Blog 3: Chiropractic for Endurance Athletes:
Learn About Diversified, Evidence-Based, and Athlete-Focused Chiropractic Care
Part 3 — So… What Does Treatment Actually Look Like?
In Part 1 and Part 2, we unpacked what CMCC-trained chiropractors are educated in, why diversified technique is different from subluxation-based care, and how evidence-based chiropractic fits into modern healthcare. But that naturally leads to the most common question I get:
“Okay, but what does treatment actually look like for an athlete?”
Let’s talk about that.
Step 1: Assessment — Not Just Poking Where It Hurts
When you’re an athlete (whether you’re a runner, a triathlete, a hockey player, a soccer player, or someone cycling their way through Southern Ontario every weekend), the source of pain is rarely the same as the symptom. So we start with the bigger picture:
✔ injury history
✔ training volume + load
✔ biomechanics + movement patterns (gait analysis if needed)
✔ tissue capacity
✔ strength + mobility balance
✔ recovery habits (the sneaky one athletes love to skip)
Because here’s the truth: most athlete injuries are less about catastrophic trauma and more about accumulated stress + load mismatch. I have noticed over the years that Endurance athletes especially are extremely good at ignoring small whispers until they become screams. (Ask me how I know.)
Step 2: Treatment — More Than Just Adjustments
This is where diversified chiropractic shines. Treatments are not one-size-fits-all and they definitely aren’t that you will get the same 5 adjustments every visit. Depending on what your body needs, treatment may include:
✓ Soft Tissue Therapy
Muscle, tendon, fascia, and periarticular tissue work
Addressing tone, adhesions, trigger points, or mechanical overload
Runners and triathletes especially live in “overuse world,” so tendons and soft tissues often need just as much love as joints.
✓ Joint Work
Mobilizations and/or adjustments to restore motion (adjustments are only for patients who are comfortable with them)
Improving joint mechanics to reduce stress downstream
✓ Functional Movement + Rehab
This is where the lasting change happens. Things we might work on:
Movement pattern corrections
Gait or stride cues
Strength programming
Stability/loading progressions
Return-to-train planning
This is the part that often answers the question:
“Why does this keep happening?”
Because if your knee pain is coming from your ankle mobility or hip strength… cracking your knee won’t fix that.
Step 3: Coaching the Load (Quietly the Most Underrated Part)
As an endurance coach and lifelong athlete myself, I take training load seriously because it can make or break both injury recovery and performance. We’ll look at:
History in sport
Current training blocks
Race calendar
Intensity distribution
Surface or terrain
Shoes, bike fit, and equipment variables
Recovery capacity (sleep, stress, fuel)
This matters because many athletes simply don’t have a pain problem — they have a load management problem. Sometimes the solution isn’t “stop running/cycling/skating”… it’s adjust how you’re doing it. A lot of endurance athletes that I see are doing waaaay too much, too fast.
Step 4: Treatment Planning — With You, Not At You
One of the biggest misconceptions about chiropractic is the whole “we crack your neck and send you on a 3x/week plan forever” situation.
I am here to tell you: This is not true with Diversified Chiropractic
Treatment plans are collaborative and individualized based on:
Your sport
Your training goals
Your timeline (off-season vs. race season vs. playoffs)
Your injury history
Your preferences
And here’s a key part I take seriously:
If something feels uncomfortable or not right for your body, we don’t do it.
Period.
This is a team effort — you bring your lived experience, I bring the assessment & clinical tools.
Step 5: Safety & Trust Matter (Especially With the Neck Conversation)
Let’s quickly address the elephant in the room because it comes up:
“Don’t chiropractors snap necks and kill people?”
The short answer: no.
The longer answer: CMCC doctors are trained to assess red flags and risk before any treatment is performed. If something is not indicated, not safe, or not aligned with patient comfort, it simply doesn’t happen. Athletes need clinicians they can trust — and that includes feeling safe in the clinic. No matter your health history it is safe to come to us. We will adjust our treatment to be safe for any background.
So Why Do Athletes Come Here?
Athletes come to Endurance Therapeutics because I get what it’s like to:
✔ Be sidelined by injury
✔ Lose your identity when you can’t train
✔ Be told to “just stop running” (when that’s the last thing you’re going to do)
✔ Chase big goals with a body that needs guidance along the way
My background as a lifelong endurance athlete, varsity runner, triathlete (making it to Age Group Worlds 2x and not go due to injury), and coach shapes how I see your body, your goals, and your sport — from the inside.
Coming Up in Part 4
Next up, we’re talking the performance ecosystem:
➡ How I collaborate as a team with physio, AT, massage, naturopath, or sport med and so on
➡ Why coaches, trainers, clinicians, and doctors shouldn’t compete — they all have their scope and should work as a team for you
➡ How athletes perform better when their care team talks to each other
Spoiler: nobody wins alone.
Want to train pain-free?
If you’re an athlete training through pain, coming back from injury, or prepping for your next season or race, you don’t have to figure it out solo. Book an appointment, ask a question, or start the convo — your season will thank you!
📍 Endurance Therapeutics | Oakville, Ontario
📞 905-288-7161 | 🔗 CLICK HERE TO BOOK
Optimizing The Endurance Athlete’s Mind, Body & Performance.