Rausch Physical Therapy & Sports Performance | Staff Spotlight: Lawrence Van Lingen

Staff Spotlight: Lawrence Van Lingen

October 15, 2015 5:13 pm / Category: Staff Spotlight

 

Lawrence Van LingenĀ is the ART specialist at Rausch Physical Therapy & Sport Performance. He’s worked with Red Bull athletes, IRONMAN champions, and he can work with you, too.
Lawrence Van Lingen, ART Specialist for the Pros... and you, too!

Lawrence Van Lingen, ART Specialist for the Pros… and you, too!

When you first walk intoĀ Rausch Physical Therapy & Sports Performance you’ll noticeĀ a wall ofĀ glassĀ to your right. Behind theĀ very last door, emblazoned with the wordsĀ “Clinical ART,” is where Lawrence Van Lingen works.

The room is small with bare walls, save for a few pieces of art, and it only contains a small desk and treatment table. It is… remarkably unremarkable.Ā In fact, if it weren’t for the familiar face of a pro athlete poppingĀ in and out of that room every once in a while, you’d never suspect that the man inside of it was anything other than your average massage therapist.

The truth is, Lawrence is far from average; he’s aĀ well-respected, highly sought after soft tissue therapist and performance consultant. His elite clients travel across the countryā€”some even across the worldā€”to visit his humble office hidden in the cornerĀ ofĀ Rausch PT.

So who exactly is Lawrence Van Lingen, why are professionalĀ athletes traveling from the other side of the globeĀ to comeĀ see him, and mostĀ importantly, how can you get on his schedule, too?

Lawrence’sĀ PastĀ Life

Lawrence working on Josh Bryceland, professional downhill mountain biker and Santa Cruz Syndicate Team Racer, at the World Cup in Scotland this past summer.

Lawrence working on Josh Bryceland, professional downhill mountain biker and Santa Cruz Syndicate Team Racer, at the World Cup in Scotland this past summer.

More than 20 years ago in his home-country ofĀ South Africa, Lawrence was highly involved in triathlon when he decided to become a sports chiropractor. His first clientsĀ were triathletes andĀ his wife Gwen, an Olympic runner. Soon, word began to spread about the man with the magic touch, and Lawrence becameĀ the team chiropractor for a number of professional lifesaving, running, swim and triathlon teams.

It wasn’t until Lawrence himself competed as a professional IRONMAN for two years that hisĀ personal interest in sports performance began to creep intoĀ his chiropractic career. In 2013 Lawrence became High Performance Manager of Red Bull South Africa, working closely with the best professional endurance, adventure extreme sport athletes around.

“Those pro athletes hold you to a very high standard,” Lawrence said. “As soon as you don’t know what you’re doing, they’re gone.”

In this case, it was Lawrence who was gone; at the end of 2013 his wife took a job in the U.S., and Lawrence started his professional life over again as an ART specialist at Rausch Physical Therapy & Sports Performance. Lawrence says the team atmosphere and holistic approach Rausch PT offers its patients is what drew him in.

“I did my homework and knew I wanted to work at Rausch PT, as it’s the premier placeĀ forĀ triathletes,” LawrenceĀ said.Ā “Clients can cohesively moveĀ from physical therapy to ART to Performance Lab services; Ā it’s ideal for me. I can’t work in isolation. I need that support.”

LawrenceĀ at Rausch PT

Lawrence performing a bike fit consultation with professional triathlete Rachel Joyce in May. Rachel came for ART with Lawrence after a serious foot injury; just last week she placed second at IRONMAN World Championship.

Lawrence performing a bike fit consultation with professional triathlete Rachel Joyce in May. Rachel came for ART with Lawrence after a serious foot injury; just last week she placed second at IRONMAN World Championship.

Lawrence still treats professional athletes these days. He works with the Santa Cruz Syndicate, one of the mostĀ well knownĀ professional downhill mountain bike racing teams, and endurance athletes travel from far and wide to get treatment from and consult with him.

“The pros who come see me now aren’t usually in pain, they’re just tired of being injured,” Lawrence said. “They want me to free up whatever’s been restricting their movement with ART not necessarily to relieve pain, but to enhanceĀ performance.Ā Once youĀ take awayĀ that looming fear of gettingĀ injured, they’reĀ free to focus solely on how to use their bodies to go quicker.”

However, Lawrence says that ART isn’t just for elite athletes. In fact, you don’t have to be an athlete at all to hop on his schedule and feel the amazing benefits of soft tissue release.

“People underestimate how powerful ARTĀ can be,” heĀ said. “Tissue adhesions are a silent bully; often you don’t feel it, but they can significantly influenceĀ your posture and patterns. Releasing those adhesions will literally change the way you move.”

Rausch PTĀ physical therapists will oftenĀ refer their patientsĀ to Lawrence if theyĀ have restrictions or soft tissue adhesions that need some extra special attention, and thanks to Rausch PT’s holistic care, Lawrence can refer patients back to physical therapy for continual care. OurĀ athleticĀ patients canĀ take advantage of having access to the pros’ “secret weapon”Ā andĀ call in to get on hisĀ schedule for performance-enhancement purposes.

No matter who you are, how old you are, or what level of activity you’re at, Lawrence Van Lingen is waiting in that little corner officeĀ to help you get some release.

“Having someone like Lawrence on staff just elevates us toĀ a whole other level,” Kevin Rausch, MPT and owner of Rausch Physical Therapy & Sports Performance, said. “To have access to someone with his background andĀ expertise, it’s an incredible opportunity for ourĀ amateur triathletesĀ and cyclists.”

Click here to learn more about ART

To schedule your own ART Session with Lawrence, call us at
(949) 276-5401

 

Book an Appointment!

Want to receive our news?

Stay in the loop with our monthly specials, events, and PT news!