Pursuit Physical Therapy

06/17/2026

What if your chronic pain isn't just coming from your muscles and joints?

Emerging research is showing that inflammation, immune activity, and the nervous system are constantly communicating with each other.

When that communication becomes disrupted, people may experience:
• persistent pain
• fatigue
• poor recovery
• digestive issues
• brain fog

This is why osteopathic manual therapy focuses on more than where it hurts.

By improving:
• breathing mechanics
• lymphatic drainage
• rib and spinal mobility
• nervous system regulation

we help create an environment where the body can adapt, recover, and heal more efficiently.

Your body is one connected system.
Treat the system, not just the symptom.

Researchers discovered that leucine, a nutrient found in protein-rich foods, can supercharge mitochondria by protecting crucial energy-producing proteins inside cells. The breakthrough uncovers a powerful new link between diet and cellular energy — with possible implications for cancer and metabol...

06/17/2026

🤰 Big news for expectant moms (and why standard exercise advice isn't the whole story):

A brand-new study published in JAMA just revealed that cutting down on sitting time and simply increasing light-intensity movement significantly lowers the risk of pregnancy complications, like high blood pressure and gestational diabetes.

Here is the kicker: The study found that women who sat for 10 or more hours a day had double the risk of complications compared to those who sat for 7 hours. But you don't need to smash high-intensity workouts to fix this—increasing light activity (like standing, gentle walking, and staying mobile) cut that risk in half.

Why this matters for Osteopathic Manual Therapy:
In our clinic, we talk a lot about "loss of adaptability." Pregnancy places a massive, beautiful mechanical load on your body, compressing blood vessels, shifting your center of gravity, and altering how your diaphragm and pelvis move together.

When you sit for long blocks of time, those tissues lose their elasticity, fluid dynamics slow down, and your nervous system takes a hit.

Our goal with prenatal manual therapy isn't just to relieve back pain. It’s to restore the structural freedom your body needs so that staying up, standing, and taking those daily steps feels comfortable, fluid, and natural.

Movement is medicine, but your body has to be free to move first.

👇 Are you expecting or planning to be? Let's make sure your pelvis, spine, and diaphragm are ready to support a mobile, healthy pregnancy. Drop a comment or message us to chat shop!



https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2849458?guestAccessKey=6bb26ffc-81d4-4ec1-91e2-bcc40b18db6b&utm_source=For_The_Media&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=ftm_links&utm_content=tfl&utm_term=052726

06/16/2026

💥 Stop rolling your IT Band wrong! 🛑

If you're jumping on a foam roller and rolling directly back and forth on the side of your leg at a perfect 90-degree angle, you might be missing the real culprit behind your knee or hip pain.

Here is the secret: The IT Band itself is a thick, stubborn piece of connective tissue—you can't really "stretch" or "release" it by just smashing it. What you actually need to target are the muscles that wrap around it and pull it tight, like your vastus lateralis (the outer quad muscle) and your outer hamstrings!

In this quick breakdown from Pursuit Physical Therapy, you'll learn the 3 angles that actually work:
1️⃣ The Standard: Perpendicular (90 degrees) to hit the main IT Band area.
2️⃣ The Lean Back: Tilt 15 to 30 degrees backward to hit the hamstring connection.
3️⃣ The Lean Forward: Tilt 15 to 30 degrees forward to separate that outer quad (vastus lateralis) from the IT band.

Yes, it's going to be "good and painful"—but your joints will thank you later! 🙌

Check out the full instruction and see the exact angles here: https://youtu.be/ksR84uj22ok

Relief
https://youtu.be/ksR84uj22ok

The IT Band Complex responds well to the use of a foam roller. Howe...

06/15/2026

🧠 Can a nutrient help calm anxiety?

New research suggests that certain nutrients may influence anxiety by affecting how the brain functions and communicates. But there’s another important piece of the story: the brain doesn't just need nutrients delivered in—it also needs waste products carried out.

Every brain cell produces metabolic waste and inflammatory byproducts as part of normal function. If those wastes accumulate, they can interfere with signaling, recovery, and optimal performance.

This is where osteopathic cranial mobilization becomes interesting.

Gentle cranial techniques may help improve the movement of fluids that support the brain, including pathways involved in nutrient delivery and the clearance of metabolic waste products. Better fluid movement may help create a healthier environment for brain cells to function, communicate, and respond to the nutrients they need.

