Chiropractic Care
for Athletes
Dr. Bucek is a Board Certified Chiropractic Sports Physician with more than a decade's worth of experience caring for professional and recreational athletes. Furthermore, he has an additional five years of sports medicine training on top of his chiropractic training. He is one of the six Diplomates of the American Chiropractic Board of Sports Physicians™ in Illinois. Dr. Bucek was most recently internationally recognized for his sports medicine work by the International Federation of Sports Chiropractic, as well.
Dr. Bucek has served as a Member of the USOPC Volunteer Sports Medicine Program since 2012 and was on the Minor League Medical Staff for the Arizona Diamondbacks from 2015-2020, caring for their minor league team the Kane County Cougars here in Fox Valley. Locally, he cares for the 2017 and 2021 Clark Cup Champions, the Chicago Steel, at the Fox Valley Ice Arena. Dr. Bucek's focus for his continuous sports medicine coursework the past decade has been primarily in non-contact sports and their common injuries, optimal performance training, and reducing injury recovery time. Below are some examples of Dr. Bucek's qualifications in specific sports (baseball/softball, soccer, running/triathlon, and ect.) and performers (dance, musician , and ect.)
Baseball / Softball
Baseball and Softball players' back and shoulders are under constant strain from throwing and batting. When you think about it--the athletes throw with one side of their body, hit from one side of the plate, and are always running around the bases to the left. This puts further stress on the body; specifically the hips and trunk. Utilizing techniques used at the Major League level, Dr. Bucek is able to get ball players back on the diamond fast. Additionally, every year Dr. Bucek attends the MLB conference were the doctors discuss common injuries, new techniques, cutting edge equipment, and prevention techniques. Having access to so many great doctors all over the country has helped Dr. Bucek give his patients the best care available.
Soccer
Dr. Bucek's experience working with US Soccer and MLS’ Chicago Fire has expanded his knowledge of caring for soccer players. Whether it be caring for sprained ankles or helping manage concussions, the experience with the men and women's US National Teams help him gain an edge when caring for the athlete. Soccer is a rigorous sport--the running and cutting involved can do quite a bit of damage to the knees and hips. Therefore, manual alignment is a critical part of professional soccer. Dr. Bucek not only uses techniques to care for injuries, but he can also help instruct players to help prevent common injuries that soccer players encounter.
Running / Triathlon
Dr. Bucek's first “elite-athlete” experience came in 2012 in Colorado Springs’ Training Center focusing on care for Triathlon athletes. The high volumes of running, swimming, and hours of weight training leads to stresses and forces on the body which could lead to injury. Sports Chiropractic helps to balance the body, reduce abnormal stresses, decreases injury-risk, and helps the athlete recover from injuries quicker.
Dance
Statistically, dancers suffer from more overuse injuries (i.e., stress fractures, tendon injuries, sprains, and strains) than traumatic injuries. From his first experience working with the Joffrey Ballet of Chicago early in his career to today’s work with the Cirque du Soleil, Dr. Bucek’s experience helps some of the finest performers to perform at their optimal level. To stay up-to-date with the latest techniques and dance injures, Dr. Bucek continues his coursework in dance medicine at the Harkness Center for Dance Injuries at New York University’s Langone Orthopedic Hospital in New York.
Musician
Musicians are prone to standing, dancing, playing instruments, and/or holding music folios for long durations at rehearsals and performances. Having optimal posture allows for better performances and more air support and ease of singing. Earlier in his career, Dr. Bucek cared for touring groups (such as Aerosmith, the Eagles, Lifehouse, and Daughtry). Currently, Dr. Bucek works with LiveNation, providing care for numerous performers as they come through Chicago. He also cares for choral members of the Chicago Masters Singers, providing the necessary treatment throughout their concert season and keeping them healthy for their European tours during the summer.
Rowing
Repetitive stress on the body takes its toll. Rowing is a sport that is very repetitive and its athletes are prone to repetitive injuries (i.e., strains and sprains of the shoulders and upper back) rather than traumatic injuries, like broken bones. Ensuring that the athletes (like those with St. Charles Rowing Club) have proper care to help reinforce proper body movements is crucial for not only preventing repetitive injuries, but also to help ensure a healthy body.
Equestrian
Any one that's seen an equestrian event can see how the rider and horse work as one. A balanced rider makes less unnecessary movements in the saddle, which allows him or her to work better with their horse. Dr. Bucek helped many equestrian athletes during his career not only with the lower back pain associated with long riding times, but helped them get more balanced and stronger which allowed the rider to perform better with their horse during events.
Volleyball
Like other overhead sports, volleyball players are prone to overuse injuries of the shoulder and upper arm, which often leads to spine problems down the road. Dr. Bucek's continuous coursework in sports medicine allows him to integrate the latest diagnosis strategies and care to allow athletes to get back on the volleyball court and keep them healthy. Dr. Bucek served as a sports medicine provider for the AVP Pro Beach volleyball tour, caring for many of the men and women teams that competed in the summer games in Beijing. In fact, Dr. Bucek cared for the women's team that went on to win gold! Dr. Bucek was also fortunate enough to treat athletes such as Misty May-Treanor and Phil Dalhausser when he first started working with AVP and his experience has continued to build over the years! With Dr. Bucek experience treating gold medalists, you can ensure you're in good hands.
Hockey
Dr. Bucek has been treating hockey players his entire career and is currently the Team Chiropractor for the Clark Cup Champion Chicago Steel. He had been an intricate part of hockey teams at all levels; from the National level, UHL, ECHL, and now the local USHL team. There are reasons why the players seek Dr. Bucek's care--his care not only helps them recover from injury, but it also helps them stay healthy. Hockey is not only a stressful sport on the body, but a better-balanced body heals faster and recovers faster helping the athlete perform at their best!