Take a breath


Most of us busy people do not breathe well or correctly. The stresses of life usually take over our thoughts and minds, often manifesting into physical changes in our bodies that can progress to real problems and ailments.  People tend to ‘hold their stress’ in different parts of their bodies and, when stressed, could suffer from a chronic sore neck, headaches, back pain, gastrointestinal dysfunction, or poor sleep patterns.

In general, breathing exercises are a great way to meditate, calm one’s nervous system and reduce the physical effects that stress can have on your body. Breathing techniques have been used in the oldest form of exercise, yoga, for centuries, to cleanse, heal and awaken oneself.  Respiratory exercises are also the first exercises given by a physiotherapist post-surgery, or to anyone who presents in hospital for a long-duration stay. This is because breathing correctly is important and not everyone knows how to do it.

In stressful situations, and in most everyday situations, most people would like to stay calm, increase their awareness and be able to act, rather than ‘run away’ or ‘freeze’. In order to do this we ideally want to increase the oxygen levels in our blood so we are more alert, lower our heart rate so we can focus, and relax our nervous system so we can act.  Try the following exercise and see if you can feel the immediate positive effect:

  • Sit in a comfortable position in a chair or on the floor, bottom, back and feet supported.
  • Place your hands on your lower ribs, relax your neck and shoulders and close your eyes.
  • Take a breath in for 4 seconds, feeling that you are filling your lower ribs (lungs) with air.  Hold for 4 seconds and release the air for another 4 seconds. Repeat this 3 times.
  • If you have some more time, repeat the above with 6 and then 8 second inhalations, holds and exhalations. Note how relaxed you feel after these 9 breaths in and out.

You can’t always control the world around you, but you can always control the way you react to it. Happy holidays and remember to breathe!


Beth Sackville (Physiotherapist)

Exercise – in balance





Recommendations by WHO (World Health Organisation):




Written by Beth Sackville, Physiotherapist.

Pain at the front of your knee? – Patellofemoral/anterior knee pain

Pain at the front of the knee is often caused by your Patellofemoral Joint, which is the joint between your knee cap and the end of your thigh bone at the knee. This pain is referred to as Patellofemoral Pain and is caused by stress in the tissues in and around the joint. This tissue stress can be caused by factors such as your knee alignment, strength, or triggers that change the load at the knee, such as an increase in training level or even trauma and illness.

Activities which may increase Patellofemoral knee pain include:

  • A deep squats or lunges
  • An activity which causes an increase in load when your knee is bent

Studies show that people with Patellofemoral Pain tend to move differently at the hip, knee and ankle when they squat, land from a jump and run. A Physiotherapist can assess for these changes and provide you with a suitable rehabilitation program.

Treatment for patellofemoral pain may include:

  • A tailored strengthening program, which focuses on the quadriceps and gluteal muscles. Visual and verbal feedback is crucial when performing these exercises, so ask your Physiotherapist what cues you should use, such as feedback from a full length mirror.

If you have pain in your knee, it is likely that you would benefit from being assessed by one of our Physiotherapists. Call us on 8555 4099 or click here to book online.

Luci Minogue (Physiotherapist)

What is lymphedema?

The role of our lymphatic system is a most important one, of cleaning our bodies and supporting our immune system.  It consists of tiny, delicate lymphatic vessels that carry the lymph, or non-blood fluids of our body, towards the lymph nodes that essentially help to filter, reabsorb or excrete the water and rubbish flowing through our bodies.

Lymphedema is a condition that effects the flow of fluids, or lymph, through the lymphatic vessels in your body.  A small percentage of people are genetically predisposed to lymphedema, but it is most predominantly acquired as a result of a physical trauma to an area of the body, such as blunt trauma, surgery, radiation or burns.

Up to 20% of post-breast cancer surgeries can result in a lymphatic arm.  Warning signs for lymphatic disturbance in the arm could simply be a tingling or numb sensation. More worrisome symptoms could be heaviness in the limb, mild swelling, redness, skin thickening, weeping skin, poor nail health.  If you are worried that you are developing lymphedema, you should see your doctor for a referral to a lymphatic physiotherapist for assessment.

Beth Sackville (Physiotherapist and Lymphedema Therapist)

We know exercise is good for us, but how much should we actually do?


It is a well-known fact that exercise is good for us, no matter our age, health status or fitness. Regular physical activity is linked to a decreased risk of multiple health conditions including cancers, heart disease and stroke, but how much do we actually need to do?

Photo by Jonathan Colon

Referencing the Australian Physical Activity and Sedentary Behaviour Guidelines for Adults (aged 18-64 years) from the Australia Government’s Department of Health, it is recommended that optimally we should:

  • Be active on most, preferably all, days every week
  • Be doing muscle strengthening activities on at least 2 days each week (such as Pilates or weights training)
  • Each week accumulate either:
    • 2.5 – 5 hours of moderate intensity physical activity
    • 1.25 – 2.5 hours of vigorous intensity physical activity, or
    • An equivalent of both

Moderate intensity physical activity is at a level that causes some shortness of breath, but you can still talk comfortably. Examples of moderate intensity physical activity include brisk walking, gardening, housework and domestic chores, slow cycling, and water aerobics.

