Subscribing to professional blogs and vlogs is one of the easiest ways for busy PTs like you to stay up-to-date on all the latest industry news and developments and for your patients to access fabulous health tips. The only problem is that no one has the time to go through all the blogs and vlogs out there.
We’ve taken care of it for you. Using a streamlined process, we researched the sources, including crowdsourcing suggestions from established PT pros, and pulled together a list of the best physical therapy blogs and vlogs. Our choices are based on several criteria points, including engagement, inspirational and unique content, and accurate representation of current research and techniques.
The "Best Physical Therapy Blogs & Vlogs" Categories
- Best Sports PT Blogs
- Best Pediatric PT Blog
- Best Travel PT Blog
- Best Blogs for PT/PTA Students
- Best Blogs for Continuing Education
- Best Blogs for Physical Therapy Business Owners
- Best Physical Therapy Vlogs
- The Best General Occupational Therapy Blogs and Vlogs
It’s time to start reading, learning, and boosting your PT practice!
The Best Sports Physical Therapy Blogs
1. Mike Reinold
- Author/Publisher: Mike Reinold, DPT, ATC, CSCS
- What It Covers: Reinold deep dives into evaluating and treating specific sports injuries, with a strong focus on current research and techniques.
- Areas of Focus:
- Strength and conditioning
- Rehab techniques for foot/ankle, hand/wrist, hip, shoulder, elbow, and spine
- Evidence-based coaching and practice
- Functional rehabilitation
- Performance training
- Injury prevention and strength training for baseball
- Why You’ll Love It: Reinold’s focus on current research and techniques makes for invaluable reading if you’re looking to strengthen your PT practice. And because Reinold regularly shares links to other relevant and helpful PT blogs, you can expand your knowledge without additional searching. If you are wondering about developing a sports physio specialization, Reinold’s extensive sports medicine experience helping baseball athletes may inspire you to research this area of PT further.
2. PT Progress
- Author/Publisher: Tim Fraticelli, DPT, MBA, CFP
- What It Covers: This blog updates every few days, providing advice about the daily challenges PTs face and how to handle them.
- Areas of Focus:
- Documentation
- Pay and reimbursement
- Strength and conditioning
- Career development and education opportunities
- Health updates and new treatment options
- Why You’ll Love It: Not only does PT Progress help patients succeed in all phases of their rehabilitation process, but it also helps PTs understand the business side of things, which can help them expand their practices.
The Best Pediatric Physical Therapy Blog
3. Lauren Baker
- Author/Publisher: Lauren Baker, PT, DPT
- What It Covers: As a pediatric physical therapist, Baker writes about how to deal with children experiencing gross motor skill difficulties that impact their ability to explore the world. She discusses some methods to treat these types of challenges and suggests other resources for parents.
- Areas of Focus:
- PT equipment and tools designed for infants, toddlers, and preschoolers
- Management of plagiocephaly using the Baby Begin method
- Parent resources
- Physical therapist career development guides
- Why You’ll Love It: The blog’s simple and photo-heavy design makes for easy and fun reading. But don’t be fooled into thinking that this friendly design means the blog doesn't offer great tools. Baker’s tips for treating children’s motor issues include equipment and toy recommendations, which could save you significant time and effort. And her posts discussing clinical practice topics of concern for existing and new patients, such as filling out insurance forms, and practice management, effectively model valuable topics for your practice.
The Best Travel Physical Therapy Blog
4. Hobo Health
- Author/Publisher: James Spencer, DPT, OCS, CSCS
- What It Covers: Blogger Spencer and his wife, Kate, are both traveling PTs. This blog includes nuts-and-bolts information on all the aspects of working as a traveling PT and personal stories and adventures.
- Areas of Focus:
- How to get started; everything you need to know about finding work, licensure, contracts, and interviewing
- Professional conferences and educational opportunities to keep on your radar
- Lifestyle insights, including location choices, managing personal relationships from the road, and clinical settings to consider
- Why You’ll Love It: This “been there, still doing that” blog provides a rare combination of personal, anecdotal information and well-researched, comprehensive insights about making it in the field of traveling PT.
The Best Physical Therapy Blog for PT & PTA Students
5. The PT Student
- Author/Publisher: Jennifer Bresnick, PT, DPT
- What It Covers: Bresnick’s blog addresses the needs of current and future PT and PTA students. It also includes a premium service for $9.99 a month, which provides additional learning tools like practice test questions.
- Areas of Focus (in the free version):
- How to pick a career path specific school
- The enrollment process for physical therapy school
- Time management
- Test-taking skills
- Study tips
- What to expect in the classroom and lab
- Internships
- Career development tools
- Why You’ll Love It: The free version of the PT Student blog has a massive amount of well-organized content written in an easy-to-understand format. The free version also includes a student-to-student forum, so you can interact with your peers and ask them questions about everything from pain management, manual therapy, shoulder pain, pain science, and other specific injuries. This helpful advice is invaluable for current students and new grads.
The Best Physical Therapy Blog for Continuing Education
6. Evidence in Motion
- Author/Publisher: Evidence in Motion Staff
- What It Covers: EIM provides post-professional educational programs for PTs. This blog consists primarily of articles and podcasts and strives to bridge the gap between academic and professional life.
