What is a Kinesiologist?

Kinesiologists are specialists in providing appropriate exercise therapy to clients with musculoskeletal, cardio respiratory and metabolic conditions. They are able to assess and prescribe exercise for people with medical conditions and functional limitations to help them improve their health and function. Kinesiology, also known as human kinetics or exer­cise phys­i­ology is the science of the human body during movement. The goal of kinesiology is to find strategies for improved health and performance by applying the sciences of biomechanics, anatomy, physiology, psychology and neuroscience. The word kinesiology is derived from the Greek words kinesis (movement) and kinein (to move).

Kinesiologists practice in many areas of specialty including exercise therapy, rehabilitation, wellness, ergonomics, health and safety and disability management. Our Victoria Kinesiologists at Shelbourne Physiotherapy have a passion to assist those with injuries gain control and function of their lives through evidence-based biomechanical treatment and exercise prescription.

When to Choose a Kinesiologist

• If you have an injury, disability or medical condition(s) and want to improve your health and fitness in a safe progressive manner.
• If you have or our undergoing medical treatment (Physiotherapy, Chiropractic, etc) and want to increase your level of fitness.
• Have a referral from a Doctor to begin active rehabilitation or work conditioning.
• Goals are better health (inside and out), better quality of life, improved movement ability.
• If you want to learn how to manage your condition(s) with physical activity and lifestyle changes.

Like med­i­cine and Phys­io­therapy, many Kine­si­ol­o­gists have spe­cial­ized in a par­tic­ular area of the field. For example, like the Shelbourne Physiotherapy team, a Kinesi­ol­o­gist may treat clients together with a mul­ti­dis­ci­pli­nary team of health pro­fes­sionals such as Physiotherapists or Registered Massage Therapists. We assess move­ment impair­ments or muscle imbal­ances and treat injuries that can result from an unstable or weak area of the body. Another Kinesiologist may focus on edu­cating clients about the health ben­e­fits of gen­eral exer­cise and work in more of a per­sonal training capacity. Still other Kinesiologists can be found in the ergonomics or dis­ability man­age­ment areas helping people stay injury-free at work or help people return to work after a work injury or car accident.

• Do you have bal­ance problems?
• Do you notice that you have recurring pain or muscle weak­ness?
• Are you preparing for or recov­ering from orthopaedic surgery, cancer surgery or related treat­ment?
• Do you need help get­ting to the next level of your fit­ness pro­gram or ath­letic performance?

Our Victoria Kinesiology team spe­cial­izes in clin­ical reha­bil­i­ta­tion and fit­ness. We use a variety of tech­niques to help you reach your unique goals: quan­tifi­able assess­ment mea­sures for muscle strength and length, func­tional move­ments and muscle co-ordination.

Injury Rehabilitation in Victoria BC

Want to get back on your feet and doing the activities you enjoy? Whether you’re preparing for surgery to repair your heart valve or you are recov­ering from a hip or knee replace­ment, Shelbourne Physiotherapy’s exper­tise in ther­a­peutic exer­cise can get you back on your feet faster, help you move without pain and keep you safe from future injury.

Kinesiology is the study of the sci­ence of human move­ment, and we start our assess­ment of your body by looking at move­ments that you have to do every day.

For example, we all need to com­fort­ably sit and stand, walk, for­ward bend and twist. We know that there are cer­tain mus­cles that must be used for these move­ments and we know that these mus­cles must work in a par­tic­ular order for you to be strong and pain free with all of your activities.

To find out more about Kinesiology please visit the website British Columbia Association of Kinesiologists.

What is a Functional Movement Screen?

The Functional Movement Screen (FMS) is an excellent injury prevention and performance tool for athletes or anyone beginning a workout routine. A person’s body functions optimally when its musculoskeletal system is in a state of balance. When a person?s musculoskeletal system is imbalanced, performance levels are affected and the body is more susceptible to injury. For example, core weakness is known to be related to back problems.

Made up of seven screens, the FMS is a ranking and grading system that documents movement patterns that are essential to normal function, identifying functional limitations and asymmetries that reduce the effects of functional training and physical conditioning.

The FMS can be applied at any fitness level, identifying specific corrective exercises based on individual FMS scores. It creates a functional baseline to track progress and provides a means to measure performance. Shelbourne Kinesiologists Larry Muir and Lindsey Tabish are Certified in FMS.

The seven screens include:

• Deep Squat
• Hurdle Step
• Inline Lunge
• Shoulder Mobility
• Active Straight Leg Raise
• Truck Stability Push-Up
• Rotational Stability

The seven screens of the FMS evaluate a person?s functional movements and provide an objective score based on this evaluation. The highest possible score is 3 for each of the seven screens, so a perfect score would be 21. Recent research has shown that if a person scores below a 14 on the FMS, there is an increased risk of injury (studies completed on NFL football players and firefighters).

What Your FMS Score Means

If you score higher than 14 but have imbalances, corrective exercises to address your asymmetries will be recommended.

If you score lower than 14, an improvement program will likely be recommended. Depending on the outcome of the screening, an athlete may be advised to see a physical therapist for further evaluation or treatment.

If you experience pain during any of the seven screens, it indicates a broader issue. You will likely be urged to see your physician.

The FMS System has been involved with the following organizations:

Anaheim Mighty Ducks, Atlanta Falcons, Baltimore Ravens, Brigham Young University, Buffalo Bills, Carolina Hurricanes, Chicago Bears, Cincinnati Bengals, Cleveland Indians, Green Bay Packers, Indianapolis Colts, Mayo Clinic, Montreal Canadians, New York Jets, Oakland Raiders, Orange County Fire Department, San Francisco 49ers, Secret Services, Stanford University, Texas A&M University Recreational Sports, Toronto Blue Jays, United States Government Organizations, University of Georgia, United States Military, University of Maryland, University of Texas, University of Wisconsin

 What others are saying about the FMS:

“We now use this program with every player as a pretest and evaluation tool before we even begin to train them. This individualizes our training as we can now focus more on improving weaknesses, imbalances and asymmetries in an effort to improve functional movement patterns. It’s the foundation of our program. Everything we do builds off of it. We wouldn’t think of not using this program.?” -Jon Torine, Head Strength Coach, Indianapolis Colts