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Understanding Health Insurance!

Insurance… Know before you go!

 
Health insurance is not only a hot button topic for most but can be extremely complicated. People may have difficulty knowing what services are covered, by whom they are covered, what office you can be seen at, and how much you might owe post visit. Most think and feel that since we may pay high premiums that all services thereafter should be covered 100% by the insurance company. Unfortunately, this is not true depending on the insurance plan you have signed up for. The best way to find out all the information is to contact your insurance provider prior to any medical visit to determine what your cost may be. At North County Water and Sports Therapy Center we take the extra step, before scheduling you for appointments, to verify your benefits and confirm what attending therapy might cost you. Insurance coverage explanation involves verbiage that you may not completely understand. Below is a list of terms you may encounter when speaking with your insurance company or our staff at the front desk that will help you understand your insurance benefits.

 
Deductible: A fixed dollar amount, usually a calendar year that the insured has to pay in full before the insurance company will pay for services. Plans may have individual and family deductibles.

Copayment (copay): A fixed dollar amount that the insured pays at time of medical services received. This amount may differ between your primary care providers versus a specialist, such as Physical Therapy. Some plans may require you to meet your deductible first before the copay applies.

Coinsurance: Requires the insured to pay a percentage of medical expenses after the deductible amount, if any, is paid.

Out of pocket max: A fixed dollar amount that the insured is required to pay each year out of his own pocket that does not include premiums, and depending on your insurance can be different for an individual versus a family.

Preauthorization: When an insurance company requires documentation prior to your first visit or after your first visit to determine medical necessity for treatment and visit allowance for episode of care.

Visit limitation: Some insurance companies put a limit of the number of visits a patient can have each year regardless of injury type or occurrences throughout the year.

Visit review: Some insurance companies allow you to have a certain number of visits, and after that number is reached they require a review of your case. In some cases they may deny any further treatment.

This is just a short list of terms that you may come across when deciphering your benefits for therapy. When you contact our office for an appointment we will do our best to answer any questions you may have regarding your insurance as it pertains to Physical Therapy.

Kettlebell Swing breakdown

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Kettlebell Swing
Here it is; a detailed breakdown of how to perform the kettlebell swing with tips to keep in mind to facilitate better technique and avoid injury. Enjoy!

 
Step 1 – Starting position –Start with feet a little wider than shoulder width with kettlebell on floor approximately one foot in front of your body. Keeping spine straight, sit back hinging at hips, bend knees and reach forward with arms to grip Kettlebell handle with both hands.


Step 2 – Prepare to lift kettlebell – with a fairly tight grip on handle, activate core muscles by drawing belly button in towards spine and gently squeeze shoulder blades together. Tilt kettlebell handle down towards your body.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Step 3 – Pre-swing – Lift kettlebell off floor by gently pulling bell toward you and straightening knees but maintain hinge at hips with spine flat. Now allow kettlebell to swing between your legs with arms moving in a pendulum type movement until arms are resting against trunk and kettlebell is behind or under buttocks with bottom of bell facing behind you.

Step 4 – Hip Thrust – Rapidly extend hips standing up by contracting glutes, quads and hamstrings swinging kettlebell out in front of body without lifting bell with arms (while continuing to keep core muscles activated). Full extension should be achieved to where you are standing straight up, arms are near horizontal and bottom of kettlebell is facing away from you.

Step 5 – Drop / back-swing – Continue with pendulum type movement with arms straight and allow kettlebell to start swinging back towards body before bending knees. When Kettlebell begins to approach legs hinge hips allowing chest to bend forward towards floor and bend knees slightly until kettlebell completely between legs. At bottom of back swing knees are bent, back is flat, arms against trunk, hips are hinged and kettlebell is behind or under buttocks and bottom of bell facing behind you.

 

Step 6 – Keep swinging that iron. Repeat steps 5 and 6 for specified number of repetitions.

Tips to Remember 

• Back flat / spine straight
• Core muscles gentle activated throughout movement
• Feet remain flat on floor
• Hinge / bend at hips and bend knees mildly
• Do not lift with arms
• Utilize legs for a hip thrust to power movement
• Maintain a pendulum type movement with kettlebell

**Recommend working directly with a professional trainer or physical therapist until you learn correct form. 

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Kettlebell Swing

The Kettlebell swing: Starting with a good foundation

To the weekend warrior or the general public when thinking about kettlebells the kettlebell swing usually comes to mind. The swing is not only the most well-known technique but also is the foundation for other Kettlebell exercises. When performed correctly the swing is very fluid beneficial exercise that will strengthen the glutes, hamstrings, quads and core muscles. The swing is a great exercise for building explosive power for sports, burning calories and improving cardiovascular endurance. Before jumping right in and swinging a 50lb kettlebell at your local gym or if you are returning to kettlebell lifting it is helpful to practice a few techniques that will prepare the body for the rigors of swinging heavy iron. The following exercises are great prerequisites before attempting or returning to the kettlebell swing. If you have significant difficulty or there is pain performing the following exercises then you need more time developing leg strength and flexibility before beginning the kettlebell swing.

Straight leg bridge feet on Physio Ball – this is a core and hip extension exercise which simulates a similar movement as the Kettlebell swing focusing on stabilization and control. Perform exercise 15 times

 

Push up Front plank – strengthens the core muscles to help maintain the neutral spine during the swing and helps build core endurance for high repetitions of the swing. Also simulates a similar position as the top of a swing. Hold position for 30 seconds.


 

 

 

 

 

 

Romanian Deadlift with Dowel Rod – this exercise helps practice hinging your hips with minimal knee bend while maintaining a neutral spine position which are both needed for a swing. Perform exercise 15 times.

Doctors of Physical Therapy

Physical therapy as a profession has been transitioning its education from a Master’s program to a Doctoral program over the last 10 years. American Physical therapy Association’s Vision 20/20 hopes that by the year 2020 all physical therapists will have their Doctoral degree. APTA’s vision 20/20 statement is as follows:

By 2020, physical therapy will be provided by physical therapists who are doctors of physical therapy, recognized by consumers and other health care professionals as the practitioners of choice to whom consumers have direct access for the diagnosis of, interventions for, and prevention of impairments, activity limitations, participation restrictions, and environmental barriers related to movement, function, and health. (https://www.apta.org/vision2020/)

Physical therapy programs have increased their education with areas that include differential diagnosis, pharmacology, and health-care management, among other topics, to help progress the profession to be more autonomous and be the direct line to consumers with movement disorders and pain symptoms. Physical therapy education programs and the profession have also put more of emphasis on research and evidence based practice to support our techniques and treatment plans. Here at North County Water and Sports Therapy Center, we try to stay ahead of the curve; all of our Physical Therapists are Doctors of Physical Therapy and have graduated from accredited Doctoral programs. We are Doctors of movement science and strive to educate and treat each patient with an individualized program to return them to prior level of function after injury, loss of function or a painful episode. Contact our office to see what our Doctors can do for you!!

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