Built for the demands of your sport
Generic rehab doesn't get you back to soccer, hockey, running, or the gym. Sport-specific rehab does. The work is built around the actual demands you're returning to — sprinting, cutting, jumping, lifting, throwing — with criteria-based progression rather than calendar-only milestones.
The framework
1. Acute — protect and restore basics
Early-phase care to control pain and swelling, restore range, and prevent secondary stiffness.
2. Strength & control
Progressive strength work, neuromuscular control, integration of the kinetic chain. The middle phase where the real adaptation happens.
3. Power & sport-specific
Plyometric progression, change of direction, sprinting, sport-specific drills. The phase most often skipped — and the most common reason for re-injury.
4. Return to play
Criteria-based testing: strength symmetry, hop test batteries, sport-specific demands, psychological readiness.
What the evidence supports
The Grindem return-to-sport criteria after ACL reconstruction (BJSM 2016) cut re-injury risk by 84%. Similar criteria-based frameworks exist for hamstring strain (Askling), Achilles tendinopathy (Silbernagel), and concussion (Amsterdam 2022 consensus). The evidence is consistent: structured progression beats time-only return.
Common scenarios
- Mid-season hamstring or groin strain in soccer, hockey, football
- Runner's knee, ITB syndrome, Achilles tendinopathy
- Post-ACL or MPFL reconstruction return to sport
- Recurrent ankle sprains in field-sport athletes
- Rotator cuff issues in overhead athletes (volleyball, baseball, swim)
- Youth athlete overuse injuries — managed with growth-plate awareness
Team affiliation
I serve as chiropractor for Tecumseh United Football Club — in-season injury management, pre-season screening, return-to-play programming. That experience shapes the care delivered in clinic.
Bottom line
Sport-specific rehab built around the demands of your game. Criteria-based progression. Honest timelines. Return when you're actually ready — not just when the calendar says so.