Progressive Rehab® at HealthSource Chiropractic of Roseland pairs your chiropractic adjustments with guided functional exercise. The goal is simple: help you build the strength, balance and control your body uses every day. Dr. Jenna Patel, D.C., evaluates you first, so any exercise in your plan fits your body and your goals.
An adjustment aims to help a stiff joint move better. Exercise then trains the muscles around that joint to support the movement. Together, they may help you move with more ease and confidence. Below, we explain what this care involves, how sessions work and who it may suit.
What functional exercise means
Functional exercise trains the movements you actually use in daily life. Think of standing up from a chair, lifting a bag of groceries, reaching overhead or climbing stairs. Instead of working one muscle on its own, these movements train several muscles to work as a team. As a result, the strength you build may carry over to real tasks at home, at work and in sports.
The word progressive matters too. We start with movements you can do well and with good form. Then, as your strength and control improve, the exercises build step by step. That way, the plan moves at a pace your body can handle.
How Progressive Rehab works with your adjustments
Dr. Patel combines hands-on adjustments, soft tissue work, exercise rehab, and nutrition and lifestyle guidance. She looks for the source of a problem, not only the symptoms. For example, knee pain sometimes connects to how your hip or foot moves. So rather than focus only on the sore spot, she looks at the whole chain of movement.
Dr. Patel has extra training in sports injury rehab and movement analysis. In general, movement analysis means looking at how you squat, bend, step or reach to spot patterns that may add strain. Findings like these can then help shape which exercises go into your plan. You can read more about the adjustments themselves on our chiropractic care page.
How a functional exercise session works
Every plan starts with your first visit to our Roseland office. Here is what to expect from there:
- Your visit includes a health history, a consultation and an exam of your posture, mobility and pain.
- X-rays happen only if they are clinically needed.
- Dr. Patel explains her findings and a personalized care plan before any care starts.
- If exercise fits your plan, we guide you through each movement and watch your form.
- Over time, we update the exercises so they stay challenging but doable.
Guided exercise happens alongside your adjustments, so both parts of your care work toward the same goals. You are welcome to ask questions at any point.
Who it may help
Guided exercise may help people who want to move better and feel steadier during daily tasks. Dr. Patel evaluates each case, but this care may suit:
- Active adults recovering from strains, sprains or overuse, as part of sports injury treatment
- People with stiff or achy joints, including hip and knee pain
- Desk workers along Eisenhower Parkway who feel stiff after long days of sitting
- Anyone with back or neck pain who wants to build more support around the spine
For some sports injuries, we may also use kinesiology taping alongside your exercise plan. For general guidance on staying active, MedlinePlus has a helpful page on exercise and physical fitness.
Is functional exercise right for you?
Functional exercise is not right for every person or every stage of recovery. That is why Dr. Patel evaluates you first and explains her findings before any care starts. Some problems need a medical doctor instead. The NIH also offers a plain overview of what research says about chiropractic.
See a medical doctor or go to the ER first if you have severe pain after a fall or crash, a joint you cannot put weight on, or a hot and swollen joint. The same goes for new numbness or weakness, or loss of bladder or bowel control. This page is for education only and is not a diagnosis.
Getting started
Our office is at 12 Eisenhower Parkway, Suite 1, in the Downtowne At Roseland complex. Ask about our new-patient visit: consultation, exam and X-rays if clinically needed. The offer is for new patients only. It does not apply to Medicare, Medicaid, other federal healthcare program patients or ACN members.
You can book online or call us at (973) 200-2424. Dr. Patel speaks English, Hindi and Gujarati, so you can talk through your goals in any of the three.