Think of it like this:

🧠 Better nutrient delivery in
💧 Better inflammatory waste out
⚡ Better cellular communication

The goal isn't just feeding the brain—it's helping the brain maintain a healthy internal environment.

From an OsteoSignal perspective, optimal brain function depends on all three signals working together:

✔️ Biomechanical – healthy motion and fluid movement
✔️ Bioelectrical – efficient neural communication
✔️ Biochemical – proper nutrient availability and waste clearance

Sometimes improving brain health isn't just about what you take—it's also about what your body can clear away.

Researchers have identified a consistent chemical difference in the brains of people with anxiety.

06/14/2026

🧠⚡ Magnesium may be one of the most misunderstood minerals in health care.

A new study found that altering how magnesium moves inside the mitochondria—the “power plants” of the cell—dramatically changed metabolism in mice. Even on a high-fat, high-sugar diet, the animals stayed leaner, burned fuel more efficiently, and showed healthier metabolic function.

But here’s the important takeaway:

This does NOT mean people should start trying to lower their magnesium levels.

In fact, many patients struggling with:
✅ chronic inflammation
✅ insulin resistance
✅ poor sleep
✅ muscle tension
✅ digestive dysfunction
✅ stress physiology

are actually magnesium deficient.

From an osteopathic perspective, one of the biggest barriers to weight loss is often not calories alone—it is a body trapped in a chronic inflammatory and autonomic stress pattern.

When the gastrointestinal tract becomes inflamed:
• Gut motility changes
• Microbiome signaling changes
• Nutrient absorption changes
• Vagal nerve signaling becomes disrupted
• Systemic inflammation rises

The result is often a body that becomes less adaptable and less responsive to treatment.

This is where magnesium becomes interesting.

Magnesium supports:
🔹 Insulin sensitivity
🔹 Energy production (ATP metabolism)
🔹 Nervous system regulation
🔹 Muscle relaxation
🔹 Gut motility
🔹 Reduction of inflammatory signaling and CRP levels

As osteopathic manual therapists, our goal is not simply weight loss.

Our goal is restoring a physiologic environment where the body can regulate itself more effectively.

In some patients, improving magnesium status may help reduce gut irritation, improve autonomic balance, and improve tissue adaptability—allowing osteopathic manual therapy to work more efficiently because the system is no longer fighting against a chronic inflammatory load.

The future of health is not just about burning fat.

It is about restoring communication between:
🦠 The microbiome
🧠 The brain
🫀 The autonomic nervous system
🍽️ The gastrointestinal tract
⚡ Cellular energy production

Biomechanical.
Bioelectrical.
Biochemical.

That is where true adaptation begins.

Researchers have identified a small-molecule compound that appears to counteract weight gain and metabolic damage in mice exposed to a long-term Western diet.

06/13/2026

🌙 Eating late at night may be doing more than upsetting your sleep.

New research suggests that eating after 9 PM may significantly increase the risk of gastrointestinal symptoms and gut dysfunction. Why? Because your digestive system has its own circadian rhythm. When we eat at times the gut isn't expecting food, digestion, motility, microbial activity, and inflammatory signaling can become disrupted.

As osteopathic manual therapists, we often see the effects of gut dysfunction show up as:
✔️ Abdominal tension
✔️ Bloating
✔️ Reflux
✔️ Constipation
✔️ Rib and diaphragm restrictions
✔️ Increased sympathetic ("fight-or-flight") activity

Visceral mobilization is designed to restore normal mobility and motion of the digestive organs, improve communication through the gut-brain axis, and reduce the mechanical tension that can contribute to chronic irritation and inflammation.

When combined with healthy eating habits, proper meal timing, and lifestyle changes, osteopathic manual therapy can help create a more adaptable and resilient digestive system.

The gut is not just where food is processed—it's one of the body's largest signaling centers, influencing inflammation, immunity, mood, and overall health.

Biomechanical.
Bioelectrical.
Biochemical.

Sometimes better digestion starts with better movement.

Stress and late-night eating may be a powerful one-two punch against your gut.

