It is essential that patients play an active role in their care. People must move in healthy ways, as much as possible and within the limits of their bodies. This is why it is important to construct an active care program for patients based on their needs and tissue tolerance, and not simply hand them a list of exercises and send them on their way.

A rehabilitation program is important for all soft tissue injuries because the tissue, as well as the nervous system, needs to be trained to maintain the healthy movement patterns so that the injury does not reoccur. It is also important to establish muscle balance and stabilization in areas of postural and mechanical dysfunction, as these are usually the underlying causes of injury.

Functional rehabilitation includes tissue “sparing” techniques to reduce stress on injured tissues, stretching, strengthening, core stabilization, neurosensory/proprioceptive training (balance), and correction of movement patterns and posture. This is all based on a thorough functional evaluation and rehab methods are given and performed on a progressive basis.

This program is also designed based on the activities or sports that the patient performs in her or his life. Exercises should not be done simply for the sake of doing them. They should be done to specifically train or enhance movements or positions that the patient performs in her or his life. Every rehab technique should have a specific goal within the overall goal of healing and health, and should be performed with that goal in mind.