The Athlete Spot

03/03/2026

Benefits of sports chiropractic for young athletes.
Why starting early matters can keep athletes in their sport longer.

Youth athletes put their bodies through repetitive, high-demand movements before their muscles, joints and tendons are fully developed. But that's not a reason to pull them from sports.

It's a reason to build their capacity to handle it.

At The Athlete Spot™, we work with a variety of youth athletes to:

→ Correct movement patterns before they become injuries
→ Build joint stability for their growing bodies under sport-specific stress
→ Reduce recovery time so they miss fewer practices and games
→ Develop body awareness and confidence in their abilities

At The Athlete Spot™, we work with youth cheerleaders, wrestlers, football players, dancers, and every young athlete in between. We don't tell your kid to stop playing (unless an injury happens). We build their body's ability to keep going stronger.

If your young athlete is dealing with recurring pain, limited mobility, or you just want to get ahead of problems before they start, book an evaluation with us.

https://elitespineplus.janeapp.com/ #/in-office

03/02/2026

Our virtual sessions are filling up fast!

If you are on the fence about online rehab... here's what one of our recent patients had to say:

"The Athlete Spot with Dr. Kauffman is where you go if you want 1 on 1 personal attention. He genuinely cares about you and will put in the work to get you across the finish line. Dr. Kauffman restored my confidence in strength workouts. Despite some initial pain in my shoulder, we worked through it and his training plans set me on a course to throw a ball without excruciating pain. You don't feel like a patient or a customer with Dr. Kauffman, the personal attention makes it feel like more of a friendship."

It's time you let go of the pain, and get back to performance.

Schedule your initial here:

The Athlete Spot Chiropractic and Sports Rehabilitation Nixa MO

01/18/2026

Understanding Rotator Cuff Tears: Clearing Up Partial and Full Thickness Injuries in Young and Adult Athletes

Hello friends!

We get a few questions about the difference between rotator cuff tears in our office, so decided to make this post. These shoulder issues affect so many young and adult athletes, and seems that there's a lot of confusion out there between the terminology used.

So let me break it down in a simple, straightforward, and transparent post. If you're dealing with shoulder pain, this might just hit home.

First things first: the rotator cuff is that awesome group of four muscles and tendons that keeps your shoulder stable and moving smoothly. Tears can pop up from a sudden tweak, repetitive motions (think sports or work), inflammatory conditions (like diabetes) or just the wear and tear of getting older.

At The Athlete Spot we typically spot them through our detailed shoulder audit. Some doctors like to confirm them with MRIs, but it's not always necessary. When an MRI is used words like "partial thickness" or "full thickness" tend to be used and can sound intimidating.

A lot of people hear "tear" and freak out, imagining surgery right away. But hang on... that's usually not the case. It all depends on the depth and size.

Which bring us to the "partial" vs "full" tear.

Let's talk partial thickness tears. No, it's not like half your tendon is partially torn in half... it's more about thinning, like a little dent or erosion, not a huge rip. I love using this analogy: imagine folding paper (the tendon's layers) and just scratching the top without cutting through. That's exactly what a partial tear is!

If that's you, symptoms are often annoying but doable: pain in one spot, worse with overhead stuff. You can usually move your arm fully without a "shrug sign" (where your shoulder blade hikes up to help). Best part? These respond great to non-surgical fixes like our AntiFragile Shoulder Program. I've seen clients turn it around big time with early action. No knife needed! No time wasted!

Now, full thickness tears go all the way through the depth, but not always a total detachment. It might be a small hole or bigger gap. Back to the paper: partial is a scratch, full is a punch-through, but it could still hold if not too wide.

If this is you, then your symptoms may vary. Pain may be mild to ouch, trouble lifting overhead, and maybe that shrug sign is more noticeable when lifting your arm.

Typically for these we start our AntiFragile Shoulder Program immediately with 4-6 weeks of in person therapy. Over 80% of our patients presenting with a full tear have responded favorably.

If there's no progress within the first 4 weeks? Surgery might help prevent long-term muscle loss. But remember, your age, lifestyle, and health play huge roles. Most of our patients choose to complete our 16 week program before electing the knife.

Fun fact: These tears are super common! Over 60% of us (ages 25-45) might have one, up to 80% in seniors. Many don't even notice and keep living active lives.

About 75% of those who elect to avoid surgery get really good results after two years with basic care. It's proof we can focus on function over "fixing" everything surgically.

The key? Understanding the commitment and reframing how we think about it significantly boosts your recovery.

The word "tear" sounds scary, but with clear chats and analogies, fear fades, and motivation kicks in.

If your shoulder's bugging you, let's connect! Schedule a FREE virtual assessment with me. We'll check it out, talk symptoms, and see if my program fits you.

No pressure, just help. DM me or visit my link in bio to book. What's holding you back? Let's get you moving pain-free! 💪



www.theathletespot.com

12/01/2025

How AntiFragile are you? Take the test and find out where you stand!

https://theantifragileathlete.substack.com/p/the-antifragile-athlete-standards

12/01/2025

Every wonder where you should be physically and mentally?

