has provided physical, occupational, and speech therapy since 1978. With twelve locations in the Sacramento area, they've been voted "Best in the Business - Service Company" by the Sacramental Business Journal.

They have also partnered with the NBA's Sacramento Kings basketball team. That's why when the King's furry and ferocious mascot, Slamson, gets injured he heads straight to Burger Rehab.

Burger uses the Shuttle 2000-1 to help all of it's patients - human and mammal - get back in the game (you can catch a glimpse of the 2000-1 at about the 5 second mark in the video - gotta watch fast).

You can connect with the good folks at Burger on Facebook and Twitter.

Thanks Burger Rehabilitation Systems, Inc.!

1. Thirteen year old breaks world weightlifting records and she loves bacon... which can be a healthy part of a Paleo diet.

2. Physical Therapists: I Like to Move It or Cruel to be Kind?

Bill Ervolino writes a wonderfully humorous piece on his experience in physical therapy while rehabbing his shoulder. He starts his article:

You know the old doctor joke: Man goes to a doctor's office, lifts his arm and says, "It hurts when I do this." Doc nods and says, "Then don't do that."

Which brings us to the wonderful world of physical therapy.

ME: "It hurts when I do this."

THERAPIST: "Good! Keep doing it!"

The healthcare field is full of professionals that live to make you feel better. Physical therapists do that, too. But, sometimes they gotta make you feel bad to help you feel good. It's painful to get injured joints and muscles moving again. But a physical therapist - overflowing with vim, vigor, enthusiasm and encouragment - will help you "enjoy the pain" and get you back to better than you used to be.

In short, they're some of the nicest, most pleasant and cheerful masochists you'll ever want to meet!

So, I began to wonder, If there were a theme song for physical therapists, what would it be?

Well, you decide. Vote by adding your comments below.

And thanks, physical therapists - it Hurts So Good!

     vs.     

3. Athletic Trainers Against The World

Was a tad surprised to see where an athletic trainer was instrumental in getting a high school football coach investigated, and more than a tad surprised to see what he said about the offending coach:

"The most deplorable, disrespectful and disgraceful behavior from a head coach in any sport I have ever seen."

Um, tell us how you really feel....

Coaches and athletic trainers don't always see eye to eye. The trainer can be under significant pressure to release an athlete to play before they are fully ready. But, sometimes it's hard to appreciate just how much pressure an athletic trainer faces until you consider all the influences that combine against them.

Athletic Greed is Good

Sports is big business. We see it in the pros and we see it in college. Now, we're seeing it in high school athletics, as well. A high school in north Texas is building a $60 million football stadium. You better believe there's gonna be some serious pressure on that coach (from administrators and the community) to fill that stadium by putting a winning team on the field. That pressure will be passed right long when an athletic trainer has to make a ready-to-play decision on a star athlete.    

Meet the Parents

Most top athletes have aspirations to play at the next level. Quite often those aspirations are backed up by a firm resolve, a do-whatever-it-takes-to-achieve-my-goals mentality. And, quite often those aspiring athletes will have equally aspiring parents. By the time little Johnny has reached high school graduation, those same parents have shelled out a small fortune in year-round sports play, summer camps, training specialists, recruiting videos, etc.

An injury threatens all of that. There's a lot at stake - both financially and aspirationally - and an injury is an obstacle that must be overcome. You can bet the athletic trainer, who provides some much-needed perspective, will be under pressure to help the family get around that obstacle.  

Unnecessary Toughness

Finally, the athletic trainer has years of tradition working against them. The essence of sports is blood, sweat, and tears. So, if an athlete gets their "bell rung", it's simply one more way to prove their mettle. Coaches expect an athlete's full commitment. Teammates may not expect quite as much, but they most definitely want their friend beside them in the game - whether they're hurting or not. In short, you've got an athlete who, despite the pain, wants to be in the game - and the rest of society expects them to be out there, as well.

Sometimes an athletic trainer has to stand in the way of all that.

4. Wes Welker's Mini Romance

Even with the frenzy leading up to this Sunday's Super Bowl, New England Patriot's Wes Welker still found the time to get engaged to model Anna Burns.

(And, yes, that little gray thing you see in the bottom right hand corner of the picture is a crutch. But, don't worry Pats fans, this particular photo was taken two years ago when Welker was rehabbing his knee - and launching a new relationship with the lovely Miss Burns.)

The media reports that when Welker suffered his MCL/ACL tear back in 2009:

 "Anna was by her beau's side for his surgery and rehab, and the two have been living together ever since." 

