The Routledge Handbook of Sports and Exercise Therapy is a methodically detailed, authoritative, contemporaneous and practical reference source for all those involved in sports and exercise therapy, whether student, established practitioner, educator or researcher. This comprehensive Handbook cohesively presents foundational subjects and introduces principles and applications to support the development and practice of sports and exercise therapists.

These are presented alongside new essential and evolving topic areas. Such a blend of fundamental underpinning and applied and experiential practical guidance gives this Handbook a real sense of relevancy, and a contribution which can help to consolidate the positioning of sports and exercise therapists as key practitioners in an advancing landscape of health, exercise, sport, research and education. The Handbook has been produced to create a seamless reference source for readers, but each of its chapters are also designed to be stand-alone presentations in their own right. The following areas are covered:

Learning and teaching
Evidence-based practice
Anatomy and physiology
Pathology of injuries
Health and safety
Clinical assessment
Therapeutic modalities
Injury rehabilitation
Sports and exercise as medicine
Sports and exercise nutrition
Sports and exercise psychology
Professionalism and ethics
Structural and cultural competency
Sideline sports injury management
Management of regional injury conditions
Case studies in sports and exercise therapy
Employability and career development
The Handbook is comprehensively referenced and multi-authored. Its design incorporates numerous photographs, figures, tables and detailed sample document templates. It can be considered as an essential and topical resource for anyone involved in sports and exercise therapy, whether in their first year as an undergraduate or already working in professional practice.

Keith Ward is an experienced therapist, lecturer and author in the field. He is a member of the Society of Sports Therapists (SST), the Chartered Institute for the Management of Sport and Physical Activity (CIMSPA), the Primary Care Rheumatology and Musculoskeletal Medicine Society, and a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (HEA). Keith holds a biomedical BSc Rehabilitation Studies degree; an MA in Learning and Teaching; and qualifications in Sports Therapy, Exercise Referral, Cardiac, Cancer, and Diabetes Rehabilitation, and Musculoskeletal Medicine. He is also a Health Walk Scheme leader and advocate, and Nordic Walking Instructor.


1. Learning in Sports and Exercise Therapy

Keith Ward



2. Evidence-based Practice for Sports and Exercise Therapists

Edward N. Stanhope



3. Anatomy for Sports and Exercise Therapy: Part 1 Contextual Overview

Keith Ward



4. Anatomy for Sports and Exercise Therapy: Part 2 Regional Overview

Keith Ward



5. Introduction to Exercise Physiology for Sports and Exercise Therapists

Darren Chesworth and Keith Ward



6. Sports and Exercise-Related Injuries and Conditions

Keith Ward and Fiona Higgs



7. Foundations for Clinical Assessment in Sports and Exercise Therapy

Keith Ward



8. Therapeutic Modalities in Sports and Exercise Therapy

Keith Ward, Peter K. Thain, Gareth Bate and Marie Woodward



9. Introductory Principles for Sports Injury Rehabilitation

Paul Robertson and Lee Young



10. Measurement and Evaluation in Sports and Exercise Therapy

Kate Williams and Kate Cady



11. Sports and Exercise as Medicine

Keith Ward



12. Introduction to Nutrition for Sports and Exercise Therapists

Matthew Holmes



13. Sports Psychology and Sports Injury Management

Dale Forsdyke and Adam Gledhill



14. Sideline Injury Management

Tim Trevail, Caroline Cleary and Lee Young



15. Management of Shoulder Injuries

Jeanette Lewis, Sean Lowton-Smith and Rebekkah North



16. Management of Injuries of the Lower Extremity

Andrew Frampton, Callum Davidson, Ryan Graty and Richard Morgan



17. Professionalism and Ethics in Sports and Exercise Therapy

Keith Ward and Dr Paul Robertson



18. From Cultural Competency to Structural Humility in Sports and Exercise Therapy

Michael Cole and Anna Caffrey



19. Case Studies in Sports and Exercise Therapy

Kate Williams and Kate Cady



20. Pathways to Practise in Sports and Exercise Therapy

David Conway and Keith Ward