Myself and Lorna Wilson from  Wilson’s Workouts decided to do a workshop for ATAC . It was our first workshop together so we were looking forward to seeing how it was going to be received.

The members of ATAC are very passionate athletes. They are keen cyclists and triathletes so they are no strangers to training hard and receiving the occasional injury. Our aim in the workshop was to reinforce their knowledge and confidence regarding injury prevention, management and recovery and hopefully teach them one or two new things in the process too. In addition we were introducing the group to Biomechanics Coaching.

One area I placed emphasis was strength training. There is no question these athletes work hard on their fitness and techniques but sometimes strength training is set aside and not included in the regular training programme. This seemed to be the tip of the evening that people got from me.

Everybody was really interested in Lorna’s biomechanics part of the workshop as Biomechanics Coaching is new to people. This was the practical aspect of the workshop involving people getting on the floor and learning about their bodies (which is always an eye opener!) as Lorna went through some of her screening processes.

We received some really positive feedback during and at the end of the workshop. The group were interactive throughout and it was great to have questions and hear personal experiences, adding to the depth of knowledge and information shared.

We hope everyone took away something new and positive from the workshop. One ATAC member training for an Iron Man has even blogged about it! Lorna and I are looking forward to working together in the future on other workshops and with specific clients.

So it’s been two months now since my first PhysioMatters client walked through the door and the practice is gradually growing with a steady stream of new and returning clients. It continues to be a steep learning curve but all in the best, most positive way!

I feel there are two key reasons for PhysioMatters success so far:
I always want to do the best for my clients, ensuring they are receiving the most up to date, evidence based treatments. This drive keeps me very busy as I constantly read the latest research articles. There is so much information out there, it takes time to sift through it all and decide what is and isn’t relevant. It is always good to question your own methods of treatment as it ensures that you are being effective.
In addition to my desire for doing the very best for my clients I’ve been very lucky on my location. Being based at the Expat Medical Centre means I am easily accessible to expats in Amsterdam. The Expat Medical Centre is founded as part of the service created to facilitate medical care for tourists and expats in the Netherlands. The centre has dedicated, internationally orientated health professionals, which is so beneficial and helpful to expats and tourists who find it difficult to get their heads around the Dutch health system. My availability in the evenings is receiving very positive feedback, as I am available outside my clients working hours.
One area I am excited about developing is working with other professionals, including Lorna Wilson from Wilsons Workouts. Lorna is a Personal Trainer and Biomechanics Coach (one of only two in the Netherlands). We are working closely together with specific clients to ensure they meet their optimum physical abilities. It has been a very valuable experience working together and I am eager to progress this aspect of client care further in 2015. This will start with a workshop myself and Lorna are presenting in mid-January for the Amsterdam Triathlon and Cycling Club (ATAC) on “Injury Prevention, Injury Management and Performance”. Details on how the workshop went in my next blog!
The aim for PhysioMatters in 2015 is to see it continue to grow, whilst giving each and every client personalised assessment and treatment. All that is left for me to do is wish you a Merry Christmas and a fun filled New Year!

I was lucky. From the age of about 14 I knew what I wanted to be when I grew up. A physiotherapist. According to my sixth form leaving book the physiotherapist for the England Rugby Union team! Through a lo

t of hard work, sweat and occasional tears both at school and university I realised my dream and became a physiotherapist at the age of 21 in 2003. I have been working as a physiotherapist ever since and remain lucky as I am one of the few people around who can say they truly love (politics and nonsense aside) their job. I am by nature quite a “touchy feely, hands on” person, who enjoys helping people. I also find the human body fascinating and enjoy maintaining my own fitness (so understand its importance), so this job is just perfect for me. As a physiotherapist you can really have an impact on people’s well-being and quality of life. Whether it is the athlete who is desperate to get back to their sport after an injury or the little, frail elderly lady who needs rehab because she can’t answer the door as she can no longer get out of her chair and fears falling over every time she gets up, physiotherapy can have such a positive impact on people’s lives.

This is why for me giving up my full time physiotherapy job in the UK to move to Amsterdam with my husband, to live as an expat has been some of the most exciting but equally frustrating (and maybe a little scary) times of my life. It has been, on occasion so overwhelming for me regarding getting a job here in Amsterdam as a physiotherapist. To begin

with I just did not know where to start. But I took a deep breath and start I did. Due to the fact that our move occurred pretty quickly it did not give me any time pre move to apply for the appropriate legalities to work in the Netherlands as a physio or even to begin to conquer the language. So I jumped in with both feet and immediately began both these huge tasks upon arrival. I ploughed through the legal forms and worked hard on learning Dutch. Then it was a case of waiting, and waiting and then waiting some more for the legal side to give me a ja or nee to work here (as a physio). It was worth the wait, I got my yes! As you can imagine, desperate to “get my hands on people” the waiting was not easy. On the plus it shows that the Dutch government takes the position of quality of care seriously and doesn’t just give out registrations to work here as a physio willy nilly.

So I got my yes, the next big question was how was I going to go about being a physio in Amsterdam? I had to ask myself where could I add the most value? I came to the conclusion that it would be giving physio treatment to expats in Amsterdam, and so my answer came in the form of my own physiotherapy business PhysioMatters. I am in the position where I can have an impact on a group of people in Amsterdam that perhaps at times struggle with language barriers. I am excited about working here, developing PhysioMatters and seeing where the role takes me.

Hi, and welcome to my website! I’m very excited to be starting working in Amsterdam. I will update the blog with info about what I’m up to. Thanks for reading.

Natalie