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Friday 1:30pm - 5pm Saturday 9am - 5pm

Brandon Cope Medical Massage, 6125 N Sunshine Street Suite A, Coeur d'Alene, ID (2026)

is dedicated to improving health and quality of life through manual and movement based therapies.

06/04/2026

Joint Replacements
One of the biggest questions I get from clients with arthritis is:

"How do I know when it's time for a joint replacement?"

It's a good question because joint replacements can be a life-saver for the right person. At the same time, I've also seen people rush into surgery when there were still other options available.

Today I want to give you the big picture so you can better understand how these procedures work and how I think about the decision-making process.

First, What Is a Joint Replacement?
A joint replacement (also called an arthroplasty) is a surgery where damaged joint surfaces (cartilage) are removed and replaced with artificial components made from combinations of metal, ceramic, and specialized plastics. The goal is simple:

Reduce pain and improve function.

The surgeon isn't replacing the entire joint. They're resurfacing the damaged portions that have been worn down by arthritis, injury, or degeneration.

Which Joints Are Replaced Most Often?
The vast majority of joint replacements are in the:

Knees and Hips

In the United States, surgeons perform roughly 700,000 knee replacements every year, making it one of the most common orthopedic procedures in the country. Hip replacements are the second most common major joint replacement. (Healthline)

Shoulder replacements are becoming more common, while ankle, elbow, wrist, and finger replacements are performed much less frequently.

Most patients undergoing hip or knee replacement are between their late 50s and early 70s, although surgeries are increasingly being performed on both younger and older individuals. (PMC)

Why Do People Need A Replacement?
The biggest reason by far is:

Osteoarthritis

Other causes include:

Previous injuries
Repetitive wear and tear
Rheumatoid arthritis
Joint deformities
Avascular necrosis (loss of blood supply to bone)

Over time the cartilage covering the ends of the bones becomes thinner and rougher. Eventually the joint loses its smooth gliding surface. This causes a decline in quality of life and symptoms such as:

Pain
Stiffness
Swelling
Loss of motion
Difficulty walking
Difficulty sleeping

"How Bad Does It Need To Be Before I Get Surgery?"

Many people believe they should wait until they can barely walk before getting a replacement.

Others think they should get surgery the moment arthritis shows up on an X-ray.

I don't think either extreme is ideal.

The decision should be based less on the image and more on your quality of life.

Some signs that surgery may be worth seriously considering include:

Pain waking you up at night
Difficulty walking normal distances
Inability to participate in activities you enjoy
Difficulty caring for yourself
Persistent pain despite conservative treatment
Significant loss of function and independence

Modern orthopedic guidelines generally suggest that once conservative treatments have failed and quality of life is substantially affected, delaying surgery may not provide additional benefit. (Arthritis Foundation)

When Should You Delay Surgery?

Many people hear they have arthritis and immediately think surgery is inevitable.

Not necessarily.

I often encourage clients to continue conservative treatment when:

Pain is manageable
Daily activities are still possible
Strength levels can be improved
Weight loss could substantially reduce joint stress
Movement quality can still be improved
The person has not yet tried a structured exercise program

A surprising number of people have severe arthritis on imaging but function quite well.

Remember: X-rays don't feel pain. People do.

I've worked with clients who had terrible-looking scans but were still hiking, lifting weights, and enjoying life.

What Can You Try Before Surgery?
If your goal is to delay or potentially avoid replacement, these are the strategies with the strongest evidence:

Strength Training
This is my number one recommendation. Strong muscles absorb force before it reaches the joint.

For knees:
Kneeling Quad Thrusts
Split Squats
Leg presses
Hamstring Curl Holds

For hips:
Glute Bridges
Light Weight Romanian Deadlifts
Banded Sidesteps
Balance Exercises

Weight Loss
Every pound lost reduces force through the knees during walking and stair climbing. Even modest weight loss can make a significant difference. (The Washington Post)

Regular Movement
Movement lubricates joints and helps maintain cartilage health.
Walking, cycling, swimming, and resistance training are usually better than complete rest.

Therapy Options
Depending on the situation:
Personal Training
Medical massage
Natural Topicals
Stem Cell Injections
PRP or prolotherapy
These don't necessarily stop arthritis progression, but they may improve quality of life.

What Does Post-Surgery Recovery Actually Look Like?

