I live in West Des Moines, and my clinic is just west of it in Waukee. If you train hard and want to keep training while you fix what hurts, this is the kind of care I built the clinic for.
Free ConsultationFortitude & Freedom Performance Therapy is a physical therapy clinic at 1040 SE Frontier Ave, Suite 120, in Waukee, inside Sisu Strength Academy, about 10 to 20 minutes from West Des Moines, depending on your side of town. Jake Pawol, PT, DPT, OCS treats back pain, knee and hip pain, shoulder pain, running injuries, and lifting injuries one on one, in a fully equipped gym, with a plan that keeps you training where it can. Iowa allows direct access, so no physician referral is required.
The clinic is at 1040 SE Frontier Ave, Suite 120, in Waukee, inside Sisu Strength Academy. From the west side of West Des Moines it's a short drive. From the east side, plan on about 20 minutes on University Avenue or I-80.
I live in West Des Moines with my wife and our four kids, so I know the drive well. The clinic is a fully equipped gym, with room to test the movements that hurt.
From deadlift back pain to marathon knees, these are the problems I see most.
Back pain is the most common reason people book with me. Most of it is not damage. It is a back that got more load than it was ready for, and it calms down when the load fits again.
We find the movements that bother it, keep the ones that don't, and build the strength back so you stay in the gym while it settles.
I'm a lifter, so I treat lifters under the bar. Back pain after deadlifts, knee pain in the squat, and shoulder pain on the bench all get tested with the lift itself.
The goal is to keep you lifting while we fix it, with a plan you can run in your own gym.
Runner's knee, shin splints, Achilles pain, and IT band pain. Most running injuries start after a change in training: more miles, more speed, or more hills than the tissue was ready for.
I watch you run, test the calf and the hip, and change your runs instead of cancelling them where I can.
Knees that ache on stairs, squats, or the back half of a run. Hips that pinch at the bottom of a squat. These usually trace back to how much load the joint sees and how strong the muscles around it are.
I test you under load, not only on a table, then build a plan that keeps you training while the strength comes up.
Dry needling can calm a sore, guarded muscle down fast, which gives us a window to load it. I use it for back, neck, shoulder, hip, and knee pain when it fits.
It is one tool in the session, never the whole session. The strength work is what makes the change last.
The drive from West Des Moines gets you a full one-on-one session with me, in a gym with the equipment to test what we're talking about.
We start with what you do and what changed before the pain started. Then I test strength, range, and the movements that bother you.
You leave knowing what's driving the pain, what to keep doing, and what to change for now.
Manual therapy and dry needling are used when they calm a sore area down enough to load it. They are never the whole session.
You get a plan for your training week, not only a list of exercises. We change it as the numbers improve.
What every visit includes, wherever you drive in from.
How I evaluate an athlete on day one.
Read MoreHow it works and what to expect.
Read MoreHow to build the miles without getting hurt.
Read MoreWhat orthopedic physical therapy is, and when you don't need a referral.
Read MoreThe clinic is at 1040 SE Frontier Ave, Suite 120, in Waukee. That's about 10 to 20 minutes from West Des Moines, depending on your side of town. From the east side, University Avenue and I-80 both get you there.
No. Iowa has had unrestricted direct access to physical therapy since 1988. You can book without seeing a physician first.
In many cases, yes. Fortitude & Freedom is a hybrid practice. We accept Blue Cross Blue Shield and TRICARE, and we offer a cash option for everyone else. Our team will confirm your coverage before you book anything.
Usually not. Most injuries tolerate some training, and finding that level is part of the first session. I would rather change your workouts than cancel them.
Me, Jake Pawol, PT, DPT, OCS. I'm a Board-Certified Orthopedic Clinical Specialist, and every session is one on one for the full visit.
This content is for general education and is not medical advice. It does not replace an evaluation by a licensed clinician, and reading it does not create a patient relationship. Talk to a qualified health professional about your own symptoms before you act on anything here. If you have severe, sudden, or worsening symptoms, seek medical care right away.
Book a discovery call and tell me what's going on. We'll figure out if I'm the right fit, then get you on the schedule.
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