Hey team,

I’m still trying to figure out why we keep calling PT student gatherings conclaves..maybe conference or meeting. Anyway, the Midwest Student PT Conclave was last weekend and I know a bunch of people didn’t get (want) to go so I figured I would right up a little summary of the notes I took because I’m just that kind of guy. Thanks to KPTA, KU Med. and all the people who helped organize the event, it was really great.

Speaker: Dan Lorenz, DPT, CSCS (@kcrehabexpert)

Quick Bio: Dan is literally the man…He owns a Orthopedic and Sports focused outpatient clinic in Overland Park, KS where he fixes everyone from professional athletes to the average Joe with back pain. Dan has been published numerous times, he was Sports PT fellowship trained at Duke and teaches as an adjunct faculty at Rockhurst University.

**Note: this summary will not be perfect, I will do my best to keep it organized and accurate**

Exercise Progression:

Why does this matter? OUTCOMES! To get insurance to pay you need logical, defendable exercise progressions.

Principles of Exercise Progression:

Principle #1- be an expert at the basics:

Dan talked about the importance of knowing the basics of the body…what we are learning in school know really really well, it makes a huge difference as you reason your way through things.

-Anatomy- origins and insertions of muscles, primary and secondary actions

-Palpation

-keep up with the literature

Principle #2- Just because you can doesn’t mean you should

He talked about how new PTs will get really excited about the opportunity to get patients on a BOSU and having them do crazy things…just because you can, doesn’t mean you should.

Principle #3- Keep it simple!! 

Change one variable at a time.

Principle #4- Systematic Progression

-gravity eliminated before gravity minimized.

-2 legs before 1

-slow before fast

-stable surfaces before unstable

-single plane before multi plane exercises

-single joint before multi-joint

-simple before complex

-simple movement before task related

Principle #5- Don’t forget the joints above and below the area of injury

A pathology or injury can primarily come from a different location. (Wainner, JOSPT 2007)

Principle #6- You must get 3×10 or 2×20 out of your head!

More on this here

Principle #7- You must have mobility before you can have length and strength