Many people think they'll be back to normal in a few weeks.
That's usually unrealistic.
A general timeline looks something like:

Week 1-2
Significant swelling

Pain management

Walking with assistance

Weeks 3-6
Walking improves

Range of motion improves

Physical therapy becomes increasingly important

Months 2-3
Most daily activities become easier

Strength continues improving

Months 6-12
Ongoing gains in strength, endurance, and confidence

Joint feels more "normal"

The biggest mistake I see is underestimating the amount of rehabilitation required after surgery. Recovery is not just about healing from surgery, it's about rebuilding strength and movement patterns that may have been declining for years. (Health)

Finally
A joint replacement is neither a failure nor a miracle.

It's a tool.

For the right person, at the right time, it can dramatically improve quality of life.

But before replacing a joint, I always want to ask:
Have we improved strength?

Have we improved movement?

Have we addressed body weight?

Have we exhausted conservative options?

Is pain truly limiting quality of life?

If the answer is yes, surgery may be the best next step.

If the answer is no, there may still be a lot of room to improve without replacing anything.

The goal isn't to win a contest for who can avoid surgery the longest.

The goal is to maintain the highest quality of life possible.

See you in the office,

Brandon

05/21/2026

Common Muscle Pains for Gamers

Carrying your team too hard? See how you can make it easier on your back?

Hi I’m Yanah 🙂 the newest (and coolest) member of Brandon Cope’s team.

So I was hanging out with some friends not too long ago right? We were all standing outside on the porch and somehow we started talking about the human body. Specifically pain in the human body. Back pain, neck pain, things like that. “It’s just part of getting older” I remember one of them saying. Like pain is the norm. But realistically speaking, is pain normal? Is it just part of growing up? Hold on, this person is younger than me, what do you mean “getting older” am I old?

My friends and I, we like to play videogames. The thing with gaming is that we don’t actually move around a lot. Most of the time we are just staying in one spot for hours at a time and it’s not just once a week, no, sometimes days at a time. And I hear from so many of them that they experience back pain and neck pain. But I don’t, cause I’m better. Just kidding. There are things I do when I get back pain to feel better.

Does anyone else have this problem? Maybe it’s not videogames specifically but it’s work. Maybe it’s sitting at an office desk for hours a day. Or maybe a school desk. Or maybe you’re a driver or transporter and you’re sitting in a vehicle for hours at a time. If any of this sounds familiar, and you’re experiencing some body pain, maybe I can help. 🙂

According to this meta analysis study in Sports Medicine, 73% of Esports gamers reported experiencing pain in the past year. 44% reported pain in the last week. So it’s pretty common to experience pain while gaming. The most common locations were the neck, back, shoulders, elbows and wrists. Today, I want to focus on your back and neck pain.

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12764727/
Soffner, Markus, et al. “Do Esports Players Experience Pain? Pain Prevalence of Esports Players: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.” Sports Medicine – Open, vol. 12, no. 1, 3 Jan. 2026, pp. 1–1, https://doi.org/10.1186/s40798-025-00971-1.

Sitting for hours, especially when you’re leaning forward can cause muscle imbalances which leads to stiffness and pain in the back, and neck.

Lower Back Pain
Prolonged sitting can affect your hip flexors, lower back muscles, and can also indicate having weak core and glute muscles. Basically your abs and glutes become weak because they aren’t being used. Meanwhile your hip flexors get tighter.

When your hip flexors get tight, they can start pulling on your pelvic bone causing it to tilt forward. This then puts pressure on your lower spine (lumbar) which then can cause lower back pain.

If this sounds like you, stretching and releasing your Hip Flexors and Quadratus Lumborum (QL) could help.

The Kneeling Lunge Stretch (for your hip flexors)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZ1eZBY4fwM

Another thing to try is rolling a ball on your QL.
https://youtu.be/cJItbVPKOTc?si=MBcNz_E6W9Q1hgYn

Another benefit would be to strengthen the underused muscles which in this case could be the Abs and Glutes. In which case you need to find a trainer who can help you isolate those muscles in exercise, such as the trainers on our team.

Upper Back Pain
When sitting for long periods of time, sometimes your shoulders can start to drift forward and your head might start to lean closer to the monitor. (this was me lol) it might look like you’re hunching forward. In this position your chest muscles are continuing to pull you forward and they can begin to get tight. At the same time the muscles in your back and in between your shoulder blades begin to over stretch, causing them to tire out and can even develop “knots” to stop the over stretching.

If this sounds like you. You might benefit from stretching and releasing your chest (Pectoralis minor and Pectoralis major)

Pecs:

Doorway Pec stretch
Rolling ball on Pecs
Here’s a video that shows both of those 🙂
https://youtu.be/LSC56mf8RWI?si=wbOm6xHmK2ZXTZzg

Please note, stretching your upper back (rhomboid muscles) might not be what is necessary for them at the moment. What would be better is to have them released and then strengthen to help prevent them from over stretching again.