Vigorous intensity physical activity is at a level that causes more shortness of breath that makes talking difficult between deep breaths. Examples of vigorous intensity physical activity include running, swimming laps, tennis, faster cycling, skipping, hill walking or walking with a heavy pack.


The above recommendations are the optimal amount of exercise that an adult aged 18-64 years old should be doing per week (there are slightly different guidelines for people aged 65 and over). It is important to note that if you are currently below this recommendation, or not doing any physical activity, that you should gradually build up to the desired amount of exercise. It is also recommended that the amount of time spent in prolonged sitting be minimised, and to break up long periods of sitting with other positions such as walking.

At the end of the day, doing some physical activity is better than none, so just start!


If you need guidance on how to become more physically active, book in for a consultation with one of our Physiotherapists by calling us on 8555 4099 or click here to book online.


Meg Doyle (Physiotherapist)

Chronic Pain: Should Exercise Be Pain-free? By Meg Doyle

Do you have pain from an old injury that has just never completely gone away?
Do you find that your pain stops you from doing things in daily life?
Do you avoid certain movements due to being worried it will aggravate your pain?


What if I told you that doing movements that are slightly painful could actually reduce your pain levels?



Pain persisting longer than three months is considered to be chronic pain and is something that affects 1 in 5 Australians. It is a complex condition affecting a person’s emotional and social wellbeing, coupled commonly with fears of movement and increases in pain.

 Activity levels are significantly lower in those with chronic pain, with an increased fear of movement associated with the least amount of regular exercise. Insufficient levels of physical activity are the fourth leading cause of preventable deaths (heart disease, strokes, diabetes and cancers) annually world wide.


So, if you’re in pain and afraid of movement, how can you exercise and optimise your health in a way that you know is safe and beneficial for you?


Recent evidence has emerged stating that there are significant benefits exercising into pain over pain-free exercises for reducing chronic pain in patients. Why? Firstly, it addresses your fears of both movement and increases in pain, allowing you to increase your activity levels. It can also facilitate your body’s release of natural pain killers… who knew you could do that?!

An important thing to know is that pain is a warning signal sent by the brain, not your body, and it doesn’t necessarily mean that injury has occurred.

Let’s say you have avoided bending forwards for the past few years because you’re worried it will give you pain. If one day you attempt to bend forwards, there are pressure, stretch and movement direction signals being sent by your body to the brain saying “hey, we haven’t experienced this in a long time … is this okay?”. Your brain then may send a pain signal in an attempt to keep you safe, despite no injury occurring. If this movement is repeated in a safe and controlled way, eventually your brain will become accustomed to it and the level of pain will decrease.

So next time you’re moving and you feel a mild amount of pain, consider if it is a movement that you are fearful of, or avoid. If it is, persist within your limits and give your brain a chance to adapt.

If you suffer from chronic pain and would like to be guided through a safe exercise program with one of our Physiotherapists, please contact us on 8555 4099 or BOOK ONLINE.



Why we might work on your ‘form’ in an exercise

As Physiotherapists, we spend a lot of our time re-educating and retraining how our patients move optimally. Let’s look at the bridge, for example.



The bridge is a great exercise to increase the strength of the strongest muscle in our body – gluteus maximus. This muscle plays a big role in movements like running and squatting, and forms the rounded shape of our behind!. A problem a lot of people have is that they get cramping in the back of the thigh (the hamstring muscle) when performing a bridge. It can be so frustrating! So why could this be happening?

It could be due to a change in what we Physios call ‘motor control’.

Motor control determines the appropriate coordination of muscles to generate a desired movement, based on how our body is feeling and the world around us. For example, if you squat carrying a child in front of you, your body will activate your thigh muscles a lot more to account for the increased load, compared to squatting with only your own body weight.

Problems occur when we have a muscle that either doesn’t contribute enough strength, or is doing too much to help out, in a desired movement. In our bridging example, a common contributor to thigh cramping is that our gluteus maximus isn’t doing as much of the work as it could, so the hamstrings are then working overtime to pick up the slack – ouch!

This finding of an underactive gluteus maximus may shed light on a potential contributing factor to low back or leg pain if you have any. It is likely that retraining this muscle to activate more in this exercise will be one of many things your Physiotherapist would work on with you. This may include bridge technique changes such as including a pelvic tuck, or performing completely different exercise altogether to work on this deficit, before integrating it back into a bridge.


If you are experiencing pain or discomfort in everyday life, book in for an assessment with one of our Physiotherapists by calling 8555 4099, or click here to book online.


Physical Exercise To Increase Bone Mass – by Emily Smyth

Many of you may have heard of Osteoporosis, some of you may even have it. But what exactly is it?

Osteoporosis is a loss in bone density (qualified as a bone density below 2.5 SD). After menopause women can lose up to 20% of their bone density in the first 5 – 7 years. This loss of bone density weakens your bones and makes you more susceptible to breaking bones. While many people think osteoporosis is something to deal with in later life, research is now suggesting that what we do currently has a direct effect in later life. Young people tend to reach their peak bone mass in late teens and early twenties, with a gradual decrease after menopause.

