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Arthritis

biokineticssvc@gmail.com (Stacey van Crombrugge) — Mon, 13 Oct 2025 18:59:19 GMT

Arthritis

Arthritis is a disease which involves inflammation or degeneration of joints of the body, causing pain and difficulty to move or stay active.

Osteoarthritis is a progressive, degenerative joint disease affecting one or multiple joints. It is associated with risk factors including overweight, obesity, history of joint injury or surgery, genetic predisposition and aging.

Pharmaceutical treatment of arthritis involves analgesics, glucocorticoids, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. Optimal treatment of arthritis features a multidisciplinary approach involving patient education in self-management, occupational therapy and exercise.

Types of arthritis

Arthritis is an ‘umbrella term’ that describes over 100 different joint conditions. The most common ones include the following:

Osteoarthritis – most common form – cartilage in the joints breaks down from repeated stress
Rheumatoid arthritis – a disease that causes the immune system to attack synovial membranes in the joints and may affect vital organs
Ankylosing spondylitis – arthritis of the spine, usually present in the lower back
Gout – hard crystals are formed in the joints caused from high uric acid levels
Psoriatic arthritis – inflammation in the joints develops in persons that already have an autoimmune disorder that can also cause skin irritation
Juvenile arthritis – a disorder where the immune system attacks the tissues around joints. This is typically present in children 16 and younger

Movement as Medicine

Types of exercises include:

Low-impact aerobic activities
Muscle-strengthening exercises
Flexibility exercises
Balance and proprioception exercises

Exercise is essential for managing the conditions mentioned above. For instance, if physical activity is reduced, the disease can continue to get worse. Studies have shown that majority of These individuals are more likely to have muscle wasting and may be overweight compared to healthy individuals their age and sex

maintains and improves strength and aerobic capacity, thereby minimizing or preventing functional decline
decreases joint stiffness
aids in weight control and achieving a healthy body composition
reduces comorbidities such as cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome, and
improves mental health and quality of life

Range of Motion

Range of motion is the ability to move your joints through the full motion they were designed to achieve. These exercises include gentle stretching and movements that take joints through their full span. Doing certain exercises regularly can help maintain and improve the flexibility in the joints.

When joint damage and loss of mobility is severe, and restoration of a reasonable level of function and control of pain is no longer achievable by pharmacological and conservative management, total joint replacement and other surgeries are increasingly becoming routine options.

Arthritis can not be cured, but we can most definitely maintain and improve your current level of activity and manage the symptoms, aches and pains through individualized exercise, stretching programs.

Food Intolerance Test with Optiway

biokineticssvc@gmail.com (Stacey van Crombrugge) — Tue, 01 Mar 2022 19:03:02 GMT

SVC Biokinetics has registered with Optiway!

Optiway is a Food Intolerance Test that evaluates a full menu of 222 different types of food. This is a simple way to test which foods are suitable for you and which you are intolerant to.

Do you know the difference between an Allergy and Food Intolerance? Food intolerance is the most common physical reaction to food. Although food intolerance can cause the same signs and symptoms as a food allergy, they are completely different. While having a food intolerance, you may still be able to eat small amounts of the offending food without feeling it. Food allergies are caused by the immune systems reaction that affects numerous organs in the body, which may be life-threatening.

Finally, you won’t be questioning if it was the fish you had for lunch today or the roasted butternut you had earlier this week that has led to your extreme uncomfortable cramping. You may also jump the process of elimination for your children, as possible reactions to certain recipes can be established early enough to avoid fussy eating.

Testing is done on site, with just a prick of the finger, samples are sent off to the labs and you will receive a full written report on all the foods you should eat, and the foods you should avoid.

I will give the helping hand of carefully conducting the test, reporting of results and offering a exercise program/ sessions to help get you to the best version of yourself. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions, or are interested in getting to know your reactions to every meal you consume.

If you are looking for more information, please visit their site: http://optiway.co.za/

Muscle Contractions

biokineticssvc@gmail.com (Stacey van Crombrugge) — Sat, 01 Jan 2022 19:11:33 GMT

MUSCLE CONTRACTIONS have various effects on the body. These effects determine which exercises are used to CONDITION you and your body for different sports or to TREAT different conditions.

Exercise is fun, but there is usually many other reasons you do it for. The ACSM states exercise is specifically done to improve certain components of your fitness state. So whether you are a triathlete, an obese individual, cancer survivor or even a granddad it would be rather useful for you to know what exercise you are doing and its effect on your body as well as the benefits you will gain from your training… So here it is – some things you should know and and keep in mind while exploring your exercise journey.

Be SPECIFIC with your training

There are 3 types of Muscle contractions:

CONCENTRIC – Muscle activation that causes tension on your muscle as it shortens. As your muscle shortens, it generates enough force to move an object. This type of movement is one of the main ways to strengthen your muscle and encourage hypertrophy — an increase in your muscle size.

ECCENTRIC – The muscle lengthens as the resistance becomes greater than the force the muscle is producing.

ISOMETRIC – The muscle is activated, but instead of being allowed to lengthen or shorten, it is held at a constant length.

Each action has a DIFFERENT EFFECTS

1) Shortening actions are useful for GENERATING force, DEVELOPING power or strength, and more mitochondria are developed (the power plants of each cell in our body).