Neck Pain
Typically a human head weighs about 10-12lbs. When your neck tilts forward, your neck muscles are holding the weight of your head plus the force of gravity, and each inch you lean forward, the weight increases putting more strain on your neck. which sounds cool like your neck can bench press 40lb, but this is not a “healthy” position and over time could cause wear and tear, and sometimes may even require surgery. You can imagine it like holding a dumbbell. When you hold it closer to your chest it’s easier to hold, however when you extend your arm out, it becomes a lot harder to keep up.

Releasing muscles is more beneficial if you also correct your posture so SIT UP STRAIGHT with your head above your neck, and don’t lean forward when you get back in the chair.

When you sit leaning forward, with your head extending up, opening your neck, that would shorten the back of your neck, or technically known as neck extensors.

When you sit slouched in your chair, with your chin tucked towards your chest, that could cause tightness in the front of your neck, or technically known as neck flexors.

If you lean forward you would want to stretch the back of your neck
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=neck+extensor+stretch

If you slouch, and you need to stretch the front of the neck.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ijaBDkLR7BU

Releasing and strengthening your neck muscles can help too if done in combination.

Strengthening
I have had a LOT of people ask me, “how do i strengthen these muscles?” and “what exercises do i do to strengthen these muscles?” If you need help finding a trainer, ask me and I can help you.

END
Lastly, taking breaks. I know you don’t want to hear it but taking breaks and moving around is going to help you so much in the long run. Even a 5 minute walk every 20 minutes can help.

Stretching
Sitting up straight
Moving around

If you really want help figuring out what’s going on with you, you can schedule an appointment with me and we can do some assessments to figure out what’s going on with you (see what I did there). We also offer a personalized self care plan specific to YOUR needs. So it’s not unnecessary homework, only essentials that we know work. Okay bye.

https://brandoncope.com/yanah-initial-assessment/

05/04/2026

Hi friends, this year of 2026 I have hired one of my past students, Yanah, to come work for me and learn my madness. I’ve been training her for a few months, specifically on joint evaluations and she is now ready to start practicing on people. So we are asking for your help, if you or someone you know would be willing to make an appointment with her this will give her some important practice. What we need right now is people with problems who would be willing to come to the office and let her practice assessments. We are taking the first 5 people who sign up and then we will stop this special offer.

This is a complimentary appointment with Yanah for a targeted joint evaluation. It does not include any massage therapy, it is only for Yanah to practice assessment techniques. You will discuss your health history, get some very helpful information about your health from detailed assessments and a Self Care Plan after the appointment.

The appointment is 2hrs long. We normally charge $240 for these appointments, but we are waiving that fee for your help. We will put your card on file in order to book the appointment and our 24hr cancellation policy will still apply. So if you need to change the appointment, let Yanah know 24hrs in advance.

We are not expecting any feedback from you unless you know and have experience with doing joint evaluation. Or continued appointments unless you want to book more. Please wear flexible clothing. Thank you for helping us grow and learn in our practice.

Below is the calendar link you will use to schedule the appointment and fill out your forms.

https://brandoncope.com/yanah-initial-assessment/

04/10/2026

Sarcopenia

There’s a medical term called sarcopenia, which simply means the gradual loss of muscle mass as we age.

Most people start losing muscle in their 30s, and the rate of loss speeds up after about age 60. The problem is that muscle isn’t just for looking fit, it plays a huge role in long-term health.

Muscle helps with:
- Balance and fall prevention
- Joint protection
- Blood sugar control
- Metabolism
- Maintaining independence later in life

Low muscle mass is one of the strongest predictors of frailty and injury in older adults.

The good news is that sarcopenia is largely preventable.

A few of the biggest factors that help slow or reverse it:

- Strength training
Lifting weights is the most effective way to preserve muscle. Bodyweight exercises, machines, and free weights can all work.

- Enough protein
Many adults simply don’t eat enough protein to maintain muscle. A general rule for active people is somewhere around 0.7–1.0 grams of protein per pound of body weight per day, depending on activity level.

- Progressive challenge
Your body adapts to stress. If the weight or difficulty never increases, the muscles eventually stop adapting.

- Consistency
Muscle responds surprisingly quickly to inactivity. Even a few weeks of doing nothing can noticeably reduce strength.

