Sandra Mortensen, PT.

I am a retired Physical Therapist living in Summit County, Colorado, in the heart of ski country. I was passionate about my profession, helping people overcome pain, injury, or surgery, and assisting people in improving the quality of their physical lives and the ability to keep moving. Now I continue that passion with this book.

In the last years of working full-time in my sports medicine and pain management Physical Therapy practice, I noticed a common thread in the exercises I gave my clients. Their problems varied: joint and muscular issues or pain in general. All benefited in their recovery from similar components to rehabilitation routines.

I also noticed some of my clients, primarily in their 50s, 60s, and 70s, having generally diminished strength, flexibility, and balance, which interfered with their quality of life. Loss of muscle mass, decreased joint mobility, and reduced sense of where we are in space increase as we age. It was upsetting to hear their complaints of fading energy, endurance, loss of strength, and general stiffness, now compounded by their injuries and pain. Today, there is strong evidence that staying active reduces loss of Balance, Flexibility, and Strength in old age.