Boronia Heights Physiotherapy

03/09/2026

Why the Toddler Squat Is a Masterclass in Functional Movement

Watch a toddler play on the floor and you will often see something many adults struggle to do: a comfortable deep squat.

For young children, squatting is part of everyday movement. They use it to reach toys, explore the ground, stand up, and move between different positions.

A deep squat requires several things working together:

• Good hip and ankle mobility
• Balance and body awareness
• Leg and core strength
• Trunk control
• Coordination between the hips, knees, and feet

Toddlers often squat with their feet firmly supported, knees moving naturally over the toes, hips dropping low, and their body staying balanced.

As we get older, long hours of sitting, reduced activity, previous injuries, stiffness, and changes in strength can make this movement more difficult.

This does not mean everyone needs to achieve a toddler-style deep squat. Hip anatomy, ankle mobility, age, injuries, and individual body structure all affect how someone squats.

But there is something useful to learn from children: regular movement through different positions helps maintain mobility, strength, balance, and confidence.

Next time you see a toddler comfortably squatting to inspect a toy on the floor, take notice.

They are practising one of the most useful movement patterns for everyday life without even thinking about it.

31/08/2026

27/08/2026

Hydration and Healing: Why Water Matters

Even mild dehydration may interfere with recovery.

When your body is healing from an injury, wound, or surgery, damaged tissues need oxygen, nutrients, and good circulation. Water supports each of these processes.

Adequate hydration helps maintain blood volume, allowing oxygen and nutrients to reach healing tissues efficiently. Water also supports normal cell function and helps your body remove waste products produced during tissue repair.

Hydration supports recovery by:

• Maintaining healthy circulation
• Supporting collagen formation and tissue repair
• Helping regulate normal inflammatory processes
• Supporting skin and soft-tissue health
• Reducing fatigue and supporting physical performance

Dehydration may leave you feeling tired, reduce exercise tolerance, and make recovery more difficult.

Rather than waiting until you feel thirsty, drink fluids regularly throughout the day. Your individual fluid needs depend on factors such as body size, activity level, weather, medical conditions, and medications.

Recovery happens between treatment sessions too. Adequate sleep, nutrition, movement, and hydration all contribute to giving your body the conditions needed for effective healing.

20/08/2026

Cortisone Injections: What Are the Risks?

Cortisone injections, also called corticosteroid injections, are used to reduce inflammation and pain in joints and surrounding soft tissues. They may be injected into joints, bursae, tendon sheaths, or around painful structures. Direct injection into some tendons is usually avoided because steroids may weaken tendon tissue.

For the right condition, cortisone may provide useful short-term pain relief. However, possible risks include:

1. Temporary pain flare
Pain may increase for a day or two after the injection before settling.

2. Infection
Infection is rare but potentially serious. Sterile technique reduces this risk.

3. Tendon weakening
Repeated injections around some tendons may increase the risk of tendon weakening or rupture.

4. Cartilage effects
Repeated injections into the same joint may negatively affect cartilage, so frequency is often limited.

5. Skin changes
Skin lightening, thinning, or loss of fatty tissue around the injection site may occur.

6. Increased blood glucose
Steroid injections may temporarily raise blood sugar, especially in people with diabetes.

7. Systemic effects
Some people experience facial flushing, sleep disturbance, mood changes, or temporary increases in blood pressure.

Not every patient responds the same way. Some gain significant relief, while others notice little benefit.

Before having an injection, discuss your diagnosis, expected benefit, risks, previous injections, and medical history with your doctor. Physiotherapy can also help determine whether exercise, load modification, manual therapy, or other rehabilitation strategies should be part of your treatment plan. This helps ensure pain relief supports recovery rather than replacing rehabilitation.

10/08/2026

Pain is not always caused by damage

Pain does not always mean something is wrong with the body. Some people have disc bulges or joint changes on scans but feel no pain. Others have pain even when scans look normal.

This happens because pain is not just about injury. It is also about how the brain and nervous system process signals. Sometimes, the nervous system becomes too sensitive. It can continue to send pain messages even after the body has healed. This is known as central sensitisation.

If pain lasts for a long time after an injury has recovered, it may be due to this increased sensitivity. In these cases, focusing only on the injured area may not help.

Gentle exercise, relaxation, and breathing control can help calm the nervous system. Over time, this can reduce pain and improve function.

Understanding pain in this way helps people manage it more effectively, especially when traditional treatments do not work.

10/08/2026

Iliotibial Band Syndrome

The iliotibial band is a thick band of fibrous tissue that runs along the outside of the thigh from the hip to just below the knee. Iliotibial band syndrome (ITBS) is one of the leading causes of lateral knee pain in runners. It occurs when this band becomes tight and rubs against the lower portion of the thigh bone, causing inflammation.

Common symptoms include an aching pain on the outside of the knee that worsens with continued activity. Pain may also radiate up the outside of the thigh. Risk factors include excessive training, inadequate warm-up, poor flexibility, and biomechanical factors like overpronation.

Treatment aims to reduce inflammation through ice, medication, and avoiding aggravating activities initially. Stretching and foam rolling the ITB and associated muscles is important, as is addressing any biomechanical issues with gait retraining or orthotic intervention if required. A gradual return to activity is recommended once the acute pain subsides.