- Areas of Focus:
- Industry insights
- Evidence-based practice
- Career development tools
- The latest research
- Why You’ll Love It: The EIM blog features op-ed-style articles on compelling topics of interest for practicing PTs' professional development. It’s a valuable resource for pros in the field who are looking for conference recaps, career-building tips, and business-specific views.
The Best Blog for Physical Therapy Business Owners
7. WebPT Blog
- Author/Publisher: WebPT Staff
- What It Covers: The WebPT blog is a terrific resource for PTs who have businesses or are thinking about taking the plunge. It gets right into the nitty-gritty aspects of business ownership.
- Areas of Focus:
- What to consider before buying an established practice
- Dealing with insurance companies and falling reimbursements
- Medicare, billing, and HIPAA regulations
- Working with doctors
- Metrics and analytics reporting
- Using technology in the studio
- Acquiring new patients
- Patient care
- Documentation resources
- Why You’ll Love It: The WebPT blog breaks down important issues into small, digestible bites for healthcare professionals. The company’s State of Rehab Therapy Report, referenced in multiple blog posts, provides valuable stats on issues directly impacting PTs, such as student debt, patient dropout rates, and profit expectations.
The Best Vlogs for Physical Therapy
8. Physio Fitness | Physio REHAB
- Author/Publisher: Tim Keeley, DPT
- YouTube Channel: Physiotherapy
- What It Covers: This vlog provides one of the best online physio rehabilitation programs, along with mobility exercise instructions, educational videos, and treatment suggestions.
- Areas of Focus:
- Tests to use when assessing for knee effusion
- Techniques to relieve pain in the medial scapula
- Shoulder and rehabilitation exercises
- Injury prevention
- Dry needling for neck and trap muscles
- Daily home workout for physical activity
- Why You’ll Love It: From uploading the most up-to-date physiotherapy and physical exercise videos to providing posture tips and recorded seminars at least twice per week, this vlog gives you lots and lots to learn. Keeley’s varied content and frequent postings demonstrate a commitment to the profession that will likely inspire you in your current and future practice.
9. The Physical Therapy Advisor
- Author/publisher: Ben Shatto, PT, DPT, OCS, CSCS
- YouTube Channel: @ThePhysicalTherapy Advisor
- What It Covers: Shatto is a board-certified orthopedic certified specialist in physical therapy and a certified strength and conditioning specialist who focuses on helping people learn how to self-treat their orthopedic or chronic mobility-related conditions.
- Areas of Focus:
- Musculoskeletal injuries
- Neurological disorders
- Chronic health conditions
- Arthritis pain
- Mobility-related conditions
- Why You'll Love it: Everything from foot pain to hip impingement treatment is covered in the videos. Shatto's private practice is focused on patient outcomes and has a presence across all social media platforms.
The Best General Occupational Therapy Blogs & Vlogs
10. React Physical Therapy
- Author/Publisher: React PT staff
- What It Covers: This is one of the physical therapy websites providing advice for all physical therapy services and areas of the human body. The amount of information on this health blog is immense, covering everything from neck pain, knee injuries, knee pain, tennis elbow, joint injuries, low back pain, and pain-free daily living.
- Areas of Focus:
- Pelvic health
- Active lifestyle tips
- Injury prevention
- Healthy habits for the average person
- Multiple body systems
- Musculoskeletal injuries
- Sports like golf, running, and cycling
- Women's health
- Why You'll Love It: This physical therapy office provides incredible home health information and insights into the overall health of almost every area of the body.
11. Athletico Health Resources
- Author/Publisher: Various
- What It Covers: Athletico physical therapy's blog covers general health issues that impact the average person, with subjects ranging from pickleball injuries to overall well-being, making work with rehab professionals part of annual wellness, and a weekly fantasy football injury report. At the end of the day, this is a great blog for your patients to learn about common PT issues and tell them why they need to see a PT professional.
- Areas of Focus:
- Acute or chronic pain
- Arthritis pain
- Running injuries
- Sciatica pain
- Sports therapy
- Why You'll Love It: This is a great general blog on various issues that impact your clients. Many articles target people leading an active lifestyle and inform them when they need to seek a PT specialist.
12. OSR Physical Therapy
- Author/Publisher: Various
- What It Covers: Articles on this general therapy blog run the gamut from dry needling to soft tissue mobilization therapy, muscle therapy, acute care, and healthy habits.
- Areas of Focus:
- Muscle strains
- Rotator cuffs
- Basic functionalities
- The healing process
- Decompression therapy
- Neck pain
- Working core muscles
- Acute or chronic pain
- New and fun motor activities
- Why You'll Love It: With many blog articles focused on pain and healthy lifestyles, patients learn how to adopt healthy habits to make them healthier and stronger. They will learn at-home exercises, specific conditions that can cause trauma, and how to develop core muscles.
Final Thoughts
No matter where you are in your career, there’s always more to learn. As a PT, you’re in a great position to benefit from the knowledge and insights your peers possess by reading their well-informed blogs and vlogs. The more you learn and absorb, the better you can serve your current and future patients.
Originally published on May 28, 2019.
Updated by Margarita David, DNP, RN, PCCN April 2022.
Image courtesy of iStock.com/Alina Rosanova