Balance and posture go hand and hand, good posture is essential for balance and balance is essential in the prevention of falls.  Our Balance and Posture programs’ goals are to help our patients regain their correct posture, increase muscle strength to sustain correct posture,  become more mobile, regain independence, and avoid the risk of falling. 

Our Balance and Posture program is designed to treat:

• Musculoskeletal pain
• Neuromuscular pain
• Asymmetry of shoulders, hips, and any muscle imbalances
• Weak hips
• Weak torso (core)
• Tight muscles (especially hip flexors and hamstrings)
• Lower body muscle weakness

The following are examples of diagnoses and injuries that could benefit from Balance and Posture physical therapy:

• Chronic neck, shoulder, or back pain
• Pinched nerves
• Postural imbalances
• Injuries sustained from a fall
• Stroke recovery
• Scoliosis

Physical Therapy is one of the best ways to correct posture, balance, and gait limitations.  Patients are comprehensively evaluated on balance, strength, and gait mechanics.  The program is then designed to meet the patients’ needs, improving their function while at the same time decreasing their fall risk.

Our Foot and Ankle program begins with a thorough bio-mechanical evaluation of both the foot and the lower extremities.  Often times during this evaluation process, we will do a video-gait analysis.  This video analysis will give us the best information on how your foot is functioning.  For runners, the video will allow us to analyze technique and make recommendations for more efficient and safer running form.  We educate on appropriate shoe wear and cast for custom made orthotics.

Our Foot and Ankle program is designed to treat the following conditions and diagnoses:

• Achilles tendonitis/tendinosis
• Heel pain
• Ankle strains and sprains
• Chronic ankle instabilities or weak ankles
• Plantar Fascitis
• Fractures 
• Sports Injuries
• Post- surgical patients
• Shin splints
• High arch or flat foot issues
• Flexibility issues
• Lower body weakness
• Almost all injuries involving the lower body, foot, or ankle

Your plan of care will be designed to improve balance, strength, flexibility, and muscular endurance.
Our ultimate goal is to get you back to full function and peak performance.

Aquatic Physical Therapy is part of an integrated approach to functional rehabilitation.

The patient is taken through a series of shallow and deep water exercises that are designed to improve:

• Neuromuscular Control
• Strength and Flexibility
• Coordination and Balance
• Aerobic Endurance
• Function of Postural Muscles
• Weight-bearing tolerance and ability
• Specific movements of body that are too difficult or painful to do on land.

The benefits of exercising in water are that it:

• Provides a safe environment
• Patient will not fall and injure themselves
• Reduces or eliminates shock and stress to the joints and soft tissue
• Provides support and compression to the soft tissue and therefore helps reduce swelling
• Can be used to assist or resist movements.

The following are a few examples of who may benefit from an Aquatic Rehabilitation Program:

• Neck or Back Pain
• Arthritis
• Multiple Sclerosis
• Fibromyalgia
• Pre / Post Partum
• Orthopedic Condition / Surgery Pain caused by gravity
• Pain or disabilities which limit the ability to exercise on land

The program is supervised by a licensed Physical Therapist and/or Physical Therapist Assistant with training in Aquatic Therapy.

Please come prepared with towel, bathing suit or clean t-shirt/shorts if desired, and shower shoes or flip-flops. Body soap is provided.

Fit For Life PT offers hand therapy for conservative or post surgical care of traumatic injury of the upper extremities.

We specialize in:

• Nerve Compression Syndromes (Carpal Tunnel, Cubital Tunnel, Radial Tunnel)
• Osteoarthritis,
• Rheumatoid Arthritis
• Management of chronic and acute injuries of the upper extremities
• Custom splinting
• Post Surgical Rehabilitation of Tendon injuries
• Fractures
• Tendonitis (Tennis Elbow, Golfers Elbow)
• Tenosynovitis (DeQuervain’s)
• Energy conservation techniques for OA/RA
• Digital Amputations

Our therapists (PT/OT) have a vast amount of experience evaluating and treating both conservative and post surgical upper extremity diagnoses.

At Fit for Life Physical Therapy, there are physical therapists that are trained to evaluate and help you with your symptoms. The evaluation consists of a clinical examination, which may be followed by eye movement/vestibular function and balance tests.