Which leads us to our little story.... 

We have it - on innuendo and inference - that Welker used one of our machines to rehab his knee. We can't prove it, but we think the circumstantial evidence is overwhelming.  

Well, here, you decide....

1. She probably burned more calories playing than she did doing her regular workout. Nice!

2. The Key to Life is One Simple Thing

Each season, legendary Green Bay Packer coach Vince Lombardi would begin his training camp by calling a team meeting. With all assembled, Lombardi would stride to the front of the room, football in hand, pausing briefly to survey his players, then hold the pigskin aloft...

3. The pay isn't that good... but at least the hours are long.

I was pretty hesitant to write that sentence.

But the contrast between the importance of a Certified Athletic Trainer and how they are compensated can be too stark not to use some irony. They are responsible for keeping athletes healthy - and sometimes find themselves thrust into situations where they are called upon to keep someone alive.

That's why I was a little bit disconcerted when I read that Passion Keeps Athletic Trainer Working Long Hours.

Photo by: BetterThanBacon

4. We who are buried under snow find solace in watching warm weather wipeouts....

The Northwest got dumped on this week. Glacier, Washington - where we manufacture our Shuttle products - got upwards of two and a half feet of the white stuff!

Please forgive us if we find a measure of pleasure in somebody else's hardship as they play in the warmer climes....

5. Is there anything a Physical Therapist can't do?

Photo by: Digital_Rampage

The world seemed to be abuzz this week with all the ways a physical therapist can help you:

FLASH!   Physical Therapy Determined Most Effective Option to Relieve the “Pain in Your Neck”

BANG!   Physical Therapy and Exercise Can Help Eliminate Joint Pain and Avoid Surgery 

POW!   How a Physical Therapist Can Fast Track Your Recovery from an Ankle Sprain 

And when a physical therapist is not helping you with your neck, joints, or ankles, where can you find them? Off helping the less fortunate in Guatemala! The Arcadia University Physical Therapy program took five physical therapists and fifteen PT students to Guatemala as part of the Hearts In Motion program.

Students were able to "practice their skills with real patients and actively engage in diagnosing and problem-solving" in clinics, communities, and rehab centers throughout Guatemala. Truly a great way to learn and serve. 

WOW!    Physical Therapy Students Provide Traveling Therapy Clinic To People Of Guatemala

Photo by: Arcadia University

1. For those who missed the "Mile High Miracle" this past week....

2. What is it with ankle instability?

Photo by: Foxtongue

It was a delightful morning....

I was peacefully immersing myself in a quiet pool of intellectual discovery - soaking up the vagaries of how a famous basketball player overcomes chronic ankle instability - when somebody threw a live wire in the water in the form of a tweet:

Cold, wet, and covered in only a thin layer of protective skull, my mind stood there naked and in shock, racing as to how to respond.

My article had been filled with kindly words such as "ankle sprain", "fix the problem", and "avoid further injury". Now, I had research hurled at me with word daggers like "neuromuscular control", "supination", and "peroneal activation". While I may rub shoulders, legs, and lower backs with PT's, ATC's, and S&C coaches on a daily basis, this fact is very clear: I am not a lower extremity rocket scientist!

How was I to respond to @TherapyGirl5, a goddess (one who enjoys a measure of omniscience/omnipotence in a particular field and should be followed rather than worshipped) in the Twitterverse?

I turned to a power beyond my own... our Shuttle owners. 

Here is how the Shuttle products can help with ankle instability:

Advanced proprioceptive exercises on the Shuttle Balance 

@JeffCubos - another Twitter god whom one should reverence, er... follow!

Unilateral jumping onto Shuttle Balance and jumping off to proprioceptive disk

Thanks everyone!

3. Neither injury, nor heart attack, nor death shall keep a runner from their appointed run:

How to prevent and treat every runner’s nemesis

What is the second most common injury among runners?

MARATHONS: 1 cardiac arrest per 184,000 runners and 1 death per 259,000 runners

4. How to improve cervical stabilization using feed-forward perturbation 

THIS WEEK'S WILD, WEIRD, AND WONDERFUL....

1. This is a great PSA! Learn the simple steps to CPR... and you'll never hear "Stayin' Alive" the same way again.

2. Dr. Matthew Matava describes his responsibilities as the Head Team Physician for the St. Louis Rams. (And, if you look real close, you'll spot our Shuttle Balance around the 15 and 32 sec. mark - sweeeet!)

