Society has taught us to believe that as we age, we will get stiff and achy joints, a decrease in mobility, live in pain, gain weight, and become more fatigued when participating in activities. How many times have you heard (or maybe even said yourself), “Oh, I’m old and that’s why I can’t do X or keep up with X”? I’m here to tell you that this just isn’t the case, and it doesn’t need to be the case for you either. There are many people worldwide who are in their autumn season of life regaining strength, maintaining mobility, decreasing aches and pains and even gaining lean muscle mass. I see ..read more

For most people who are manual wheelchair users, they will tell you that their independence heavily depends on their ability to transfer in and out of their chair. This can also be true for individuals who use power chairs and scooters. This guide explores techniques and exercises to improve chair transfers. Safe and effective wheelchair transfers can be quite a challenge, especially if you are someone who has compromised trunk function or has little to no function in their triceps muscles. Add a chronic overuse shoulder injury or two to the mix and transferring can become just downright frust ..read more

“If you aren’t assessing, you are guessing,” is one of my favourite coaching tips I’ve ever been given in my career as an adaptive fitness coach.  Over the many years of being a coach in the fitness industry, I have discovered an ample amount of tools and exercises that I now use to help clients achieve better mobility; increased strength; reduced pain; enhanced lean muscle mass; improved endurance, power, and speed; and ultimately, be able to move and feel better. But the truth is, these exercises aren’t worth anything if they aren’t prescribed for the right reasons. I see it a lot; trai ..read more

Being a specialist who works with people living with neurological disabilities, my ideal client is someone who is most likely wanting to improve their daily quality of living. I absolutely love being able to coach clients along their journeys to achieving better mobility, more strength, and improved body awareness. These tips are for anyone to consider along their own health and wellness journey, whether you have a coach or not. Having the knowledge of what structures help us succeed can save us so much time and effort. It is my pleasure to share with you what some of these might be (five, to ..read more

Who is Kyle? Have you ever met someone and been truly amazed at their drive, work ethic, and accomplishments? To me, Kyle Gieni is one of those people. Kyle is a constant inspiration as he strives to reach and surpass his goals. So what makes him different? Was he born with an innate determination to stay motivated in reaching his goals? I had the chance to interview Kyle and investigate what can oftentimes be the hardest part of reaching your goals, getting started and staying consistent. You may be wondering who Kyle Gieni is. Kyle Gieni is many things, he was the very first participant at t ..read more

As much as I feel grateful to be here in Canada where our healthcare system is (for the most part), accessible to the majority, I do believe that we as individuals need to play an active role in our health and wellness.   I’ve heard many times from clients over the years that had they not spoken up to their _______ (fill in the blank with doctor/surgeon/neurologist/physiotherapist etc.) about an aspect of their current situation or condition, or asked questions regarding a possible contraindication of treatments or medicine, because it would have negatively impacted their health. I’l ..read more

Setbacks can feel like a life sentence. The effects of injury and trauma seep into all corners of our lives, constricting our ability to work, socialize, exercise, rest and concentrate. We may lose our ability to participate in our passions, the very things that create our sense of who we are. We can end up feeling isolated and alone in our rehabilitation process.  And yet setbacks due to injury or trauma are a natural part of life, albeit a hard reality that we all face. In fact, the rare child escapes trauma entirely, according to Bruce Perry, a teacher, clinician and researcher in chil ..read more

Starting Ocean Rehab and Fitness was not in the plan. But it was the best unplanned thing to ever happen to me and my career. What seems like ages ago, I originally came to Vancouver to pursue physiotherapy. I went back to school (I have a BA) and began studying Kinesiology. I started taking all the prerequisites that I needed to apply – from Human Anatomy and Statistics to Exercise Physiology. I even went back and upgraded my Chemistry classes – which by the way, just hearing the word ‘chemistry’ makes my eyes glaze over. It was like learning an ancient language! I’ve never ever thought that ..read more

“Megan you have such great posture!” I get this a lot and surprisingly so. To be honest, I can’t take all the credit; I grew up a dancer and good posture was drilled into me for hours every day and for years of my life. I can however take credit for maintaining my good posture.   Now that I’m not dancing every day, I spend my time coaching clients (which requires little demonstration and mostly a lot of standing), hiking my neighbourhood, sitting at my computer for hours daily, and of course, working out in the gym. I am constantly thinking of how I can implement posture-im ..read more

Please note: The following article is a guide only, and is not necessarily applicable to everyone. Please talk to your doctor for recommendations regarding specific chronic conditions before beginning an exercise program. What you need to know I work with many clients who have chronic pain. In fact, one of the most common reasons many of my clients have sought out coaching is to ask about their chronic pain during exercise. Questions that I hear asked often by my clients are: How do I know when to push through? and How do I know when Enough is Enough? There isn’t really a simple answer to th ..read more