Did You Know HAPT Has A Clinic In Montecito?

Our newest Hayashida and Associates clinic, nestled in the Montecito hills, opened its doors on the picturesque Westmont College campus about three years ago.  While the majority of our patients are Westmont students and athletes, the clinic is open to the public.  We serve numerous individuals, of all ages and abilities, from the Montecito community and surrounding areas.  With two therapists on-site, Dr. Erica Camardella and Dr. Tom Walters, the Montecito clinic provides highly educated therapists in an intimate and friendly environment.  Our staff also includes one full time and one part time Athletic Trainer, who assist the therapists in implementing programs to bridge the gap for our athletes between rehabilitation and their return to sport.  At our Montecito location, not only do we have a Redcord system; we also have the benefit of being able to utilize the college’s ample resources including a heated pool, full weight room with an assortment of free weights and weight machines, and a rubberized track.  Our Montecito clinic provides the quality care expected from Hayashida and Associates at a location that is convenient for Montecito and surrounding community residents, as well as Westmont students, athletes, faculty and staff.  Whether you are a weekend warrior, a recreational athlete, or just looking to improve your quality of life, our talented staff at our Montecito clinic will help you successfully get out of pain, move healthier and perform better.


Written By: Erica Camardella, PT, DPT


img: http://www.westmont.edu/prospect_camps/images/sbmountains.jpg

3 Fitness/Exercise Tips

Everyone gets in exercise ruts but now is the time to change how you have been exercising.  Just as physical and surgical medicine has changed over the last 10 years so have some concepts in the fitness world.  For example, a surgeon does not prescribe the same medications as he or she did 10 years ago or do a surgery the same way he or she had in the past.  We all advance as our knowledge base advances.  Here are a couple of tips to help bring your training or rehabilitation to the next level.

TRADE SLOW CARDIO FOR INTERVAL TRAINING – If you are looking to lose a couple pounds here or there with your cardio routine the goal is not to just run as far as you can hoping those calories will burn off.  Research has shown that “bursts of high-intensity effort pared with slower, recovery efforts”¹ have the potential to burn more calories.  Get the most bang for your buck.  20 minutes of interval training can burn the same amount of calories as an hour of slow paced running.

USE YOUR CORE DURING EVERY EXERCISE – If you have ever been to physical therapy at Hayashida and Associates Physical Therapy you will know the true meaning of core work.  We are not just talking about your “six-pack” but also muscles that surround your abdomen and control your trunk, stabilizing the spine.  You should activate these muscles before any activity or exercise.  This muscle activity could be graded based on what you are doing (i.e. lifting a 1 lb weight vs doing a squat with weight overhead).  This will help avoid injury and at the same time get a great workout for your midsection.  If you need help understanding how to do this you should visit your local physical therapist for ideas.

TRADE MACHINE EXERCISES FOR FREE WEIGHTS – If we were all machines and moved in a set path then machine exercises would make sense.  But each individual moves differently, has a different posture and needs focus in different areas.  If you use the fixed path of many machines you will increase your likelihood of injury.  It would be best to use dumbbells or medicine balls to build strength since these objects allow you to move in the way your specific body is meant to move.  Be sure to get your form looked at by a physical therapist though, to make sure you are moving in the correct patterns.

Listed here a just a couple of ways that you can improve your exercise regimen and/or get more out of your workouts.  We will include more tips in future blog posts.  Contact your local physical therapist if you have any fitness or rehabilitation questions.

Ref: http://www.livestrong.com/slideshow/553531-the-20-best-fitness-tips-of-all-time/

img: http://weight-loss.womendiary.net/wp-content/uploads/Fitness-Tips.jpg

It's Not Rocket Science!

Another example came across my desk of the need and common sense behind direct access to physical therapy services.  A story of workers at an Intel plant showed that may workers who spend their majority of their days on their feet had back pain.  The majority of these people suffered with this pain because they knew that it would take several weeks to get to their doctors appointment and get a referral to physical therapy.  By the time this happened pain was so bad that they needed less conservative care or their pain disappeared.  It is not a good outcome to have a patient tell you that their pain just disappeared when you hear the flip side that they were in pain at work for more than a month at a time. 

Times have changed at Intel and now rather than waiting to see a doctor may employees with routine back pain see a physical therapist within 2 days.  This is in comparison to the 19 days on average that they took to get in to see a medical doctor.  Overall these patients were completing their program and out of pain within 21 days rather than the average of 52 days with the old system. 

Another issue, not apparent to the public, was that the cost per patient dropped on average 20% secondarily to fewer unnecessary doctor visits and diagnostic tests.  Every patient was more satisfied with this trial system and returned to work faster.

Why can't we adopt this simple and effective model in our health care system. "Early access to low cost effective care seems so simple yet in our current health care system it remains exception and not the rule."¹  Whenever you see anything regarding direct access to physical therapy we at Hayashida and Associates urge you  to support it...for your own good.

