Understand your body with precision. Move forward with confidence.
The same measurement technology used by elite athletes is now available for everyone. Objective data about your body: how strong you are, how symmetrical you are, how powerful you are.
Know exactly where you stand, what to work on, and whether your rehab is actually working. Available at our Riccarton and Longhurst clinics.
A skilled physiotherapist can tell a great deal from watching you move and assessing you by hand. But a 15% strength difference between your left and right leg can be completely invisible in a clinical exam and it might be exactly what's driving your pain, your re-injury pattern, or your slow progress.
If you're working your way back from a serious injury or surgery, if you keep getting hurt and can't figure out why, or if you simply want to know your body is performing the way you think it is, objective measurement gives us something concrete to work on together.
VALD is a measurement platform used by professional sports organisations worldwide, including Premier League football clubs, NBA franchises, Super Rugby programmes, and national teams across more than 150 countries. It brings objective, repeatable measurement to physiotherapy, results that are precise enough to base clinical decisions on and benchmarked against norms built from millions of data points.
At You First Physio, we use three elements of the VALD system:
ForceDecks — Force Plates – Stand on them, jump on them, balance on them. Force plates measure exactly how much force your body produces and absorbs during jumps, squats, single-leg hops, and balance tests. They quantify your explosive power, your landing mechanics, how equal your two legs are, and how your balance compares to others of your age and activity level. Over 20 validated test protocols.
ForceFrame — Strength Testing – A modular frame that measures isometric strength across more than 100 movements; quads, hamstrings, hip abductors, calf, shoulder rotation, and more. Specific muscles, at specific angles, with precision a manual test cannot replicate. Particularly valuable for identifying the exact muscle deficits driving injury risk or slowing rehabilitation.
DynaMo — Handheld Dynamometer – For precise, targeted muscle-specific strength measurements where the ForceFrame is not used. Especially useful for tracking progress through rotator cuff, hip, and lower limb rehabilitation. All three tools feed into VALD’s benchmarking system, giving you percentile rankings against age, sex, and activity-level norms.
ACL reconstruction, rotator cuff repair, joint replacement, Achilles repair; VALD gives your rehabilitation clear milestones based on data, not feel. Return-to-sport criteria for ACL, for example, require limb symmetry within 10% across key strength and power measures.
Instead of guessing, you'll know exactly when you've hit your target. Your physiotherapist can track your progress with precision and adjust your programme based on what the numbers show.
Often there's a strength imbalance or deficit at the root of recurring hamstring tears, persistent ankle sprains, shoulder instability. VALD testing identifies asymmetries and weaknesses that aren't obvious in normal movement but consistently contribute to re-injury. Once we find it, we can work on it together, treating the cause, not just the symptom.
Know where you stand before the season starts. If you do get injured, you have an objective target to return to, not just "it feels like it was."
Athletes training for marathons, playing competitive club sport, or preparing for demanding seasons can use baseline testing to understand current capacity, identify weaknesses before they become problems, and track improvement over time. We've worked with local rugby and netball programmes on exactly this basis.
Some rehabilitation programmes, such as ACL, post-operative knee and shoulder, include VALD testing at specific milestones to confirm readiness to progress. Your physiotherapist will discuss this as part of your treatment plan if it's relevant. When testing is part of your ACC-funded rehabilitation, there's no additional cost.
Clear numbers compared against norms for people your age and activity level. Specific targets to work towards such as, "close the 18% quad strength deficit on your right side," not just "get stronger."
A baseline you can re-test after 6–8 weeks of targeted work to measure real progress under the same conditions. And confidence in your decisions, whether that's returning to contact sport, starting a new training block, or simply knowing your body is performing the way you think it is.
If you’re an existing patient or managing an injury, your physiotherapist will discuss whether VALD testing is appropriate and schedule it as part of your treatment plan.
If you’re pain-free and want a standalone assessment — a performance baseline, pre-season screen, or general movement check, you can book directly for a 45-minute initial appointment.