Muscle is one of the best insurance policies you can have for healthy aging.

03/28/2026

Unfinished Spine: The 10 year window that decides your spinal health

Most people treat the spine like a car that naturally breaks down over time, but what if it’s more like a house that was built with a structural flaw in the foundation during the first few years of construction.
We tend to think of low back pain as a "wear and tear" problem, a tax we pay for aging, sitting too long at desks, or that one heavy box we shouldn't have lifted. We treat it like an accidental injury.
But what if back pain isn't something that just happens to you? What if it’s something that was built?
Emerging research, including findings published in The Spine Journal, suggests we are looking at the wrong end of the timeline. Low back pain prevalence begins to spike during adolescence, reaching adult levels by our early twenties. To understand why, we have to look at a remarkable biological transformation that happens in the teenage body, one that sets the stage for a lifetime of stability or a lifetime of struggle.

The Transformation: From Muscle to Anchor
Deep in your core sits the iliolumbar ligament. It is the primary "tie-down" that anchors your spine to your pelvis. It is essential for managing the heavy shearing forces that occur when you move, lift, or twist.
However, humans aren't born with this ligament fully formed.
In a rare biological process called metaplasia (the changing of one tissue type into another type), this ligament actually develops from muscle tissue, specifically the quadratus lumborum (QL), during your second decade of life. Between the ages of 10 and 20, your body is effectively "building" a crucial structural anchor to the foundation of your spine. The bottom most fibers of the QL slowly transform from muscle tissue into ligamentous tissue.

The "Unfinished" Ligament
Muscle is adaptable; it grows stronger when we use it. We call this hypertrophy. Muscles are also vascular, they are rich in blood vessels which can transport resources to them and build them into stronger structures. Ligaments are avascular, they are not rich in blood supply and are very slow to build up their structure. Once formed, they are much less flexible and adaptable.

If the QL muscle is strong and well-built during those teenage years, it transforms into a thick, high-tension ligament capable of handling adult loads.
If that muscle is weak, under-loaded, or lacks "neuromuscular control" (the brain’s ability to coordinate the muscle), the resulting ligament may be thin, lax, or brittle.

The Domino Effect: A Lifetime of Compensation
If your "anchor" is weak, the rest of the system has to compensate. This is the Developmental Stability Model. When the iliolumbar ligament lacks the structural integrity to do its job, your body resorts to "Plan B":

Muscle Guarding: Other muscles have to work overtime to "clamp down" on the spine, leading to that constant feeling of tightness.
Microstrain: The joints of the lower spine (L4–S1) endure tiny, repetitive "slips" because the ligament isn't holding them steady.
The Chronic Cycle: Over time, these compensations lead to the inflammation, flare-ups, and "degenerative changes" we see on MRIs in our 30s and 40s.

Shifting the Goal: From "Fixing" to "Building"
This model changes everything about how we approach treatment. If you are struggling with chronic back pain, you might not be "injured" in the traditional sense. Instead, your spine might simply be under-built for the demands of your life.
For the Patient:
Passive treatments like ice, rest, or just "waiting for it to go away," cannot fix a structural capacity issue. You cannot "rest" a ligament into becoming stronger. Relief comes from progressive loading: teaching the muscles and tissues to handle the weight of your life again.
For the Parent/Coach:
Strength isn't just about sports performance; it’s about structural development. Encouraging diverse movement and strength in the "core" and lateral stabilizers during the teenage years isn't just a hobby, it’s the best preventative medicine for their future spine.

The Bottom Line
Low back pain isn't an inevitable part of aging. It’s often the result of a developmental window that closed before the foundation was fully set. But the story doesn't end there. By shifting our focus from "managing symptoms" to rebuilding capacity, we can change the trajectory of our spinal health at any age. Corrective and targeted exercise is the long term solution for anyone who missed their developmental building phase of the lumbar spine.

It's time to finish building your spine.
Brandoncope.com

The Spine Journal
https://www.thespinejournalonline.com/article/S1529-9430(26)00074-4/fulltext?fbclid=IwY2xjawQ0zTtleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFWQ2ZpcndEdVBTWGZUT1o0c3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHvcJcCItEGferpc3dznAQrhgdsz4g8Glf-XgItP4m9ZL44A9UB9VHAXHYA-7_aem_4jgXP2uahopwARX-pmSdGw

Address

6125 N Sunshine Street Suite A
Coeur D'alene, ID
83815

Opening Hours

Friday	1:30pm - 5pm
Saturday	9am - 5pm

Website

https://brandoncope.com/

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