What we treat, what we don't, and how.
Five kinds of work happen at Recharge. Most of it is the standard physiotherapy you'd expect. Some of it isn't. Here's the full menu, with the prices and the honest caveats.
Standard physiotherapy
The bread and butter. Roughly 80% of what walks through the door.
Back, neck, shoulders, elbows, hips, knees, ankles. Sports injuries, post-surgical rehab, the rolled ankle you can still walk on, the dull ache that's been bothering you for months. Headaches that turn out to be neck-driven. Pregnancy and post-natal aches and niggles. The stuff you'd expect a physio to handle.
What a first session looks like
Up to an hour. We listen first, then test how you move (not just where it hurts), then explain what we think is going on in plain language, then start treatment. You leave with a clear picture of what's wrong, what we can do about it, and roughly how long it should take.
What we actually do
- Hands-on treatment (soft tissue, mobilisation, manipulation)
- Dry needling and trigger point release when it's the right tool
- McKenzie and Mulligan techniques for back and joint issues
- Acute injury management, sports taping, Kinesio tape
- Foot and ankle mobilisation
- Exercise prescription you can actually fit into your week
- Ergonomic and movement-pattern coaching
What we also see (beyond the standard list)
Not everything that walks in is a sports injury. We also work across a quieter set of areas where physiotherapy is genuinely useful and often overlooked:
- Post-natal recovery and pelvic floor-aware rehab
- Children's developmental and mobility issues (including cerebral palsy)
- Chronic headaches, often neck-driven
- Breathing issues: hyperventilation, dysfunctional breathing patterns, chest physio for lung secretions
- Early osteoporosis and arthritis management
- Healthy aging: keeping older bodies strong, mobile, and out of the GP's office
If you're not sure whether what you have fits, ring us. We'll tell you on the phone whether we're the right people, or who is.
ACC registered. If your problem is injury-related, ACC covers most of the cost. You pay a surcharge per visit. See fees for the exact numbers.
Bring along any relevant x-rays, scan reports or referrals. Useful for context, not required to book.
Body Warrant of Fitness
Cars get a WOF. So should you. Three hours across two sessions, a full report, a plan. $350.
You don't need to be injured to come in. The Body WOF is for anyone who wants an honest map of where their body is right now, what's working, what's quietly degrading, and what to do about it.
What we check
- Posture, spinal mobility and stability
- Neurological and joint integrity assessments
- Muscle balance and functional movement screening
- Balance, gait, cardiovascular baseline
- Body composition (weight, height, fat %, muscle %)
- Lifestyle factors: sleep, load, sitting time, training
- Specific tests for your individual goals
What you walk away with
A written report with our findings, a discussion to make sense of it, and a personalised plan. You'll know whether you're "perfect, need a tune-up, or need a 10,000km service." We're not subtle about it.
$350
Long COVID rehab
One of the few Bay of Plenty clinics set up to handle this properly. Slower, more careful, more honest than most.
If you've had COVID and never quite got back to yourself, you're not making it up. We see ongoing breathlessness, fatigue, dizziness on standing, brain fog, chronic cough, joint pain, and dysfunctional breathing patterns that persist long after the original infection.
What we do differently
- Screen for Post-Exertional Symptom Exacerbation (PESE) before we prescribe any exercise — pushing too hard makes Long COVID worse, not better
- Screen for POTS (Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome), which often shows up as standing-related dizziness
- Flag potential cardiac involvement and refer on to a cardiologist if there's any concern
- Breathing retraining, pacing, breathing cadence work, sufficient rest periods
- Coordinate with your GP, personal trainer, and any class instructors so everyone's pulling in the same direction
This is slow work. If you've come from a gym or a generic rehab program that pushed you through it and made things worse, we'll start by undoing some of that. There's no quick fix and we won't pretend there is.
For bodies that need teaching, not just treating
Some problems aren't tissue problems. They're movement-pattern problems. We have two practitioners specifically for that.
Yoga-based physiotherapy · with Louise Thompson
For people who need slower, breath-led movement work. Useful if you've got chronic tension, stress-driven pain, or you've been stuck in a "fix me" mindset that hasn't fixed you. Combines standard physiotherapy assessment with yoga principles.
Clinical Pilates with Morgan · reformer and mat, 1-on-1
Either on a reformer or on a mat, one-on-one (not a group class), with a physiotherapy lens on every cue. Strong for post-surgical recovery, core retraining after pregnancy, and anyone who's outgrown generic group classes and wants the cues actually tailored to their body.
These sit alongside your physiotherapy, not instead of it. If you're not sure which is right, ring us and we'll work it out together.
Physio that doesn't end at the treatment room door
Two options for when the exercise prescription is the treatment and you want it done properly, with us, not alone on the lounge floor at 9pm.
Personal-training-style physio · onsite gym
Your session moves out of the clinic room and into the fully equipped rehab gym next door. The physio loads the exercise, sets the form, watches every rep, and adjusts on the spot. You leave knowing what 80% effort feels like for your specific case because you just did it. Often paired with a short video clip we send to your phone so you can play it back at home that night.
Useful for: post-op rehab beyond the first month, returning to sport, anyone whose home exercise program never quite stuck.
Power Plate vibration training
A piece of kit with a real evidence base for hip mobility, stability, core engagement, and neuromuscular re-education. Particularly good for older adults working on bone density and balance, and for athletes wanting a fast, targeted activation warm-up. Integrated into your sessions rather than charged as a separate add-on.
We don't believe value for money stops at the EFTPOS machine. Between sessions you get WhatsApp check-ins, short video clips of you doing the exercises, and "is this the right kind of sore" answers in plain English. Not billed separately. Read why we run it this way.
Not sure which one you need?
A 15-minute phone chat is free. We'll talk through what's going on and tell you what makes sense, even if it's not us.