Kelsey Hupka pt
101-9332 Southfort Drive T8L 0C5 Fort Saskatchewan, AB, Canada

Let’s do a chat on your Autonomic Nervous System (ANS) We have two divisions of the ANS. -Your PARASYMPATHETIC/rest and digest system. This includes things like digestion, slowing down your heart rate, and relaxation of muscles. RESTING functions. -Your SYMPATHETIC/fight or flight system. This is the system that helps prepare you to fight off stressors/defend yourself. Our muscles contract, you heart pitter patters a little more quickly, pupils dialate, adrenaline increases..., muscle tense etc. . We NEED both of them, otherwise we couldn’t chill OR defend ourselves from saber tooth tigers. But here’s the thing: . It’s not just saber tooth tigers anymore. . We live in a culture where we’re generally more SYMPATHETIC in nature. Lots of stress (work, family, school, relationships, you name it), the abuse of stimulants, and general neglect of resting functions like sleep . ACUTE stress is a good thing (usually). Think: EXERCISE. Exercise is inherently stressful, but it’s temporary. . BUT if you’re piling stressor on stressor on stressor, you are going to be left with a nervous system that is upregulated which has been shown to increase the likelihood of developing prolonged pain. You wanna know what DOESN’T happen when cortisol is chronically elevated? RECOVERY. Our nervous system and psychological state play such a huge role in pain perception and recovery from injuries, and these aspects are often over looked when it comes to rehab strategies. Think about it, if your body and nervous system is in a state of stress and you get injuried you’re likely to have a more adverse emotional response. If your system is all out of whack and you are stressed or anxious, naturally your capacity to cope with the situation is going to be lower than if you are level headed, calm, and feel supported/in control of your situation. Being proactive and taking care of yourself, mentally and physically, will leave you more prepared to deal with whatever life throws at you. SO, I HIGHLY encourage you to focus on encouraging parasympathetic function just as much as sympathetic. Some of these things include: GETTING ENOUGH SLEEP Not abusing stimulants like caffeine Not exercising TOO MUCH Taking some time each day to BREATHE deeply. Big inhale followed by an even bigger exhale. This can actually help stimulate your vagus nerve, which can help stimulate your parasympathetic system. Know when to BACK OFF Be with loved ones . To name a few. . Right now we are facing a very stressful time and it is easy to neglect our own personal needs in all the chaos. Breath, sleep, stretch, move your body, read a book, listen to music, call your loved ones and SLOW DOWN. Your body and mind will thank you for it.

Back to pelvic tilts! As mentioned in the last post, having an excessive anterior or posterior pelvic tilt can create significant muscle imbalances and result in hip and back pain. Here's 4 simple exercises to help address muscle imbalances and restore a neutral pelvic position. For exercises, I would suggest 2-3 sets of 8-10 reps per movement (and per side when necessary). HOWEVER, as with any exercise find a volume that is right for you. At the end of the set you should fee...l fatigued but not to the point of exhaustion or pain, at that point your form changes and you recruit different muscles to achieve the movement- NOT WHAT WE WANT. If these movements are painful stoppppp and consult a physio to get a program specific to your needs :) CORRECTING ANTERIOR PELVIC TILT Bodyweight glute bridges: really simple, but PAY ATTENTION to how you execute. Sometimes people have a hard time differentiating between hip extension and low back movement. When doing glute bridges, ONLY use your glutes to extend. DON’T arch your back for extra ROM. Hip flexor stretch: This one is to help anyone with tight hip flexors! By loosening the hip flexors there is less forward pull on the hips which should make it easier for the pelvis to remain in neutral. Hold for 30-40 seconds and repeat 2-3 times. CORRECTING POSTERIOR PELVIC TILT. Seated hip flexion: With PPT, your hip flexors are usually lengthened and weak (due to your glutes being overused), so they need a lil love and strengthening Glute stretch and back extension: not pictured, but to generalize considering that this posture leads to shortened glutes and lengthened back extensors you'll want to work to relax or stretch the glutes and strengthen the lower back! There you are! Super simple, very easy exercises that can start you on a path to the elusive neutral pelvis Think of a friend with a wonky pelvis and help them out while your at it, then you can be pelvis pals (one of a million more horrible jokes to come, stay tuned) #physiotherapy #physio #rehabilitation #pelvictilt #glute #workout #injury #sportsinjury #prehab #exercises #activephysioworks #hipinjury #kneerehab

Pelvic Tilt! What kind do you have and more importantly why should you care?? Well, pelvic positioning is one of the most common imbalances (along with neck and shoulder but thats another post) and its influenced by our posture/positioning in daily life, but it can also be impacted by injuries. Both types of tilt can contribute to poor movement patterns and leave you predisposed to injuries and unwanted adaptations in muscle length/function. NEUTRAL PELVIS - Shown in the midd...le, no tilt. Muscles fairly balanced with none being notably more shortened/lengthened than the others. This is what we want people!! ANTERIOR PELVIC TILT - More common in females (possibly due Kardashian induced booty craze, cause this position gives you that booty pop everyone is after). If your pelvis were a bucket, APT would cause it to tip forward and pour out water from the front which creates excessive arching through the low back. Your glutes, hams, and abs are constantly lengthened, which makes them weak/underdeveloped. Your quads, back extensors, hip flexors, and adductors are constantly shortened and overused. So if you are noticing weak glutes and tight quads and hip flexors, it may be due to your posturing. POSTERIOR PELVIC TILT - More common in men and is often paired with "flat back posturing" where there’s no discernible difference between where your back stops and your butt starts. For reference, some lumbar curvature indicates healthy posturing (ie. what is seen with a neutral pelvis) Your glutes, hams, and abs are overused/shortened, while hip flexors and back extensors are lengthened and weak. So next time you're checking out your butt in the mirror have a quick look at your pelvis and see if you can tell which one you are ;) Check out my next post to see what corrective exercises you can use to help fix each type of tilt! #physiotherapy #physio #rehabilitation #pelvictilt #glute #workout #injury #sportsinjury #prehab #exercises #activephysioworks #hipinjury #kneerehab

Hi everyone! Thanks for checking out my page :) For anyone who didn't come from my personal account, I‘m Kelsey and I’m a recent physiotherapy grad from the University of Alberta, currently working at @activephysioworks in Fort Saskatchewan. As someone who grew up playing sports, I've always had a strong passion for sports rehabilitation and working with athletic populations. That being said, in my time as a student I have had the chance to work with all types of demographics... who have varying goals and abilities. As a result, I've been able to see that regardless of the injury, condition, or person, every individual I work with is unique and challenges me to come up with an enjoyable and effective treatment plan specifically tailored to them. I love the collaboration with each patient that goes into their treatment, at the end of the day I want my clients to understand what is going on with their body and how the treatment we chose is going to help them. My hope with this approach is that my clients feel genuinely invested in and cared about, this way I get to work with my clients, not just for them. So needless to say I kind of have the coolest job ever and I'm so excited to get started Now, what is my purpose with this instagram account? Well, so much of my job is educating my clients about their injuries, explaining anatomy, and demonstrating how certain exercises can improve certain impairments or prevent injuries. That being said, I wanted to create a resource that shows people what they can do to help manage common conditions that so many of us deal with. Not only that, but also something that can show people what they can be doing in the gym to help prevent injuries from occurring in the first place! So if this is something that interests you stay tuned!!