Call reception to discuss your goals and arrange your assessment. If you're an existing patient, your physiotherapist will recommend VALD testing if it's relevant to your treatment plan. If you're pain-free and want a standalone performance or movement screen, we'll schedule a 45-minute initial appointment.
Longhurst
03 595 0050Riccarton
03 348 5359
You'll work through a series of validated VALD test protocols with one of our team. The specific tests will depend on what you're coming in for. A full performance screen looks different from an ACL return-to-sport milestone, which looks different again from a shoulder rehabilitation check.
Come in comfortable athletic clothing and training shoes. Most protocols involve short maximal efforts of jumping, pushing, squeezing and balancing. If you are managing pain or a recent injury, your physiotherapist will adapt the protocols accordingly.
Your physiotherapist walks you through your data: what was measured, what the numbers mean, how your results compare to relevant norms, and what stands out. You'll receive a summary, this may be verbal on the day, or in a written report (printed or emailed) if more detailed analysis is required.
A follow-up appointment allows time to explain the findings and use them to shape your treatment or training plan.
Based on your results, your physiotherapist will outline what to focus on, how to target identified weaknesses or asymmetries, and when to re-test to measure progress. This may feed directly into an existing rehabilitation plan, or inform a new one.
Re-testing after 6–8 weeks of targeted work allows direct comparison against your baseline under identical conditions, providing actual documented change, measured with the same protocols. This is where the investment in objective data pays off: clear evidence of progress, or a signal that something needs adjusting.
Excellent experience
Maggie McInnes is incredibly knowledgeable and passionate about her mahi but most importantly she is driven by empathy and kindness. You never feel rushed or dismissed in her appointments.
Tori Holden
Exceptionally skilled and caring
They are exceptionally skilled and caring and show genuine warmth and empathy and client care. I would never go anywhere else.
Veresha Padayachee
Very Professional service
Saw Jack today. He got to the bottom of my wrist issue right away. Told me what was causing the issue and how to fix it.
Lewis Cashell
If your injury was caused by an accident, ACC may cover part of your treatment cost. You'll pay a patient co-payment per appointment.
45 minutes
$57
(concession $52)
30 minutes
$49
(concession $44)
For injuries not caused by an accident, standard physiotherapy fees apply.
45 minutes
$112
(concession $107)
30 minutes
$87
(concession $82)
Questions about costs before you book? Call your nearest clinic, we're happy to help.
A standard physiotherapy appointment uses clinical observation and hands-on assessment. VALD adds objective measurements such as force outputs, symmetry percentages, benchmarked results. They work together, not instead of each other.
No. Many people use VALD testing proactively to establish a pre-season or pre-training baseline, to understand current physical capacity, or to identify imbalances before they become problems. It is also useful for anyone with a history of injury who wants to confirm they have fully recovered before returning to demanding activity.
45 minutes if it is a standalone assessment. If you are a current patient undergoing treatment, the assessment can be fitted in one of your 30 minutes follow-up appointments.
Comfortable athletic clothing and training shoes. Most protocols involve jumping, squatting, balancing, and short maximal strength efforts, so you need to be able to move freely.
Strength and movement testing using VALD Force Frames and or Force Decks technology is currently available at our Riccarton and Longhurst clinics only. We do have VALD hand held dynanometers at the Avonhead location. Our university patients can easily be seen at Riccarton for formal testing.
No. You can self-refer, just contact us to arrange your assessment.
Yes. When VALD testing is part of your ACC-funded treatment plan, there's no additional cost to you. It gives both you and your physiotherapist objective data to guide your rehabilitation and track measurable progress which tends to improve adherence because you can see exactly what's changing.
Book an initial appointment at your nearest clinic — online in minutes, or give us a call. Our 45-minute initial appointments are available across all five of our Christchurch clinics, and online booking is available at all locations.
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