3. Nancy Clark, MS, RD, CSSD writes a great article on Winter Nutrition: How to Fuel for Cold Weather Exercise. If you plan on running or skiing this winter, this is a good read. 

4. The New York Times set part of the world abuzz with their recent article: For Neck Pain, Chiropractic and Exercise Are Better Than Drugs. But before everybody goes ga-ga, Dr. Jeff Cubos takes a objective approach recommending that we atleast "be a little more responsible when drinking the kool-aid". Hooray for calm, cool, and collected - good stuff, Jeff!

Photo by: Fokkets 

5. Move Forward just published a Physical Therapist’s Guide to Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) Tear - a very thorough treatment of all things ACL (and well worth your review). Here, Kent Bond of Impact Physical Therapy shows how he uses his Shuttle Balance to treat the ACL patient.

6. Travel back in time with photographs.... Check out this interesting picture website called Dear Photograph!

7. A recent study showed that hip replacement patients can benefit from physical therapy-assisted training and strengthening of the hip - both before and after replacement surgery. Here, Dr. Kate Mangione of Arcadia University demonstrates how to use the Shuttle MiniPress to strengthen the hips. 

8. Finally, since we need all the motivation we can muster to stick with our New Year's Resolutions for at least a few more days, we thought we better share something to inspire you.

Shuttle Systems wishes you a glorious weekend!

1. This should start the season off right....

2. Nice, entertaining look at the ACL injury and how to rehab it. (Jaco Rehab in Hawaii made this cool video - their website is even more awesome. But I don't show where they own one of our machines yet. Wonder if they would consider kicking their clinic up a notch by sportin' a Shuttle....) 

3. One of the highlights of my recent trip to Kenya was a visit to the Maasai tribe. I even had time to talk shop about increasing their vertical jump....

4. Seems like a simple and easy physical therapy treatment for a fairly common ailment. Nice.

Photo by: Marcella

5. I don't know... maybe it's the flute that adds that indefinable quality to this new product launch.

6. Speaking of product launches.... With toning shoes and shake weights, it was only a matter of time before somebody came out with underwear that can help you lose weight. A japanese company has developed underwear with a rigid resin which provides resistance. As you struggle to wear this stuff, you're burning calories!

7. Urban Meyer comes out of retirement to coach at Ohio State University. Rumors are he'll bring in his favorite Strength and Conditioning coach, Mickey Marotti, from Florida. It will be interesting to see the kind of culture they create at OSU.

8. Mike Reinold, in a recent blog post, talked about how an athlete could increase their vertical jump by 2 inches in just minutes by switching to dynamic stretching. That gives us the perfect excuse to haul out our magnum opus on vertical jumpus. 

Photo by: Sukanto Debnath

9. I thought this was both cool and smart. Whaddya think? 

1. In honor of Veteran's Day. Lest we forget.... 

2. This week the world also celebrated something that only comes around once every 100 years: 11/11/11. The following seemed appropriate.

3. The rehab process for an injured player is a "symphony of hard work and expertise drawing upon doctors, trainers, physical therapists and strength coaches." From injury, thru recovery, to back in the game... as told by the Stanford Cardinal.

4. When it comes to exercise, you gotta believe.... 

5. Mark McKown, Assistant Coach of Player Development for the Utah Jazz, teaches his "Twenty Series" workout using the Shuttle MVP.  

(The Utah Jazz have had a Shuttle MVP Classic since 1999. They just added a Shuttle Balance Professional this year. During a servicing visit, Mark McKown was kind enough to show me how they use the MVP for a total body workout he calls the Twenty Series. The above video covers the upper body portion of that workout. We'll share the lower body video in the coming weeks - and look forward to seeing what Mark comes up with on the Balance. Thanks again Mark!)

6. A study finds that runners get to enjoy some holiday feasting. Apparently, variation in their diets don't affect them as much as it does more sedentary folk... like myself. Happy Holidays!

7. Physical Therapists can teach us how to do a lot of things right. Two weeks ago we showed you a video on "How to Vacuum like a Physical Therapist". This week we have a PT teaching us how to wash dishes correctly.  

8. We've showed you how to "Shoot the Duck" on the Shuttle Balance. Now, this man is going to show you how to juggle medicine balls.... 

(This video was shot by the good people at ProCare3 of Omaha, Nebraska. Apparently, they're giving the Shuttle Balance a try in their clinic. Shhhh, be very, very quiet. ProCare3 hasn't purchased yet, so everyone please cross your fingers and don't do anything to disturb the cosmic sales balance. We're hoping ProCare3 becomes the newest member of the Shuttle family.)

