our daily life. Remember your body is made up of up to 60% water. Grab yourself a glass, or perhaps a jug, and let’s go through the basics to improve your maximum capability from the office to your next race.

The all new Sports Injury Hub

Have you ever been frustrated that the people who help to keep you fit and active don't communicate? Have you ever been frustrated at the barriers you face in your quest to recover from injury and keep at your best? Have you ever wished you had access to the same team that would be available to an elite sportsperson? So have we. And that's why we have created the Reflex-18 Sports Injury Hub

Foam Rolling – is it a trend or does science support this self-massage technique?

The foam roller – an object that often lives in your cupboard or even your kit back but very rarely makes an appearance unless your physio or masseur is fully booked at Reflex 18 or you happen to fancy using it the night before your big event. The dreaded pain of your fatigued muscles being ironed out by the dense smooth roller – if you chose correctly – or the stabbing pain infliction by the textured roller you thought was a good idea when making that online order.

What is physiotherapy at Reflex-18?

You have probably heard that physiotherapists give exercises, massage, click you, stick needles in you, stick bright tape on you, lecture you about your weight, and use all sorts of weird and wonderful machines with flashing lights, loud noises and variable amounts of pain! Well physiotherapists may do all of these things.

Shin splints - stopping you in your tracks

Shin splints is a term used commonly for pain in the shin. It’s as simple as that. There are of course many different causes of shin pain though, the most common of which is termed ‘medial tibial stress syndrome’ (MTSS). MTSS is an irritation in the periosteum (the lining of the bone) and has been suggested to be very similar to the reaction in the build up to a stress fracture. The diagnosis however, does not include that of stress fracture, but is considered a bony stress reaction. It can also encompass tendinopathy of the adjoining tendons or a dysfunction of the tibialis posterior, tibialis anterior or soleus muscles.

How Much Exercise Should I Be Doing? (Not Just During COVID-19)?

I write this while we enter the second week of ‘lockdown’ while COVID-19 or Coronavirus is spreading outside. Many people are stuck at home with very little to do, and it’s great to see so many taking on fitness challenges and daily workouts. It doesn’t take much searching to find the daily Joe Wicks PE lesson for the kids, the local pilates teacher doing an online class, or a bootcamp session online. You don’t even have to keep it local – you can access fitness and exercise classes from the comfort of your living room, anywhere in the world! You could just go from one exercise class to another all day, every day, and still not have time to take up the governments allowance of leaving the house once a day for exercise.

10 Tips to Deal with Osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis often affects the hips and knees and can be responsible for decreasing peoples activity - at Reflex-18 we are all about keeping people active so read on for our tips.

It's not all about the scan

An x-ray or scan is just part of the picture, it doesn't necessarily tell you how to get better or what you can and can't do.

Lateral hip pain

Lateral hip pain is a pain in the butt....... quite literally. The pain of lateral hip pain (also known as greater trochanteric pain syndrome, gluteal tendinopathy or bursitis) is usually located on the outside of the hip over or just behind the bony lump which is called the greater trochanter. This pain can radiate down the outside of the leg but rarely moves below the knee.

Subacromial Pain - Shoulder Pain

Here is a brief patient information leaflet on subacromial pain. It details the signs and symptoms and a brief explanation of what it is... Although the physios reading this I know will appreciate the complexities of this injury group. There are also some pieces of self-help advice, I hope you find it useful. As always though, this does not replace expert medical assessment and treatment.

Plantar Fasciitis

Our approach to treatment and why: Exercise, pain relief and shockwave therapy. Plantar fasciitis can be really debilitating but it does get better and you will be running again soon.

Look mum, I'm blogging! - Meet Josh Congdon

Learn all about the man behind Reflex-18: 'My Name is Josh Congdon and I am a Chartered Physiotherapist. That statement took me 5 years of degree-level study to be able to say, and I am proud to be able to do so.'