Whitney Lowe: Welcome to The Thinking Practitioner podcast. Til Luchau: A podcast where we dig into the fascinating issues, conditions, and quandaries in the massage and manual therapy world today. Whitney Lowe: I’m Whitney Lowe. Til Luchau: And I’m Til Luchau. Welcome to The Thinking Practitioner. Whitney Lowe: Welcome to The Thinking Practitioner. Til Luchau: […]
Archive | Orthopedic Massage
The Thinking Practitioner Episode 13: Inflammation: Hands-On
Whitney Lowe: And thanks to Andrew Biel and the whole team at Books of Discovery. We certainly do appreciate their support. And do be sure to check out that great offer from them as well. All right. So good afternoon, or actually, good morning. It’s still morning time here. Good morning to you Til […]
The Thinking Practitioner Episode 10: When Does the Tissue Matter?
Listen to the audio podcast of the episode by clicking here. Whitney Lowe: So, good morning Til, we’re actually recording this episode just after the first of the year, it was the New Years day, after New Years today, so how are things happening for your new year out there in Colorado? Til Luchau: New […]
The Thinking Practitioner Episode 09: Descending Modulation in Manual Therapy
Listen to the audio podcast of the episode by clicking here. Til Luchau: Happy spring everybody. Whitney Lowe: Yeah. Very good. Okay. It’s still wintertime while we’re recording this. A good day for us to be diving into some neurophysiology today. I think something like that. Is that what we’re doing today? Til Luchau: Always […]

Kinesiology- May The Force Be With You
There is no question about it – kinesiology is cool! That’s what I think anyway, and it boggles my mind when others are not as intrigued. But I think it is just that some simply do not realize the benefit of this fascinating field of study. In many cases knowing kinesiological principles is not just […]

The Long and Winding Nerve
Introduction Do you ever recall sitting in a classroom in school and thinking that one or two students were getting the lion’s share of attention when others had things to contribute as well? It seems the world of soft-tissue pain and injury problems shares this metaphor. Take nerve entrapment for example. As soon as you […]

Exploring Synovial Plica of the Knee
Massage is great for many soft-tissue pathologies. However, sometimes various conditions exist that seem like a common pathology, but then don’t respond to the treatment. In some cases an undiscovered problem may exist. In this post we’ll take a look at the synovial plica, a cause of knee pain that can easily mimic other common […]
The Role of Continuing Education for Massage Therapists
Overview Unlike other healthcare fields, such as physical therapy or occupational therapy, massage therapy is actually two primary “tracks.” The first track is geared towards the use of massage as a personal care service, with a focus of general relaxation and wellness enhancement. While massage performed for personal care can enhance health, the focus of […]
Is it Time to Reconsider Cryotherapy?
Practitioners frequently get asked whether to use heat or cold for soft-tissue pain and injury problems. Of course, the correct answer is always that it depends on the nature of the client’s condition. But what are the key factors upon which heat or cold therapy depends? New research indicates the standard guidelines for hot/cold therapy […]

The Myth of the Pain Receptors
This is an exciting time to be in the massage profession, with research that is shedding new light on different facets of our work. Pain is the most common reason people seek the care of a massage therapist, and the more we understand about pain, the better we can participate in a comprehensive solution to […]