Because everybody — and every body — is different, we all have disparate physical points that are more vulnerable to injury and wear-and-tear than others.
The challenge is that you don’t know where these spots are until something happens, like an injury that could require a lengthy recovery time and rehabilitation.
Paul LaRosa, MS, PT,and Billy Reilly, MS, PT, have adopted an innovative screening tool that can do what has been, up to this point, impossible: analyze your body and advise you, based on concrete, subjective data, about what you may be doing that could increase your risk of injury.
The assessment method is called a Functional Movement Screen™ (FMS), and since the Empire Physical Therapy & Athletic Rehabilitation team is dedicated to providing individualized care, it dovetails nicely with what our practice’s overarching goals are: to maintain or bring you to a pain-free place, and keep you there.
A Functional Movement Screen is an assessment whose purpose is to recognize movement patterns that are yours and yours alone, whether you’re uninjured or experiencing discomfort.
By examining the screening results and your detailed movement patterns, we can determine if it’s more likely that you’ll be injured due to flaws in how you move.
If you move improperly, it can also negatively affect your performance, whether that’s on the field or simply mowing your lawn. Once we identify any state of disequilibrium in your body, we can create a plan to correct it, reduce your risk for injury, and optimize your performance.
When you get an FMS, we review seven of your body’s movement patterns, and rather than functioning as a diagnostic tool, the FMS alerts us to ways you could move more safely and efficiently. Each of your movements is scored as you perform the screening.
The process is simple and painless. Whether your physical therapist is Billy or Paul, they walk you through it, explaining the hows and whys of each step and answering any questions you may have.
The seven movements, which include a deep squat, a lunge, and others, identify issues that may exist with your:
These are just some of the things we’re looking at and grading during your FMS, but we also consider the symmetry and balance in your movements.
When your movement is limited by something that’s not done correctly, other parts of your body try to make up for this, which can put you at risk for getting hurt.
Rest assured that Billy and Paul are certified in the FMS technique and have performed it for countless patients, with productive and positive results.
The FMS is all about identifying inefficiencies and areas for improved movement. By correcting these imbalances, we can really impact your future for the better.
If your FMS score is lower than 14, you’re more likely to sustain an injury while playing sports and being active.
When we have this valuable information on hand, we can create a plan for your preventive care, advise you about your activities and how you perform them on a daily basis, and plan any future care you receive from us.
You don’t have to be a semi-pro athlete in order to benefit from an FMS test. The screening can help you if you’re:
The FMS is the key that allows us to get the most complete picture of your current physiological challenges, quirks, and imbalances. The screening is easy to perform, completely safe, and very telling.
This one simple assessment could help you avoid the injuries and conditions we treat all the time, from labrum tears to rotator cuff injuries.
We’re sensitive to the fact that COVID-19 has had a devastating effect on our city, and we want you to know that should you need an in-person visit with us, we have many safety precautions in place to keep you and our staff safe and healthy. You can feel confident in coming to us for care.
Take the first step in learning more about the FMS and schedule an appointment by calling our New York City office in the Midtown East section of Manhattan or by using our convenient online booking tool.
