Passion is a point of difference. That’s true of business, service industries and especially in the area of peak performance.

Almost every year for the last 7 years I’ve been invited to a world class, peak performance unit housed in a world class facility with access to the very latest technology, data and expertise. The Houston Texans is an American football club based in Texas and forms part of the global sports phenomenon that is the NFL. Each club in the NFL is literally worth billions of dollars and the top players in the league earn millions of dollars per game.

The marquee players, as well as the role players, represent a huge investment to each franchise, in terms of money, time, branding but most importantly peak performance and athlete wellbeing.

It’s this last area that I want to focus on. There is no NFL league without the players and the league wouldn’t be where it is today if these athletes weren’t some of the finest the world has to offer. That means that the care, performance management and support of these incredible football players has to be absolutely world class. To be invited to spend time within this organisation as they move through their preseason is a privilege that can’t be understated especially when you offer premium physiotherapy to clients of your own.

It’s not just about the thrill of travelling halfway around the world to Houston, Texas to take in all of this knowledge, take steps to understand the technology and marvel at the pace at which treatments and maintenance are advancing. It’s also about the thrill of understanding that I am in a unique position to create and apply optimised, cutting-edge treatments to our very own patients right here in the heart of Sydney City, Australia.

It took a long time to build up the level of trust that opens all the doors and draws back all the curtains to everything from proprietary treatments and technology through to the routines, rituals and thoughts of the players and the people that look after them. I can’t share everything here but what I can share is not only an ongoing passion to treat you as if I was treating a world class athlete, but also the access and expertise that ensures that I deliver, to help you achieve your personal best.

Physical and mental peak performance means complete recovery!

Game Day! Let me tell you right now, it is very easy to become overwhelmed by the whirling dervish of activity with literally armies of players, support personnel and game day officials carrying out a dizzying variety of roles and functions on game day. 

In the eye of that storm of activity are the players and the staff. This year I got to experience the preparation undertaken by the playing unit on game day at ground level. Now this was a preseason game, but it lacked none of the tension and importance of a regular season game. This is where players are literally competing for a job. Yes, there are the established players who’ve already secured a contract, nonetheless, being the hyper-competitive individuals they are, they are still striving to reach their own personal best and peak performance. Meanwhile, to those that are hoping to make the playing roster it’s a red-hot job market in an arena where one’s worth is measured by your ability to run, tackle and in your collisions, catch and execute complex play after complex play – all in real time. All under the watchful gaze of coaching staff, adoring fan base and those that are keeping an eye on any physical indicators and contra indicators that may need to be further assessed.

It’s truly amazing!

In making sense of it all, I focused on the warmup and activation of the starters. The first thing to say about this is that the methods and standards are exacting when it comes to the tissue prep as players work through the warmups. And amongst the starters anyway, there’s a familiarity with the routines that allows them to mix in some banter and small talk. However, what was jarring in its suddenness was how they could all just “flick a switch” and almost immediately go from warm up mode to “beast mode”. Their ability to go from “zero to 100” like that is because of the mental preparation – the head is already in game mode well before the body is ready to go. So, when it’s time to lock in and focus on the execution of a physical play, both the optimal mindset and physical prep peak, at just the right time – game time!

This was definitely something new.

What’s New

Every year there’s something different to see or learn at the Houston Texans. Last year it was all about the data, and analysing the data that had been harvested from player performance and recovery sessions. This year, just like every other year, recovery was well and truly on the cards.  This makes perfect sense because without recovery, peak performance diminishes on a weekly basis. In the NFL that cannot happen.

This year was about physical and mental recovery. To demonstrate the lengths to which truly world class organisations will go to optimise the sustainability of the performance of their elite athletes, let me paint the picture for you.

Within the stadium facilities there are four new lounge areas, all of which are quite dark. Inside there are brand new Shift Wave chairs – nine of them. Now, full disclosure, I didn’t want to love these chairs as I came to do. I couldn’t grasp the science behind this, but you also have to remember that the basis of science is impartial observation. So, I observed.

Once seated comfortably in these Shift Wave chairs, the players are taken through a guided meditation, and this is paralleled by physical stimulus running through the chair. This is just one method employed. These recovery sessions are also guided by the players themselves. On one of the walls there is a massive screen that displays various types of beach imagery, and this is coupled with the soft hum of relaxing music, while the player is at liberty to lay down on a field of green turf, roll out affected muscles and/or stretch. There is also the choice of using a “red light bed”, or “dry float bed” – the benefits of which have still not been fully quantified, however this is part of the commitment to leaving no stone unturned in the search for optimal, sustainable performance. Yes, I wondered about placebo effects, but again you have to wait for the data to come in and then be analysed. I personally tried all of these modalities, and felt mentally better for it, however physically – well I’m not really in their league so I couldn’t say.

