The Confident Body Show

You’ve navigated the excesses of Christmas and the new year, but you haven't yet got back into the swing of regular exercise. Motivation can be a challenge after having time off, especially if you aren’t yet back into your normal routine. Fear not! The Confident Body Podcast is here to help you get back to doing the things you love.

In this episode, Michael is joined by Adriane Ward, senior exercise physiologist at MD Health, t...

2023 is the year of the confident body! Having confidence in your body means you’re able to overcome age, injury and a sedentary lifestyle and get back to doing the things you love. This is especially important for over 50’s.

In this episode, Michael is joined by Josh Blenclowe, an Osteopath at MD Health Carlton North, to explore how you can gain confidence in your body in 2023 and avoid the barriers that hold most people back.

Eve...

This week, Michael is joined by Hanah Mills, Accredited Dietitian at Ideal Nutrition, to discuss the vital role of nutrition in getting your body right. 

As the title of this episode suggests, nutrition is the missing link in getting more out of your body. It plays a critical role in general wellbeing on both a physical and psychological level. 

While many of us don’t think about nutrition beyond losing weight, getting the balance ...

This week, Michael is joined by Nicole Davies, Senior Accredited Exercise Physiologist with MD Health, to discuss the benefits of clinical pilates regardless of age, injury or chronic pain. 

The key difference between clinical pilates and broader or group exercises is the tailored nature to your needs, goals and stage of recovery. While some exercise is (usually) better than none, there are significant advantages to seeing a health...

David Smith from Absolute Health and Performance joins Michael for another discussion around gaining confidence in your body so you can keep doing the things you love.

This episode delves into whether habits or goals are more impotant for exercise success. Setting achievable goals and engaging in consistent effort enables you to embed positive habits – which is the key to achieving sustainable health outcomes.

Michael and David sha...

This week, Michael Dermanski is joined by physiotherapist Justine Gorman to look at the benefits of exercise while pregnant. 

Just like for the general population, the heart and respiratory benefits of exercising while pregnant make it a highly beneficial activity. There are also many specific benefits achieved by exercising while pregnant, including reducing the risk of developing gestational diabetes, high blood pressure and pre-...

Michael Dermansky is joined by special guest Judy Czuchnowski, a recent client of MD Health who has experienced chronic back pain for many years. As she got older and life got in the way of regular exercise, her pain reached a point where, despite strong medication, she didn’t think she could go on.

Following on from last episode (#11: Is back pain stopping you from getting the best out of your life?), episode 12 focuses on Judy’s ...

This episode, Michael Dermansky is joined by Nick Adkins, an exercise physiologist at MD Health, to discuss the impact of back pain on exercise, wellness and mental health.

With 80% of people experiencing back pain in their lives, it’s a widespread problem that can strike any age group or fitness level. The good news is there are ways to manage and even overcome back pain so you can continue to exercise and improve your overall wel...

This episode, Michael Dermansky is joined by David Smith, an exercise scientist and strength conditioning coach from Absolute Health and Performance, to discuss how to stay fit in your thirties and forties so you can get the most out of your body – both in the short and long term.

David and Michael explore the most important elements of an exercise program in your thirties and forties, the vital role of strength training, why you s...

In this episode, Michael Dermansky is joined by Duncan McGregor to share a client’s journey of building confidence in your body after 50.

After a shoulder injury, Duncan has continued to work with MD Health to overcome injury and maintain his mobility and general health. At 74 he still plays squash every week as well as maintaining a regular exercise and pilates program. 

Duncan shares the many physical and mental benefits he’s fou...

This week, Andrew Wild from Wild Physio Fitness joins Michael Dermansky to explore the different benefits of strength training and cardio training so you can make an informed decision around which is right for you.

Andrew is a physiotherapist as well as a strength and conditioning coach who has merged the two fields to become a hybrid therapist. The discussion covers the many (surprising) benefits of strength training, and the reco...

In this special edition of The Confident Body, Michael Dermansky is joined by senior physiotherapist Will Ryan and special guest Natalie Hall who shares a patient's perspective of coming back from injury. (And if you listen closely, you’ll hear our extra-special guest for the episode: Natalie’s dog!)

Natalie, who has a dance background, is a long-term client of MD Health who had a healthy and active life interrupted by injury. ...

This week, exercise physiologist Zac Jefcoate joins Michael Dermansky to discuss the vital link between exercise and mental health.

For many people, the mental and physical aspects of recovering from injury are intertwined. To achieve the best health outcome you need to look at both components together. Exercise is not just important in terms of recovery from physical injuries; it is proven to boost mood, cognition and overall ment...

This week, Kristine Gardner shares her personal journey of getting more movement into her body to overcome the injuries that were holding her back. 

A health and wellness coach, naturopath and trainer in her 50’s, Kristine knew she wasn't moving enough despite her busy and active lifestyle, and as a result she experienced niggling pain throughout her body. 

Kristine joins Michael Dermansky to discuss her experience of building ...

Senior exercise physiologist Nick Adkins joins Michael Dermansky to discuss the wide-ranging and often surprising ways in which strength training can give you the confidence to do the things you love. 

This episode explores why strength is the foundation of building body confidence. Strength training provides many physical, metabolic and psychological benefits for people of any age, and plays an important role in injury recovery. T...

This episode, Dean Daskalou and Michael Dermansky discuss how clinical exercise, Pilates and treatment fit together. 

Stability and control come from clinical exercise and pilates, which is very specific to the person's injury and to their particular weaknesses. Once they feel more confident in their own ability, we can use strength and conditioning work to address their weaknesses by gradually loading up their muscles in a con...

Episode 1 of The Confident Body Show explored the process of building a confident body. In episode 2, Michael Dermansky (senior physiotherapist and managing director of MD Health) and Nicole Davis (senior exercise physiologist and branch manager at MD Health Templestowe) discuss the importance of initial and ongoing assessments.  Ultimately, ongoing assessments ensure the practitioner stays focused on helping the client to achieve ...

One of the most significant changes in treating injuries over the last few years is the use of strength training. Gradually incorporating strength training is arguably the key to gaining confidence in your body – and getting your life back. We see this time and again with patients, and the research backs it up. Importantly, age is not a barrier to strength work – in fact it becomes more important as you get older. In the first epis...