9. Love it when nutritionists recommend things that actually taste good!

1. What you're about to see is called a murmuration. Nature is awesome... is it not? 

2. Movember is the month when men all over the world grow moustaches to raise money and awareness for men's health. Our very own Marketing Media guy, Kris Aguero, is in hot pursuit of the ultimate stache. You can join his team! 

3. Happy Seven Billionth Birthday to the world... my, how you've changed!

4. If you can't join 'em, beat 'em! That'll give you some respect. Here are nine female athletes who competed against men.

5. This is the "magnum opus" of the ACL injury. It's not the most professionally done, but it does show you some actual ACL injuries starting around the 2:00 mark. It also provides plenty of motivation for those going through ACL rehab. Plus, it shows our very own Shuttle MiniPress at the the 6:02 mark... sweeeet!

6. Dr. Robert Donatelli helped PGA player Fred Funk increase his hitting power. Interestingly enough, he did it using the Shuttle Balance to improve Funk's proprioception and dynamic visual acuity.  

7. The folks at San Jose State University provide a nice, expansive explanation of what the study of kinesiology entails. 

8. A runner's guide to the best protein consumption practices. Eating protein right will definitely put a spring in your step.

9. Coaching anything at the professional level is hard. You don't have the luxury of pointing fingers. Others do... and sometimes those fingers will point to you as the scapegoat. Just ask Dave Page, former Strength and Conditioning coach for the Boston Red Sox. 

1. For the next week or two, we're going to talk about the game of basketball. And to tip things off, we thought we'd share the greatest basketball story ever told....

2. Look at this babe's perfect squat technique:

3. The divided brain explained... and with a lovely British accent. 

4. Only a short distance from the brain is your neck and spine. And if you have a patient that has experienced a neck/cervical injury, you can recreate the circumstances surrounding that injury using the Shuttle Balance. This will help your patient's body to reestablish and develop neuromuscular responses to recover and prevent injury again.

(Kenji Carp, owner of Cooperative Performance & Rehabilitation, is a great therapist. A vestibular therapy specialist, Kenji teaches various continuing education courses all over the country. And, when he's not traveling or helping his patients get back to perfect health, he actually finds time to play around on our machines. We've captured him on video teaching about our Shuttle Balance, Shuttle Recovery, and Shuttle MiniPress. Thank you Kenji!)

5. The Tyranny of the Fathers: How we become sports fans....

Photo by: shawnzrossi

6. Are you an awkward runner? We certainly hope not. But if you suffer from any of the maladies demonstrated in the video below - please - see a physical therapist for a gait analysis IMMEDIATELY!

7. Bob Medina, strength and conditioning coach for the Portland Trailblazers, takes guard Steve Blake through some basic pre-game warm-ups on the Shuttle Balance.

(Our Shuttle MVP has been with the Portland Trailblazers since 1998. Our Shuttle Balance has been there since 2007. Steve Blake was traded in 2010. We appreciate the Trailblazers loyalty.)

8. Since we're in the final days of celebrating National Physical Therapy Month, we couldn't resist sharing this: How to Vacuum Like a Physical Therapist. 

(Of course, if you really want to prevent injury during vacuuming, just have your kids do it....) 

1. "You know, a lot of those scratches will buff right out...."

2. Which college has the healthiest student body? See if your alma mater is in tip top shape....

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Photo by: Laffy4k

3. Occupy Wall Street has inspired us to have a little protest of our own. We’re Anti-Gravity!

4. The Head Athletic Trainer for the Jacksonville Jaguars tells why mud runs are the best way to build fitness. 

5. This video will teach you why Chad Ochocinco provides a bigger target than an elephant, and why Jerry Rice doesn't have "soft hands" - he's got great fingers! 

6. With all the fervor surrounding concussions, this article got my attention. Everybody was in place, all responded promptly and professionally... but they were still too late.

Photo by: Schlusselbein2007

7. Star quarterback goes down with a knee injury. Fights his way back in rehab - doctors, coaches, trainers supporting him all the way. He finally gets back in the game, scores his first touchdown, walks off the field and gives his orthopedist a big hug. Now there's a man who has it priorities straight!

Photo by: JustinBoyd1

8. Research says to avoid ankle re-injury, you gotta strengthen the hips and knees. Here's how you can do that using the Shuttle 2000-1 and a wobble board. 

9. In honor of Physical Therapy Month, some PT Assistants got together a flash mob... doing a little Myotome and Dermatome dance.