2) Lengthening actions makes the muscles ABSORB force, growing muscle fiber thicker, tearing up connective tissues to make muscles more curvy. This is very improtant in injury prevention as well as in power demanding activities like jumping, bounding or even just standing up from a chair.

3) Isometric/static contractions are extremely interesting. They increase the muscle strength in a static position but also have a painkiller effect (this is called exercise induced Hypo-Algaesia, which can defined as a raised threshold to painful stimuli). These contractions seem to have a rest function. The nervous systems turns muscles off during pain – this process is called Inhibition, which is important in keeping the body from damaging itself.

Static exercise works the nervous system in a different way to the other contractions. The muscle nerves do fatigue whiling holding an exercise/position. You will eventually deplete a chemical called AcetylCholine De-Esterase and after a few workouts your body is forced to get fitter and generate more capacity.

The Importance of Functional Training

biokineticssvc@gmail.com (Stacey van Crombrugge) — Wed, 01 Dec 2021 19:23:28 GMT

The Importance of Functional Training

In today’s fast paced and out of control living situation which many people are experiencing, there is just no time to really focus on yourself – keeping ones mental health, physical health and social health all under control can be a very daunting task. Imagine making your daily activities easier to perform?

Functional training translates to an activity beyond your workout. In short, functional training is training that has a purpose. The purpose of such training is connected to improvement in everyday activities which may be walking, getting in and out of a car, squatting to pick up something from the floor or preparing to participate in or competing in a sporting activity, such as cycling or swimming for example.

Functional workouts involve compound exercises which require more than one muscle group to work together, such as a push-up, burpee or a lunge. In conjunction with using multiple muscle groups, functional training includes incorporating the movements in multiple planes (forwards, backwards, side to side) and rotational movements (thoracic spine rotation, core power).

All sessions are designed specifically to use weights or body weight, never with machines. This prevents us from isolating your muscles , as one would do in a bicep curl. This type of training helps your body function better as a whole and your mind and muscles will learn how to work together and recruit multiple muscles groups to get a certain job done which will prevent any strain injuries that might occur when only using one muscle group.

You do need a certain level of coordination, focus and core strength to work multiple muscle groups during training sessions: the more you train functional, the better you’ll become at working your entire body as one connected system. You will improve on your Kinesthetic awareness (awareness of how your body moves) which in the long run will allow you to move purposefully and confidently while staying sturdy, strong, and safe.

Among the above, there are many other benefits and they include:

Increased calorie burn
Improved aerobic capacity
Increase lean muscle mass
Improved self esteem
Improved movement patterns
Improved movement efficiency
Improved physique
Improved coordination and mobility

So as you can see, there is no reason why you shouldn’t be incorporating function training into your exercise regime.

Physical Rehabilitation

biokineticssvc@gmail.com (Stacey van Crombrugge) — Wed, 01 Dec 2021 19:19:23 GMT

Physical Rehabilitation

Physical rehabilitation is offered by a range trained and licensed medical professionals who have experience with identifying physical abnormalities, restoring physical function and mobility, maintaining the current physical function, and promoting physical activity and proper functioning.

A Biokineticist, “an exercise specialist who increases a person’s physical condition and the quality of life by means of physical assessment and the prescription of health exercise habits”, is one of many in a list of licensed physical therapists that play a vital role in a person’s health and wellbeing.

There are a vast number of medical conditions which can be treated with Physical rehabilitation, such as, but not limited to:

Cardiopulmonary condition s, such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), cystic fibrosis (CF) and post-myocardial infarction (MI)
Musculoskeletal dysfunction such as back pain , rotator cuff tears, and temporomandibular joint disorders (TMJ)
Musculoskeletal Injuries such as hip replacements, shoulder dislocations, herniated or bulging discs.
Neurological conditions such as stroke , spinal cord injuries, Parkinson’s disease , multiple sclerosis , vestibular dysfunction, and traumatic brain injuries
Pediatric conditions such as developmental delays, cerebral palsy , and muscular dystrophy
Hand therapy for conditions such as carpal tunnel syndrome and trigger finger

There is nothing but benefits to physical rehabilitation. Under the careful watch of a trained practitioner, you will either recover perfectly from a sports injury, increase range of motion in all your joints, maintain and improve on your currently level of fitness and for those who are at risk of falling, peace of mind knowing you will be able to pull yourself up off the floor. Although, there are many more

Pain management with reduced need for opioids
Avoiding surgery
Improved mobility and movement
Recovery from injury or trauma
Recovery from stroke or paralysis
Fall prevention
Improved balance
Management of age-related medical problems

A patient can expect the following no matter what condition or injury they may have:

Undergo a physical exam and evaluation which includes a full health history, a posture evaluations, movement and flexibility of muscles and joints and finally muscle and joint performance.
A prognosis is made and thereafter a specific plan of care as well as short- and long-term goals are established.
The treatments and intervention based on the evaluation and prognosis is discussed.
Finally a self-management recommendations are shared and discussed.

Treatment periods vary from patient to patient according to their conditions/injuries.

I am here to help you! No matter what your condition or injury, we will have a specific plan for you.

“Helping you recreate your dreams.”