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(Cohort Learning Series Session 1) Simplifying Performance
Rehab Part 4: Managing Workload

Presented by Nate Denning and Phil Plisky

A man in athletic wear sprints on an outdoor track near an empty stadium, with a Cohort Learning logo in the top left corner.

Description

Medbridge Cohort Learning Series: Sports Performance Rehabilitation With Instructors Phil Plisky, PT, DSc, ATC, CSCS, and Nate Denning, PT, DPT, SCS, CSCS, RSCC

This three-month cohort-based program runs from October through December 2026 and is designed to help rehabilitation professionals, including PTs, OTs, ATs, and CSCS-certified specialists, build, apply, and advance their sports performance rehabilitation knowledge with confidence. The program combines seven on-demand courses with three live mentorship webinars, offering structure, accountability, and real-world clinical application. Participants complete on-demand coursework, submit questions ahead of each webinar, and then join monthly mentorship webinars with instructors Phil Plisky and Nate Denning.

The on-demand coursework follows four athletes in their recovery journey, from a baseball player after ulnar collateral ligament repair to a basketball player with a lateral ankle sprain, walking through the phases of healing across all six domains of performance: movement, strength, power, speed, agility, and metabolic conditioning.

Live Mentorship Webinar Dates

Session 1: (Wednesday, October 21, 2026: 7–8 p.m. ET) Managing Workload

Session 2: (Wednesday, November 18, 2026: 7–8 p.m. ET) Sport-Specific Progressions

Session 3: (Wednesday, December 9, 2026: 7–8 p.m. ET) Putting It All Together

By registering for Session 1, you are enrolling in the full three-month program and will be automatically registered for all three webinar sessions. Recordings will be available after each live event for your review.

Webinar Session 1 Details: Managing Workload

Progressing an injured athlete back into performance and sport can be challenging. This introductory webinar addresses this industry gap by providing rehabilitation providers and strength and conditioning specialists with a simplified, data-driven approach to workload dosing and rehab programming. Participants will learn how to break down load into external metrics (such as reps, sets, and practices) and internal stressors (such as sleep, diet, and stress). The course highlights how to calculate the acute:chronic workload ratio (ACWR) to target the optimal 0.8–1.2 injury-prevention "sweet spot". Additionally, we will dissect critical detraining timelines: examining how a two-week versus a three-month layoff systematically degrades VO2 max, muscle mass, and power output. These interventions are mapped directly against the five phases of healing and tissue-specific recovery durations to ensure practitioners know exactly what to protect and what to program.

Prior to this webinar, please be sure to complete these three courses:

Simplifying Performance Rehab Part 1: A Case-Based Series

Simplifying Performance Rehab Part 2: Movement, Strength, and Power

Simplifying Performance Rehab Part 3: Speed, Agility, and Metabolic Training

Instructors

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Nate Denning, PT, DPT, SCS, CSCS, RSCC

Dr. Nathan Denning is the founder of Integrated Performance and a partner at Athlete Development Solutions. His mission is to revolutionize human performance and rehabilitation through the integration of physical, mental, and educational support. Nate believes that peak performance—whether for an athlete or a clinician—is the…

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Phil Plisky, PT, DSc, ATC, CSCS

Dr. Phil Plisky is a professor in the University of Evansville’s Doctor of Physical Therapy and PhD in Health Professions Education programs. He is the host of the Medbridge Rehab and Performance Lab podcast and founder of the Coaches Club at

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Learning Objectives

  • Differentiate between internal and external sources of athlete workload within a sports rehabilitation program
  • Identify the metrics for acute workload and chronic workload to pinpoint the injury risk “sweet spot” using the acute:chronic workload ratio (ACWR)
  • Compare the physiological impacts of detraining at two-week versus three-month thresholds and their effects on an individual's return to leisure sports and active recreation
  • Group upper- and lower-body exercise patterns according to early power-training dosage guidelines to support structured physical activity routines
  • Outline the five distinct phases of tissue healing to guide progressive rehabilitation programming after an athletic injury

Agenda

All times in Eastern Time.

7:00pm–7:15pm
Workload Foundations and The ACWR
7:15pm–7:30pm
Detraining Realities and Post-Op Strength and Power
7:30pm–8:00pm
Live Q&A Session
Medbridge is committed to accessibility for all of our subscribers. If you are in need of a disability-related accommodation, please contact [email protected] . We will process requests for reasonable accommodation and will provide reasonable accommodations where appropriate, in a prompt and efficient manner.

Details

  • October 21, 2026
  • 7:00pm-8:00pm EDT
    • PTs/PTAs, Introductory
    • OTs/OTAs, Introductory
    • ATs, Essential
  • Register soon to secure your spot!

* Available October 21

Disclaimer

Disclosure: Phil Plisky, instructor for this educational event, receives compensation from Medbridge for this course. No one with the ability to control content has relevant relationship(s) to disclose.

Disclosure: Nate Denning, instructor for this educational event, receives compensation from Medbridge for this course. No one with the ability to control content has relevant relationship(s) to disclose.

Accreditation

Requirements

To receive CEU credit all disciplines must attend the webinar for the full duration, complete the quiz with a minimum score of 70%, and complete the participant survey.

"Live" CEUs

Even if this webinar is accredited for your discipline and location, it may not count as a “Live” CEU. of governing bodies that count our accredited webinars as “Live” CEUs.

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How to Prepare