06/12/2026

One of the most fascinating things about this new microplastics research is NOT simply that kimchi may help remove plastics from the body…
It’s that the microbiome may actively influence what toxins stay in the body — and what gets eliminated.
Researchers identified a kimchi-derived bacterium (Leuconostoc mesenteroides CBA3656) that was able to bind nanoplastics inside the intestine and help carry them out of the body. In simulated intestinal conditions, the strain maintained significantly stronger binding ability than comparison bacteria.
Why should manual therapists care?
Because microplastics are increasingly being linked to:
• vascular dysfunction
• inflammatory signaling
• oxidative stress
• endocrine disruption
• neurologic concerns
• gut barrier dysfunction
• altered immune behavior
And importantly…
The body’s ability to tolerate or eliminate toxic load may depend heavily on:
• gut health
• lymphatic flow
• autonomic regulation
• circulation
• diaphragmatic mechanics
• inflammatory resilience
That should immediately make manual therapists think about:
• vagal tone
• gut-brain signaling
• thoracoabdominal pressure systems
• lymphatic drainage
• interstitial fluid movement
• mechanotransduction
• tissue adaptability
Because clinically, patients with chronic inflammatory overload often present with:
• brain fog
• fatigue
• dense fascia
• poor recovery
• chronic headaches
• exercise intolerance
• autonomic dysregulation
• “stagnant” tissue quality
Actionable considerations for manual therapists:
1️⃣ Improve diaphragmatic excursion
The diaphragm is one of the body’s major fluid pumps for:
• venous return
• lymphatic movement
• abdominal pressure regulation
• autonomic balance
2️⃣ Respect the gut as a signaling organ
Gut dysfunction may influence:
• inflammation
• pain sensitivity
• recovery physiology
• autonomic state
3️⃣ Improve thoracic and rib cage mobility
Rigid thoraxes impair pressure variability and fluid exchange.
4️⃣ Encourage movement variability
Movement helps regulate:
• circulation
• lymphatic flow
• endothelial signaling
• mitochondrial function
5️⃣ Ask about environmental load
Patients with high processed-food intake, bottled-water dependence, poor sleep, and sedentary behavior may have reduced physiologic resilience.
6️⃣ Think “clearance systems”
The body survives by continuously:
• filtering
• transporting
• adapting
• repairing
• eliminating waste
One fascinating implication of this study is that:
certain fermented foods may influence the body’s toxic-load handling capacity through microbiome signaling. ()
That is systems biology.
The body does not separate:
• metabolism
• immunity
• circulation
• neurology
• microbiome behavior
• mechanics
These are deeply interconnected adaptive systems.
Manual therapy does NOT “remove microplastics.”
But it absolutely interacts with:
• circulation
• autonomic regulation
• fluid dynamics
• tissue adaptability
• recovery physiology
And increasingly, the science suggests that environment matters at every level.

Researchers found that a bacterium from kimchi can bind and help expel nanoplastics from the body, showing promise as a probiotic approach to reducing plastic accumulation.

06/11/2026

Your body is not a collection of separate parts.
Your nerves, circulation, lymphatics, muscles, fascia, and organs constantly communicate with each other.

Research continues to show that osteopathic manual therapy may help improve pain, mobility, breathing, circulation, nervous system balance, and recovery by improving how the body moves and regulates itself.

That’s why osteopathic treatment often focuses on:
• diaphragm motion
• rib and spinal mobility
• lymphatic drainage
• fascial tension
• autonomic balance

Because better movement can create better physiology.


https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12322333/

06/10/2026

Your body is designed to heal.
But healing depends on movement, circulation, nerve function, and fluid flow working together.

Research continues to show that osteopathic manual therapy may help improve:
• pain
• mobility
• circulation
• inflammation
• breathing
• nervous system regulation

That’s why osteopathic treatment doesn’t just focus on where it hurts.

We look at:
• diaphragm motion
• spinal and rib mobility
• lymphatic drainage
• fascial tension
• autonomic balance

Because tight tissues, poor breathing, and restricted movement can change how the entire body functions.

Better movement can create better physiology.


https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8343702/

06/09/2026

Why We Release the Diaphragm & Psoas Together 🫁👐

Did you know your main breathing muscle (the diaphragm) and your primary hip flexor (the psoas) are physically connected? 🧬👇They interlace at a fascinating anatomical junction called the medial arcuate ligament. When you experience chronic stress, shallow breathing, or prolonged sitting, both muscles tend to lock up together. This dual restriction can trigger stubborn lower back aches, tight hips, and even a restricted breathing pattern. At Pursuit Physical Therapy, we don't just chase where it hurts. We look at the full, interconnected picture. By performing an integrative manual release on both the diaphragm and the psoas, we help restore full mobility, optimize your breathing mechanics, and relieve deep seated core tension. 🧠🌿Ready to experience manual therapy that treats the root-cause and kickstarts your recovery? 🔗 Click the link in our bio to book your 1-on-1 evaluation with our team!