BFR for Recovery

This is an interesting one. You may remember years ago upon returning from Houston I talked extensively about blood flow restriction (BFR) therapy where one was able to exercise damaged areas without the burden of excessive weights through the restriction of blood flow – essentially taxing the uninjured muscle while sparing wear and tear on the recovering joint. You may already know that we also offer BFR as a treatment option here at Evoker Physio Sydney CBD. 

Now, the Texans are exploring BFR, not just for efficient strength building, but for recovery also. The protocol is such that both limbs (legs in a running dominant player & arms in a Quaterback ) are 100% occluded (meaning that blood flow is completely restricted to them) while the player relaxes in a very comfortable recliner, in a very dark room. The protocol seems to be that every 48 hours this practise can be implemented with occlusion occurring for 5 minutes on and 5 minutes off, for a total 25 minute period. Obviously, this is overseen by a team of experts and while they’re still working to chronicle conclusive recommendations, the early player performance metrics strongly support this recovery component for BFR, and there are now about 300 pages of research and data to be assessed at Evoker Physio Sydney City.

From the NFL to Evoker to YOU

So, what might all of this mean to you, our valued client. Sure, you may not be ready for the world stage as an NFL player but again, I pride myself on Evoker’s ability to treat each and every patient with world class expertise, using leading edge technology to ensure your continued optimal performance.

Well, every time I returned from Houston, I felt like my vision for Evoker Physio Sydney expanded exponentially. In the next phase of development, I see Evoker patient care expanding into both wellness and recovery – together. I’ve been harbouring the vision of an extended space dedicated to wellness – a recovery wing of sorts: focusing on holistic treatments, tapping into the mental preparation space, hot/cold therapy and more. 

Basically, I see Evoker Physio setting the pace and leading the race in preparation. This is timely as we head into a running season and I’m excited about how we can help all runners prepare for both recreational, semi-professional and professional opportunities to hit a personal best.

A final note

As I’m finding out with each passing day, month and year, recovery is a multifaceted activity. Far from it simply being rest, or massage, or active warm downs, it also has to be a state of mind for us to reap the diverse benefits of effectively melding physical and mental recovery. And as we are heading into running season, can I ask each and every one of you to ensure that you are respecting your recovery as it sets you up for your next opportunity to be your best.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR…

ADAM MONTEITH | FOUNDER & APA Musculoskeletal Physiotherapist
MHlth Sc (Manip Phty) BPhty BExSc

Connect with Adam Monteith on LinkedIn

After completing a rather unique double degree – a Bachelor of Physiotherapy & Exercise Science in 2003, & a Masters of Manipulative Physiotherapy at the University of Sydney in 2010 (a voluntary, yet brutal, undertaking for a physiotherapist who wants to be better), Adam established Evoker in 2011. A physiotherapy practice with a difference. & that difference, or ‘niche’, was absolute excellence. 100% of the time. Attention to customer service detail, & excellence in physiotherapy.

Adam’s career in physiotherapy began in the ‘elite’ sporting arena at the Brisbane Broncos Rugby League Club. The lessons learned in this ‘sink or swim’, high pressure environment of the 03/04/05 seasons, created a platform for Adam to really excel in this profession. Adam has accepted invitations to look after the physical health of other Physiotherapists, Doctors, Specialists, Surgeons & none other than a former Prime Minister of this country.

Adam Monteith is a highly skilled musculoskeletal physiotherapist. You can be assured that when you see Adam, your complaint will be thoroughly assessed, and he will use the most appropriate and up to date techniques to treat your problem. Adam’s treatment will always be governed by research. He is constantly analysing the results of the most recent clinical trials so that you can receive the most up to date treatment, helping you to get better sooner. Adam only ever uses evidenced based and clinically proven treatment techniques. Adam Monteith is also a member of the Australian Physiotherapy Association.

Adam is very time aware and prides himself on seeing his patients on time. With a greater than 10 year history of treating and servicing the busy professional in Sydney city, he respects your time and does his best not to keep you waiting.

Adam has:
25 years combined study & clinical experience in physiotherapy/physical therapy
Worked in the heart of Sydney city for more than 15 years
Worked with both the elite athlete & ‘weekend warrior’
Had great success in treating:
– Acute sporting injuries
– Overuse running, cycling & swimming injuries
– Post operative shoulders, hips, knees and ankles
– Complex neck & back cases.
– Adam is often called on for 2nd and 3rd opinions in these complex scenarios.

Expect: A good listener, time spent in assessment phase, plenty of ‘hands on’ physio and exercise.