The entire evaluation takes 1 hour. If possible, take no sleeping medications, tranquilizers or dizziness/vertigo medications in the 24-hour period prior to the test. You may wish to have someone drive you to and from your first visit in case you don’t feel steady after treatment. If the cause of the dizziness requires an exercise program, that program will be set up specifically for you.

For vestibular problems, this therapy involves vestibular and balance retraining through swift and repetitive exercises of the head, eyes and entire body. After training from the therapist, exercises can be performed at home. Other exercises are used primarily to improve balance.

Our massage therapists use soft tissue techniques to soften body tissue (muscle, connective tissue, tendons, ligaments) decreasing pain, improving circulation, reliving stress and increasing relaxation resulting in a persons health and well being.

We offer a comprehensive rehab program for those who have been diagnosed with chronic lung problems including:

• COPD,
• Asthma,
• pulmonary fibrosis,
• post lung surgery.

Our program is conducted by trained licensed therapists that will evaluate and treat based on your individual results.

Treatments include:

• breathing exercises,
• range of motion/strength exercises,
• training to improve household activities and walking.

Our pelvic floor rehabilitation program is conducted by trained licenced therapists who evaluate and treat pelvic floor disorders including:

• pelvic organ prolapse (rectal, uterine, vaginal)
• fecal/urinary incontinence (constipation)
• overactive bladder
• pelvic pain due to pregnancy,
• cystitis,
• SI joint dysfunctions
• pre- and post prostate procedures

Our therapists are sensitive to your problems and how they affect your every day life.

Our program includes the use of biofeedback equipment, pelvic floor education and exercises and home management and exercise programs to assist the patients progress every day.

Physical work reconditioning is a general or work specific exercise program improving the person’s strength, endurance, posture and functional abilities preparing the return to a specific job.

The program duration is 2 to 3 days/week for 2 -8 weeks and is based on 4 hour sessions.

The components include:

• cardiac endurance exercises
• range of motion/stretching
• Strengthening
• Material handling tasks as lifting and carrying boxes
• Non material handling movement like step climbing and crawling

Preparation: Day of evaluation will be 1 hour session Wear lose fitted clothing with athletic shoes take medications as prescribed recommended to bring water, snacks as needed

We also offer services for Employers that require objective testing to be performed on all applicants prior to beginning their job.
The tests are designed, and or conducted by our trained staff and consists of material handling, cardio endurance, handgrip testing and monitoring of their vitals.

Please call us at 352-376-7505 for more details

Dry Needling is a safe, fast, and effective treatment for muscular trigger points and soft tissue referral pain. A sterile, monofilament needle is inserted into a trigger point for ~ 30 seconds, providing an immediate release due to harnessing a neurological reset mechanism in the central nervous system. Strict safety, sterility, and application protocols are always followed. There are no adverse effects to dry needling and this treatment can be used in conjunction with other manual therapy techniques including kinematic taping, joint mobilization/manipulation, and soft tissue release.

Now offering Professional Bike Fitting at our Gainesville location. Call (352) 373-7984 to schedule an appointment.

Experiencing aches and pains during your bike rides? Let our certified Professional Bike Fitter asses your cycling mechanics and custom tailor your settings on your bike to improve efficiency and decrease injury. All bike styles can be accommodated-road, mountain, gravel, TT and E-bikes.

What To Bring to Bike Fitting Appointment

• Please bring your bike, shoes, helmet, gloves, and eye-wear you typically ride in
• Also, please wear your typical riding attire, including chamois
• Make sure your bike and cleats are clean and in good working order. Please make sure tires are properly inflated.
• You will be riding quite a bit during the bike fitting and therefore may want to bring water.
• There will only be time to fit one bike. If you have multiple bikes, we will need to set up an appointment for each bike.
• If you have any questions, please call Angela Wilt, PT, MS at (352) 373-7984.

Fit For Life Physical Therapists are now certified in Functional Movement Screen (FMS). FMS allows the therapist to perform a comprehensive screen of any individual from head to toe to assess functional mobility and stability. This information serves as a baseline to assess the risk of injury prior to initiating a workout regimen or participation in sport, as well as identify any red flags that would require referral to appropriate health care practitioner. FMS is a quick, evidence based, and proactive method to assess an individual's quality of movement. As the FMS motto states, “Move well. Then move often.”