Today a patient asked me: "How long will I have to perform these "corrective" exercises?"
Me: It depends.
Patient: I read somewhere that if one is performing the appropriate correctives, then he/she shouldn't have to perform them for that long.
Me: There's some truth to that.
Patient: What do you me?
Me: Let's say that you have a race car and while racing/driving all you do is drive fast and turn left. Eventually, that car will pull to the left and as a result need an alignment. After the alignment is squared away, if you go back to driving fast and turning left, then you will find yourself in need of an alignment again. Now if you could change your driving habits to include an equal number of right and left turns, then you could possibly stave of the need of an alignment. Your body is similar in this manner. Most sports are asymmetrical by nature and as a result cause the body develop asymmetrically. This asymmetrical alignment/faulty development will decrease performance and predispose one to injury. Sport specific or corrective exercises should me aimed initially at offsetting these asymmetries in an attempt to allow for efficient/optimal/jointly centrated movement. Does this make sense?
Patient: I get it
Me: So in other words, one will need to perform his/her corrective exercises periodically as long as he/she is engaging in activities that result in asymmetrical/faulty development.
Patient: Got it.