Condition
Sports Injury Rehab & Return to Training in Fort Collins, CO
For lifters, runners, and jiu jitsu athletes who have been told to rest and stop. Pain free at rest is not the finish line — the finish line is full training.
The short answer
Sports injury rehab at Tier 1 Performance & Rehab in Fort Collins bridges the gap between being out of pain and being ready to compete. Care combines hands-on treatment with a criteria-based return-to-training plan: measurable strength, range and control targets you hit before load is added, so the injury does not recur when you go back to full intensity.
Serving Fort Collins, Loveland, Timnath, Windsor and Wellington, CO.
01 — What it is
Sports injury & return to training, and how to tell that's what you have
Signs you're dealing with this
- —Cleared by another provider but still not back to full training
- —Pain free at rest and symptomatic the moment intensity returns
- —The same injury recurring every training block
- —Told to rest with no plan for what comes after
- —A competition or event on the calendar and no roadmap to it
What's actually causing it
- —Rehab that stopped at pain relief instead of restoring capacity
- —No objective criteria for progressing load, so the return was guesswork
- —Strength and range deficits left behind after the original injury
- —Training volume reintroduced too quickly after time off
“I do jiu jitsu and thank god for dr alec, without him i wouldn't be able to continue to do the sport i love! Highly recommend!”
02 — Our approach
How we treat Sports injury & return to training at Tier 1
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Establish the baseline
Objective strength, range and control testing on both sides, so we know exactly what the deficit is and can measure progress against it.
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Treat and load in parallel
Hands-on care for the symptomatic tissue while loading everything that can tolerate it — training does not stop, it changes shape.
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Close the gap
Sport-specific progressions: pressing and pulling for lifters, run volume for runners, grappling positions for jiu jitsu athletes.
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Return on criteria
Full intensity only when you hit the targets, plus the maintenance work that keeps you there through the season.
What to expect, week by week
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Weeks 1–4
Symptoms controlled, baseline measured, modified training continues.
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Weeks 5–12
Loaded progressions and sport-specific rebuilding.
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Weeks 12–16
Criteria met, full intensity, maintenance plan in place.
Programs here run 8 to 16 weeks depending on how long the problem has been going on and the load you need to return to. These are typical ranges for active adults, not a guarantee — you get specific goals and a target program length after your first assessment.
03 — FAQ
Sports injury & return to training: common questions
Written as direct answers so Google and AI assistants can quote them.
What is criteria-based return to sport?+
Progressing load based on measured strength, range and control targets rather than on elapsed time. It is the approach that lowers reinjury risk, because the tissue has demonstrated it can handle what is next.
I was told to rest for six weeks. Is that right?+
Occasionally, for specific tissue injuries. Far more often, total rest costs capacity and the pain returns as soon as training does. There is usually a modified version of your training you can keep doing.
Do you work with jiu jitsu athletes?+
Yes, it is one of the most common groups here — Dr. Alec trains jiu jitsu himself. Plans are built around rolling schedules and competition dates.
Can you work with my coach or trainer?+
Yes. Where you have a coach, we coordinate so the rehab program and the training program are not fighting each other.
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