Athletic Advantage Physiotherapy and Wellness

Athletic Advantage Physiotherapy and Wellness Athletic Advantage is a boutique clinic helping people get out of pain and move better. Our team of

05/21/2026

The 2 biggest mistakes I see in ankle sprain rehab… 👇

1. Not restoring full ankle range of motion

2. Only doing double leg hopping drills

A lot of athletes go back to sports once they are pain free doing daily movements and tasks.

But being pain-free does not mean the ankle is fully ready for sport.

The first key is restoring full ankle range of motion.

A lot of people regain about 80% of their motion, and because that’s enough for daily activities, they stop there.

But sport requires the ankle to reach deep end ranges repeatedly under load.

If those ranges are never restored after injury, many athletes never truly get them back.

That’s why rehab should include loading the ankle through full dorsiflexion, plantar flexion, inversion, and eversion.

The second mistake is stopping at simple bilateral hopping drills.

Double leg hopping can hide deficits because the opposite leg helps absorb and create force.

Single leg hopping exposes whether the foot and ankle truly have the strength, spring, power, and landing control needed for sport.

If the ankle lacks mobility, the hops will look flat and stiff.

If strength hasn’t fully returned, push off power and hopping speed will still be reduced.

Don’t just rehab until the pain is gone.

Rehab until the ankle is fully prepared for the demands of sport.

05/19/2026

With cricket season in full blast, it can be tough on the body.

Many athletes are playing back-to-back games over the weekend, often across multiple leagues, which can quickly lead to overuse injuries from repetitive batting and bowling.

This athlete came in dealing with rotator cuff tendinitis, along with medial and lateral epicondylitis, also known as golfer’s elbow and tennis elbow.

To help prevent overuse injuries, we need to build tissue resilience, meaning strengthening the muscles, tendons, and joints so they can better tolerate the loads and demands of the sport.

This is a simple cricket bat routine focused on elbow and shoulder strength, mobility, and control that can be done before training, matches, or as part of rehab.

Routine:

1. Wrist Supination + Pronation – 2 x 10
2. Reverse Grip Curls – 2 x 10
(Hold further from the middle to make harder)
3. Palms Up Bicep Curls – 2 x 10
(Hold further from the middle to make harder)
4. Capsular Rotations – 2 x 6
5. Shoulder Flexion Lift Offs – 2 x 5
(5 second holds)
6. Shoulder Flexion Rocks – 2 x 5
Focus on pushing the bat into the floor as you sink back.
Give this routine a try and let me know how it feels.

Share this with a cricket athlete that needs it.

04/30/2026

Stretching your hip pain might be the reason it’s not getting better.

This patient had:

• Deep glute pain
• Hamstring tightness
• Hip pinching

But the issue wasn’t tightness—it was too much mobility without control.

👉 Diagnosis: ischiofemoral impingement

So instead of stretching more… we focused on building stability in the ranges she already had.

Here’s the exact routine we used:

1️⃣ Hip airplanes × 8
2️⃣ Hip IR passive lift-offs (3s hold) × 10
3️⃣ Hip ER + flexion lift-offs × 8
4️⃣ Kneeling capsular rotations × 5
5️⃣ Partial range Copenhagen × 8
6️⃣ Partial range hip flexion × 8
7️⃣ Partial range bridge × 8

Each of these is designed to:

✔️ Build control
✔️ Strengthen end range
✔️ Train the hip to actually use its mobility

Because random exercises won’t fix a specific problem.

The wrong movement for the wrong condition can keep you stuck or make things worse.

Specific rehab → real results.

04/20/2026

Most MCL injuries don’t fail in early rehab, but often when athletes return to sport too soon.

The MCL’s role is to resist valgus stress and rotational forces. That means it has to tolerate cutting, deceleration, and lateral movement at speed not just controlled strength exercises.

Early-stage rehab restores movement.
Late-stage rehab determines if the knee can handle sport.

If you’re not exposing the knee to:

• frontal plane loading (valgus control)
• reactive change of direction
• high-speed deceleration
• unpredictable movement demands

…you haven’t actually tested the MCL.

This is why athletes feel “fine” then re-aggravate it the moment intensity increases.

Return to sport isn’t about being pain-free. It’s about restoring load tolerance, control, and confidence under stress.

04/14/2026

Medial (inside) knee pain isn’t always what you think.

Pes anserine bursitis is commonly missed or misdiagnosed, and that matters, because it completely changes how you should be treating it.

This area is where three muscles attach:

1. Sartorius
2. Gracilis
3. Semitendinosus

If you’re not addressing these specifically, you’re likely missing the root of the problem.

A proper assessment is key. Don’t just treat “knee pain”—figure out why that pain is there. Target the right structures, and get better results.

03/23/2026

Patellar tendinopathy exercises👇

Most jumper’s knee rehab fails because of limited or no load progress.

Tendons get better when you gradually increase tension and demand.

Start with controlled loading.
Progress to dynamic strength.
Finish with explosive movements.

This progression builds the tendon’s ability to handle jumping, sprinting, and cutting again.

Exercises shown:
1️⃣ Wall sit → Single-leg dynamic wall sit
2️⃣ Skater taps → Dynamic skater taps
3️⃣ Single-leg weight shifts → Single-leg squat reaches
4️⃣ Hip dominant lunge → Knee dominant lunge
5️⃣ Squat hold → Squat jumps

Save this for your knee rehab!

03/21/2026

Did you know the soleus (calf muscle) is one of the strongest muscles in your body by force production?

Yet, it is often the “forgotten” muscle, overshadowed by the more visible gastrocnemius.

The soleus plays a major role in load absorption and force generation, contributing significantly during walking and running.

When the soleus is not functioning well, load can be redistributed to structures like the Achilles tendon, tibia, and foot, which is why issues like Achilles pain, shin splints, and plantar fasciitis can persist.

The exercises in this video target the soleus by:

➡️ working in bent knee positions to bias deeper calf loading

➡️ improving load tolerance through the lower leg

➡️ progressing from controlled strength to higher demand positions

Drop us a comment if your Achilles pain or shin splints keep coming back. 💬

Address

10 Karachi Drive Unit 82
Markham, ON
L3S0B6

Opening Hours

Monday 8am - 8pm
Tuesday 8am - 8pm
Wednesday 8am - 8pm
Thursday 8am - 8pm
Friday 8am - 8pm
Saturday 8am - 5pm
Sunday 8am - 2pm

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+19055548677

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