No matter the age and experience level, and whatever the sport, the DMC Sports Performance Academy can help athletes train to achieve their personal goals – the healthy way.
“We want our athleticism to make our lives healthier and fitter,” explains the program’s director, Laura Ramus, PT, ATC. Yet, she adds, “so many times we’re getting into exercise programs and we end up hurting ourselves and it’s not a healthy situation.”
That’s where a unique and specialized program like the DMC Sports Performance Academy can make all the difference. Specialists at the academy take into account the whole athlete before training begins, starting with what Ramus calls a “nose to toes” assessment. Otherwise known as the Functional Movement Screening, it is part of what sets the program apart from other, more general performance training programs. An athlete’s schedule here is based on their body, abilities and challenges, as well as what they’re looking to achieve.
Certified athletic trainers and physical therapists with a wide range of expertise, including Ramus, work with athletes based on their sport and even gender. And because they’re teamed up with the DMC, the Sports Performance Academy has access to orthopedic surgeons, concussion programming, nutritionists and sports psychologists. “We really pride ourselves on being affiliated with a medical center,” Ramus notes, since they’ve got access to the physicians who take care of the Detroit Red Wings, Pistons and Tigers as well.
Training is just one aspect of what the Sports Performance Academy can do. The program focuses on injury recovery, too, with its Return to Play program, which takes place at many physical therapy sites throughout southeast Michigan. This bridges the gap between therapy and actually returning to the sport, Ramus says.
The DMC Sports Performance Academy’s overarching objective is education, which is not only about proper conditioning, but also the importance of nutrition, adequate recovery time and injury prevention. That includes evaluating eating habits, understanding what nutrients are needed and when and how to properly hydrate.
“It’s not about just becoming stronger,” says Ramus. “It’s becoming stronger the right way.”
For more information on the DMC Sports Performance Academy and to get your child scheduled for an assessment, visit sports.dmc.org or call 313-910-9328.
