Our Unique Injury Rehab Process at Optimum Derby: Going Beyond Recovery
At Optimum Derby, we pride ourselves on delivering a results-driven, athlete-centred rehabilitation service that doesn’t just stop when the pain does. While many clinics focus solely on symptom relief, we take our clients through a comprehensive seven-phase process designed to return them to peak performance — and keep them there.
Our method is built on over a decade of experience working with Olympic athletes, professional sports teams, and active individuals who want to get back to doing what they love — stronger, smarter, and more resilient than before.
Phase 1: Recovery
The first priority is managing pain, inflammation, and acute symptoms. During this phase, we focus on protecting the injury, promoting tissue healing, and laying the foundation for progressive loading. Techniques include manual therapy, offloading strategies, and early mobilisation where appropriate. Education and reassurance play a central role — we ensure you understand your injury and what to expect at every step.
Phase 2: Restore
Once the initial symptoms settle, we begin restoring fundamental movement, mobility, and control. This may involve targeted joint mobilisations, soft tissue therapy, and corrective exercises. We identify and address underlying biomechanical or movement dysfunctions that may have contributed to the injury, ensuring we don’t just treat the symptom, but the source.
Phase 3: Rebuild
At this stage, we introduce structured strength work to rebuild the injured tissues and surrounding structures. Using evidence-based loading strategies, we develop strength, endurance, and tolerance to everyday and sport-specific demands. This phase is where many clinics stop — but for us, it’s only the midpoint.
Phase 4: Recondition
With the foundations restored, we focus on physical conditioning. This includes cardiovascular training, muscular endurance, and energy system development specific to your sport or activity. For field-based athletes, we also reintroduce basic agility and movement drills, ensuring a safe transition into more dynamic phases.
Phase 5: Reintegrate
Now, we integrate you back into your sport or activity. This involves advanced drills, skill reintroduction, and reactive tasks that mimic the demands of your chosen discipline. Whether it’s explosive acceleration, landing mechanics, or change of direction, our approach is tailored to what you need to perform confidently and safely.
Phase 6: Return
We don’t guess — we test. Before clearance to return, we use objective performance benchmarks to assess readiness. This might include single leg strength tests, jump metrics, hop testing, or workload monitoring. Only when your data supports a safe and effective return do we move forward.
Phase 7: Remain
What truly sets us apart is our commitment to helping you stay injury-free. Through ongoing performance programming, strength maintenance, remote coaching and education, we empower you to remain at your best. Whether you continue with us in person or via online programming, you’ll receive the guidance and support needed to future-proof your body.
Why Our Process Works
Our phased rehabilitation model isn’t a protocol — it’s a framework tailored to the individual. No two injuries or athletes are the same, and that’s why your plan is specific to you. We blend elite-level performance strategies with a patient-first ethos to deliver outcomes that go beyond pain relief — we rebuild confidence, resilience, and performance.
If you're tired of one-size-fits-all rehab or have experienced setbacks with previous treatments, our approach may be exactly what you need.
Ready to take the next step?
Contact Optimum Derby today and discover how our injury rehabilitation process can get you back doing what you love — and keep you there.