Click here to TAKE ACTION on the CPTA Legislative Action Center

Written By: Andrew Bisaccia, PT, DPT

Reference: http://blog.myphysicaltherapyspace.com/2012/01/it-is-not-rocket-science.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+EvidenceInMotion+%28Evidence+In+Motion%29

Img: http://blog.evidenceinmotion.com/.a/6a00d8341c6c5d53ef0168e50caaa5970c-pi

Hayashida's Commitment to the Community

Hayashida is committed to providing the Bishop Garcia Diego High School community with a high level of physical therapy care and screening for potential orthopedic injuries. We recently had one of our Doctors of Physical Therapy and Athletic Trainers present at spring physicals assisting team physicians in screening for orthopedic injuries. The turnout was very successful and we were able to help screen over 125 students for orthopedic injuries and movement dysfunctions. Screening is an integral part of preventing serious season ending injuries. It allows medical personnel to identify movement dysfunctions before injuries occur. This provides the opportunity to communicate with parents and athletes regarding appropriate stretching and strengthening programs to help them perform at their highest level. Hayashida and Associates Physical Therapy is honored to be the exclusive provider of physical therapy and athletic training services to the coaches, parents and athletes of the Bishop community. We look forward to being more involved with school athletic events in the near future.

Written By: Ted Carter, PT, DPT

A Time for Change: Final Stage – Maintenance

This may be the most important stage of them all.  You have now made the change in your life and your healthy behavior is starting to become normal rather than something that you HAVE to do.  At this point you have been doing your new activity or have changed your behavior for at least six months.  Your focus now is to stick with this activity indefinitely, at least in some form.  You need to be very vigilant at this time as you may fall back to old habits as you start to take advantage of the great change you notice in your life.  The more you are tempted by how good you look, how great your feel, or how others may comment on your attitude the easier it will be to think it will always be this way.

This being said, it is normal to have setbacks at anytime, even years after your initial change.  “But the longer you let them continue, the more likely it is that little setbacks will grow into big ones.”¹ As time passes you will feel more confident in your change and it will become routine, something you may not even need to think about. 

Enjoy the benefits you have gained over this time frame.  If you continue to focus on the positive change in your life you will succeed in your new behavior.  Along with this, you are ready to be successful the next time your lifestyle needs some change.

If you need any help with this process of change, especially if it is regarding pain that you have or your current fitness level make sure to visit Hayashida and Associates for a jump start.

Reference: http://www.arthritisselfmanagement.com/newsletter/12-15-2011/time-for-a-change/?page=all

Img: http://www.oscodacountymi.com/Addimages/maintman.jpg

A Time for Change: Stage 4 – ACTION!

You have made it!  You are now putting your plan in motion and you are probably already completing new activities and changing your behaviors.  In the previous stage you made the necessary changes to fit your new behaviors into your schedule.  The change that you are now engaged in may take some effort since it may take more time than you previously thought.  For example, you may have joined a fitness class and you are now realizing that you have to stretch or fix your posture throughout the day, while away from the class.  This is the time that you need to adapt and make room for these small differences in your original plan to change. 

This stage usually lasts about 6 months and is the time where the change is still new to you.  This can be beneficial because people may notice the change right off the bat.  Say you are beginning a new diet; people may compliment you on how you are looking.  If your change was to get a more healthy dose of sleep (i.e. 7-8 hours) people may find that you are more alert and in a better mood.  There are some draw backs.  You will be more distractible at this stage and may slip back into your old habits.  Do not panic if this happens, as it most likely will.  The most important part is that you get back on track as soon as possible. 

Here are the steps you need to take in order to move on to the last stage; Maintenance.

Make Goals! – If you have goals for your action then you can work each and every day to get closer to them.  Do not make hard to obtain goals at first.  If you have never worked out in your life do not have a marathon be your first goal, start with running a mile. As you reach each relatively easy goal you can set a new one for the future. 

Give yourself Credit – It has been shown that those that are rewarded tend to thrive with change. It is like giving a weekly/monthly allowance to a teenager for doing chores; they are more likely to complete their chores since there is a reward.  Give yourself a small “cheat day” if you have exercised or dieted as you had planned for 2 or more weeks.  Be sure to give yourself some self-praise, you deserve it. 

In our next and final installment you will have the keys to actually maintain the change in your life.

Reference: http://www.arthritisselfmanagement.com/newsletter/12-15-2011/time-for-a-change/?page=all 

Img: http://www.supercoloring.com/wp-content/main/2010_07/action-coloring-page.jpg

A Time for Change: Stage 3 – Preparation

At this point on our journey to change you are most likely committed to making an alteration in your lifestyle.  You have thought about the changes that need to take place and you may already be taking the correct steps to decrease your pain, move better, and live healthier.  Preparation, the next step for complete change is a very important one.  You have the best chance of success if you take your time in this stage and develop a comprehensive plan.  People in this stage often have big motivators for change; your pain has either gotten out of control or you have consistently become more unhealthy to the point that you notice seemingly easy daily tasks have become more difficult. 

Here are the steps you need to take in order to move on to the second-to-last stage; Action.

Set a Date! – Grab your calendar and pick a date to start your change.  When you look at your calendar make it look like any other important engagement you may have; something that you cannot miss.  Prepare for this day so when it comes you are ready to take action.  If you plan on starting a fitness class, make sure you have all the contact information of that fitness class.  If you plan on changing your diet, make sure to have the correct foods in your home to start the change.

Advertise Your Plan – It is now time to tell your friends, co-workers, and family what change you intend to make.  This will not only hold you to your change but will also provide you with support if you need it.  When you successfully make changes you will have a team to cheer you on.  If you begin to slip your team will be the healthy support you need to get going again.

In our next installment you will have the keys to actually make the change and then we will give you tips and tricks on how to maintain the change in your life.

Reference: http://www.arthritisselfmanagement.com/newsletter/12-15-2011/time-for-a-change/?page=all

Image: http://www.telesalesmagic.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/preparation_mousetrap.jpg