Blog 4: Chiropractic for Endurance Athletes:

Learn About Diversified, Evidence-Based, and Athlete-Focused Chiropractic Care

Part 4 — The Athlete’s Care Team: Why Collaboration is Key!

In Part 3, we talked about how I treat athletes and why diversified chiropractic is more than just adjustments — it’s assessment, soft tissue work, movement, load management, and a collaborative plan that respects the athlete’s goals.

But here’s the thing most non-athletes don’t realize: athlete care doesn’t need to happen in isolation.

Even the healthiest, most resilient athlete still has a team, whether that team is formal, informal, or somewhere in between.

Chiropractic Is One Piece — Not the Whole Puzzle

As a chiropractor who works with many different types of endurance athletes, I’m not trying to replace physiotherapy, athletic therapy, massage, naturopathy, osteopathy, strength coaching, bike fitting, sport medicine, or primary care.

We all have different training, different tools, different lenses, and different strengths — and that’s exactly why athletes thrive when we communicate and work together as a team with them at the centre of it all!

A few simple examples:

• A strength coach can load you better than I can.

• A bike fitter can fix knee pain I can only temporarily help.

• A sports physician can order imaging I need for differential diagnosis.

• A nutritionist can optimize fuelling that reduces injury risk.

• An AT or physio may take point during acute rehabilitation and return-to-play protocols.

• A naturopath may help address sleep, stress, gut, or hormone issues that affect recovery.

• A massage therapist can provide dedicated tissue work between training cycles.

And collectively, we all move you toward the same goal: keeping you doing the sport you love, at the level you want, with less chance of injury and a stronger chance at longevity.

Why Collaboration Matters (Especially in Sport)

Athletes are complex systems. Injury rarely comes from a single cause.

It’s often a blend of:

→ tissue load

→ biomechanics

→ volume

→ intensity

→ surface

→ fuel

→ hormones

→ equipment

→ sleep

→ stress

→ environment

→ coaching decisions

→ recovery capacity

So expecting one clinician to manage every piece alone isn’t just unrealistic — it’s limiting. Working together isn’t a sign of weakness, it’s a sign of clinical maturity.

My Role on the Team

As a CMCC-trained, diversified chiropractor and endurance coach, my lane is:

✔ biomechanics & movement

✔ soft tissue & joint mechanics

✔ training load & performance

✔ injury rehab & prevention

✔ return-to-sport planning

✔ your cheerleader!

My lens is musculoskeletal + functional + performance-based. I’m trained to diagnose and treat those systems, and I know when those systems are not the problem or not enough on their own. This is where my referral network becomes an extension of care rather than a dead end.

The Care Team for Endurance Athletes Can Include:

Depending on the athlete, injury, or performance goal, collaboration often involves:

• Physiotherapists

• Athletic Therapists

• Massage Therapists

• Naturopathic Doctors

• Osteopathic Practitioners

• Acupuncturists

• Sports Medicine Physicians

• Orthopedic Surgeons

• Radiologists (for imaging)

• Family Physicians

• Personal Trainers

• Strength Coaches

• Endurance Coaches

• Team Sport Coaches

• Bike Fitters

• Nutritionists

• Yoga & Pilates Instructors

No single profession owns the athlete. We share them — and we’re better for it.

My Dual Lens: Clinician + Athlete + Coach

This part matters because it’s shaped how I practice.

I’m not a clinician who has only viewed injury from the outside. I’ve lived it from the inside:

• Dancer (age 2–16)

• Soccer (age 4–20)

• Running (ongoing over the past 24 years)

• Triathlon (ongoing over the past 14 years)

And yes, I was injured. A lot. It wasn’t until I transitioned from pure running into triathlon, cross-training, plus strength work that my body became more resilient and I stopped being sidelined as often.

This lived experience taught me two things:

• no athlete wants to be told to stop doing their sport

• no single practitioner can solve an athlete alone

It made me practice in a way that respects both sides of the equation.

Collaboration Also Works When Things Don’t Go Perfectly

Athlete care isn’t always linear. Sometimes tissue doesn’t respond how we expect. Sometimes load changes too fast. Sometimes goals shift mid-season.

If what we’re doing isn’t working the way we want, I don’t double down on the same plan just to “make it fit.” We pivot. We pull in other eyes. We get imaging if needed. We refer.

Because the goal is not to keep you on my table — the goal is to keep you in your sport.

Coming Up in Part 5 — The Final Piece: Identity, Longevity, and the Mental Game

Part 5 will bring this full circle, focusing on:

→ the psychology of injury

→ the identity of being an athlete

→ how to train for the long haul

→ how to build a resilient athletic body at any age

→ why movement is medicine (and community is fuel)

This is where we get into the heart of why endurance athletes do what we do — and how healthcare needs to support the whole picture, not just the tissues.

If You’re in the Trenches Right Now…

If you’re currently navigating injury, pain, or performance barriers and you want someone who understands both the clinical side and the athletic side, you don’t have to do it alone.

Start the conversation — whether you’re mid-season, pre-season, or off-season, there’s always a smart place to begin.

📍 Endurance Therapeutics | Oakville, Ontario

📞 905-288-7161 | 🔗 CLICK HERE TO BOOK

Optimizing The Endurance Athlete’s Mind, Body & Performance.