The Performance Rehabilitation and Strength Training Podcast · Alex Gett

Integrating Physical Therapy and Strength & Conditioning - Dr. Azita Nejaddehghan, St. Louis Cardinals

·46 min·3 clips

A treadmill and a TheraBand is not going to cut it for return to sport.

1. The Performance Rehabilitation and Strength Training Podcast episode centers on integrating physical therapy and strength and conditioning for return to sport with Azita Nejidehghan and Alex Jett. 2. Host Alex Jett is a PT and strength coach, and guest Azita Nejidehghan works as a performance physical therapist and assistant sports performance coach with Louisiana Tech football. 3. The episode asks how PT and strength work fit together when an athlete leaves the table and starts a return-to-sport progression. 4. Azita says her route through PT school gave her a strong anatomy-and-physiology base before she entered strength and conditioning at Maryland football. 5. She describes a January SCA conference in Virginia with Alex, followed by an internship with Maryland football strength and conditioning during COVID disruptions. 6. Azita explains that she later moved into an outpatient sports clinic in Maryland and missed the team environment and common purpose. 7. That experience led her to Louisiana Tech, where she now works in a hybrid role with football and other strength staff. 8. She says PT school helped her understand how the body moves, but it did not teach her enough strength principles or exercise prescription. 9. Alex and Azita both say PTs can learn exercise selection from strength coaches, especially when the goal is returning athletes to sport. 10. They argue that a treadmill and a TheraBand are not enough when the target is sprinting, cutting, and full practice demands. 11. Azita says a big piece of her approach is to restore what was lost first, including range of motion, joint position, stability, and tolerance to movement. 12. Her next phase is “reload and refine,” which means increasing load while sharpening movement quality and movement skill. 13. She gives the example of a simple band-under-the-big-toe drill during an RDL-to-high-knee pattern, and says it can expose weaknesses that look easy at first. 14. Azita says she leans on isometrics and low-volume work in season because she does not want to add unnecessary fatigue to football players. 15. She adds that hamstring cases are different because they require sprinting and acceleration dosing, and she cites Derek Hansen’s sprint-focused approach. 16. For reintegration, she says she monitors pain, range of motion, strength, endurance, power, athlete confidence, proprioception, balance, and sport-specific function. 17. She and Alex emphasize that daily reassessment matters because practice load, soreness, and movement quality can change from Monday to Friday. 18. The interview style is conversational and technical, with both speakers interrupting, agreeing, and pushing each other for more specific return-to-play details. 19. Listeners who work in sports PT, athletic training, football, or performance rehab would get the most from this episode. 20. Listeners who want general outpatient PT without sport-specific loading may skip it.

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