You can now find out with the AntiFragile Athlete Standards™

Use these standards to Become AntiFragile in 2026!

Where do you stand?

11/05/2025

Dealing with shoulder, or neck pain that gets worst as you are working in front of the computer, or while sitting shouldn’t be a problem in this day and age.

We should know better.

We don’t.

We spend hours in a hunched, rounded and slouched posture that too often our bodies forget we have left the couch and now we need access to the full range of motion of our spine, and shoulder.

Sounds familiar?

This is just what you need.

Before your therapist, chiro or physio make a big deal about it.

11/04/2025

Our new location is up and running!

Just waiting on our official sign to make it Google official!

New office location is:

5349 N 22nd St. Ste 5. Ozark, MO 65721

(Google now requires official signs in order to update the listing — apologies for the inconvenience!)

10/31/2025

It's our last day in our current location!!

Beginning Monday November 3rd, we will be located at

5349 N 22nd Street, Suite 5, Ozark, MO!

Next to Mudhouse!

Now you'll be able to level up your health and get a delicious treat afterward!

See you at the new location!

We are moving!

Come November 1st, 2025 we will be in our new location at:

5349 N 22nd St. Suite 5. Ozark, MO 65721

No care will be impacted by this move!

Stay tuned for our grand opening - TBD!

10/22/2025

Colder weather is approaching, and with it winter pains and injuries.

Here's how you get ahead this winter:

1. Get your body ready.

Nobody practice snow shoveling, that's silly. Until you go out, throw your back out and now are bed ridden for a week frustrated and grumpy your low back hurt.

Six months ago was the perfect time to get started building your muscle strength. The next best time is now.

Start with body weight exercises like squatting, lunging and carries. These will help you build muscle and conditioning before the snow gets here.

2) Move your body in all directions.

We are creatures of habit. We like what we like, and avoid what we don't like. That doesn't mean we won't get into a bad position. Specially when dealing with snow and ice.

Mobilize all your joints. If you don't know how, start with a friendly mobility routine. You can find a 30-day mobility routine for free in our YT channel - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z1j8wXZNCjQ&list=PLXFzWTz4g-BBSNgF0I7MJWnWLfN_M31qo

Highly recommend our Spine Mobility routines. https://youtu.be/ayn0tWNOs9M?si=_XJz_vhvMOv3a0c5

3) Build a routine that lasts.

Now is the perfect time to get your strength and mobility routine going.

Start with a couple of days a week for 30 minutes, and add as you need.

We highly recommend strength and conditioning 3x a week for 30-45 minutes and mobility work minimum of 3 days a week 15-20 minutes.

As things get easier, you find ways to make them more challenging (while staying safe).

If you are ready to level up, keep pain and injuries away, and keep your performance in top shape.

Become a performance member today and level up!
https://elitespineplus.janeapp.com/ #/discipline/1/treatment/32

This is day 1 of 30 of the Own Your Mobility Program.In today's daily 15 min. mobility routine, we are focusing on the mobility assessment of all the major j...

10/14/2025

We are moving!

Come November 1st, 2025 we will be in our new location at:

5349 N 22nd St. Suite 5. Ozark, MO 65721

No care will be impacted by this move!

Stay tuned for our grand opening - TBD!

08/21/2025

The one pill no one talks about.

Resistance Training.

It’s not just the way to get bigger muscles, develop a strong physique and look great.

In our opinion it is the BEST way to improve and optimize your health year after year!

Here are some of the benefits that resistance training, when done right, can do for you:

✅ Stronger muscles, bones and tendons
✅ Improve capacity to do things everyday
✅ Improve hormone regulation as you age
✅ Less chance of unnecessary injuries
✅ Less aging pains
✅ Improve your quality of life
✅ And more!

So why are you not resistance training?

08/12/2025

What’s happening after you get injured?

There’s a common misconception that acute inflammation is bad for you and should be minimized at all costs.

The truth is inflammation is the crucial first step in the healing process.

Suppressing the inflammatory response with ice, tape or even NSAIDs can actually hinder your recovery.

During the inflammatory stage of healing there are three main changes occurring inside your body.

1. Vascular

Within the first 15 minutes, blood vessels expand in a process called vasodilation. Which allows cells and fluid to flood the injured area and begin the healing process.

This causes the visible swelling, redness, bruising, warmth and temporary loss of motion seen in many injuries.

2. Cellular

White blood cells and specialized cells move into the area to remove debris from the injured tissue and aid in repair.

If these cells stay days or weeks then we consider this chronic inflammation.

3. Chemical

After the injury the body becomes aware of all the chemicals that have been released. Histamine, substance P and CGRP are some if the most common chemicals released during an injury.

Histamine plays a role in kickstarting vasodilation. Substance P and CGRP play a role in pain perception.

Acute injuries in sports or activities of daily living are not just biomechanical, and rehabilitation may include a variety of interventions to help you return to your activities with confidence and strength.