Unfortunately, in modern society research has shown that the number of adults who are presenting with osteoporosis is on the rise. Around the world osteoporosis is responsible for 8.9 million fractures a year which is equivalent to an osteoporotic fracture every 3 seconds. Physical exercise is the only intervention which has been shown to increase bone mass. Research shows that young girls and boys who exercise regularly have a higher bone mass than their inactive counterparts. Reaching a high peak bone mass at a younger age and maintain this throughout life can reduce your chances of osteoporosis when you are older. So how does exercise improve bone density? Weight bearing exercises stress the bone causing them to increase bone density. While walking is classified as a weight baring exercise, research has shown that exercises such as Pilates and weight lifting are a more effective and global form of strengthening for your bones and muscles.

Below are my top three tips

  • Maximise your bone density before menopause– Stay active and include weight bearing exercises such as weights or Pilates into your weekly workout routine.
  • Minimise loss of bone density after menopause. Increase your weight bearing exercise and calcium and vitamin D intake. Pilates is a safe and effective method of building bone density
  • Reduce your risk of falls- If you already have low bone density it is important to reduce the chances you have of falling and therefore fractures. Specific strengthening and balance exercises such as Pilates can significantly reduce your risk of falling.

All of our Physiotherapists are extremely experienced in exercise prescription, especially Clinical Pilates. Why not speak to our Physiotherapists today about what can help you?

Call us on 8555 4099 or BOOK ONLINE.


Dry Needling Explained


Last month as part of my professional development I attended a dry needling course. Since attending the course I have had lots of questions about dry needling. I love learning new things and I have found it a great new addition to my treatment “toolbox”.  I thought I would take this opportunity to introduce you all to dry needling.

Historically dry needling (or a similar treatment technique) dates back as far as 3400BC. When the Otzi Ice Man (from 3400BC) was found in 1991, needle marks were noted on his bones around his hip. After investigation it was found he had arthritis in his hip – the examiners hypothesised that Otzi was receiving pain relief from the needles for his arthritis.


So, what exactly is dry needling?

Dry needling is a treatment technique where a thin needle is inserted into a hypersensitive point in a muscle. This causes a series of localised and systemic reactions resulting in the muscle spontaneously releasing. This release results in reduction of pain and an increase in joint range of motion.

Something that confuses many people is the difference between acupuncture and dry needling. Dry needling is a western medicine approach which uses physiological principles and trigger points to reduce pain and increase movement. This technique is only appropriate for musculoskeletal problems and does not play a role in medical illnesses. Traditional Chinese Medicine uses the body’s meridians to balance the chi within the body. This technique can be used for all different manner of illness and injuries.


Why choose dry needling?

Some people find the idea of dry needling a little overwhelming so they wonder why we choose it. Over the last two months I have treated many of my patients with this method. They have found it to be an effective, relativity pain free and efficient method of treatment. Many people find they are time poor and when they come to physio we may struggle to get to all the muscles we want to work on within the time frame. Dry needling is a much faster treatment and can encourage a faster recovery period when compared to soft tissue massage.


I have really enjoyed using dry needling on my patients over the last few months. It’s always great to learn new things and see how helpful they can be to my patients. If you would like to try dry needling feel free to call us on 8555 4099 or visit our website to book online.

*Please note: Dry needling may not be an appropriate treatment for everyone

Written by Emily Smyth (Physiotherapist)

Scoliosis? A curve in the spine? What is it and how is it best managed?


What is it?

Scoliosis is a deformity of the spine that causes it to curve abnormally from side-to-side. The most common type is called idiopathic scoliosis, which means there is no known cause of this condition.

Is it common?

Scoliosis affects around 2% of the population. The adolescent growth spurt is when idiopathic scoliosis most commonly presents, with approximately 80% of idiopathic scoliosis diagnoses occurring between the ages of 10 – 18 years old, and more cases found in females.


What are the symptoms?

–       Uneven hips or shoulders
–       One shoulder blade more prominent than the other
–       One side of the rib cage more prominent than the other
–       An appearance of being bent to one side
–       Difficulty breathing
–       Back pain



It is very important that scoliosis is diagnosed early, as abnormal curvatures of the spine can progress very rapidly during growth spurts in adolescents, or spine degeneration in the elderly, potentially leading to other health complications. Physiotherapists are well-equipped to assess, diagnose and treat scoliosis of the spine in all ages.


So, I’ve been diagnosed. What now?

If you have scoliosis of any severity, specific exercise methods are used to treat your specific curvatures with the aims to:

–       Decrease curve progression
–       Improve posture and function in everyday life
–       Reduce pain and discomfort
–       Prevent or delay surgery
–       Improve psychological outlook and overall quality of life

In addition to exercise, fitted braces and surgery are sometimes needed in more severe cases.


If you have scoliosis or are concerned that you or a family member may have it, call us on 8555 4099 to organise an assessment with one of our Physiotherapists, or click here to book online.


Written by Meg Doyle (Physiotherapist)

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