Dr. Ramez M. Antoun PT, DPT, OMT, PNF, FRCms
Nice to meet you! please call me Mez! I’m a physical therapist, strength coach, a dedicated husband, father, educator, and mentor.
Growing up as a middle eastern immigrant I struggled with confidence because I never felt like I “fit in” and I was called “weak”.
In high school I realized that if I put in the work at the gym I could build my strength & my confidence.
In college I worked as a personal trainer and volunteer strength coach for the athletic department.
I quickly realized that a lot of clients & athletes (including myself) struggled with low back pain even if they worked hard and got treatment.
Once I became a physical therapist I realized that even other sports PTs were a bit scattered in their approach because of how many seemingly different/”conflicting” approaches there were to spine rehab.
I finally realized it was up to me to study & learn as many rehab systems as I could to find the common principles to apply to myself, my patients, and help other PTs cut through the bullshit debates of “conflicting” rehab approaches.
After a residency, a fellowship, hundreds of hours of continuing ed courses, and 2 decades of being a passionate gym-rat, I’ve been able to help solve a lot of complex back pain problems for myself and a lot of my patients.
And something that I didn’t see coming is, through my course work, I’ve been able to help PT clinic owners build a clinic reputation as “low back pain experts” in their community.
Now, I’m on a mission to teach millions of physical therapists to approach spine therapy with more clarity and confidence so they can get better results for their patients while getting them back to the gym for good.
My Academic & Professional Journey
I graduated from Umass Lowell with an exercise science degree and a doctorate in Physical Therapy.
After graduating PT school I traveled to Vallejo California for a post-graduate neurological residency program at Kaiser Permanente Hospital through 2014 to learn Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation (PNF) where it all began. While in Vallejo, CA I learned clinical Pain Neuroscience Education (PNE) under Stephen Schmidt PT, M.PHYSIO, OCS, FAAOMPT for diagnosis like phantom limb pain, CRPS, & thalamic pain syndrome.
After completing my neuro residency I went back to the east coast and completed a 2-year Post Graduate fellowship program at The Institute of Orthopedic Manual Therapy (IOMT) training under Martin Langaas PT, FAAOMPT.
During my orthopedic fellowship I reached my tolerance for insurance company bullshit so I started an out of network PT practice in Boston MA back in 2015.
For the last 10+ years other physical therapists with a strength & conditioning background have asked me to clinically mentor them and explain how I integrate my clinical and strength & conditioning background in my out of network PT services.
Currently I work with clients privately through Barbell Therapy & Performance in our Barrington NJ Location out of my home gym.
My Professional philosophy in a nutshell:
Every human has the potential to change.
To help them through change, we need to set up an ideal learning environment that coaches the whole person (physical, emotional, intellectual) using a positive approach by starting with small wins.
There is A LOT of healing power behind teaching people how to move with intention while teaching them how to move with tension (sympathetic) & relaxation (parasympathetic) to integrate the autonomic nervous system.
When teaching movement, variable repetition will speed up the motor learning process for independence, and adaptability.
I believe that helping people find continued engaging activity that they enjoy is the best way to create sustainable spine health & resilience long term.
My Values:
Understand first, then advise:
Focus on asking thoughtful questions to better understand someone’s specific situation, problem, pain, fear/concerns before offering advice. Don’t be an advice monster.Learn, teach, grow:
Learning without applying it, failing, and learning from the short coming is entertainment, not growth. Once you teach someone else how to successfully apply it to their specific situation, that’s when you experience real growth.Own it:
When you fall short of a goal, own it and shift into a problem solving mindset as quickly as you can. On the flip side, when you succeed, when you get a compliment, own it. Own your strengths & work on your weaknesses.Stay Humble:
None of us have all the answers or just a list of success stories. We do'n’t shy away from sharing our failures & how we learned from them. And to continue to be leaders in spine rehab, we have to embrace the power of collaborative problem solving. This requires us to be open to learning various perspectives. Don’t act like you’re better than others and don’t be a dick.
Professional Credentials:
Doctor of Physical Therapy
BA in Exercise Physiology
PNF Level 5 therapist (IPNFA)
Fellow of Orthopedic Manual Therapy (OMT)
Really Nice Guy (RNG)
Functional Range Conditioning Mobility Specialist (FRCms)
Functional Movement Screen (FMS) certified
Selective Functional Movement Assessment (SFMA)
Assistant SFMA instructor
Who is Mez, behind the professional scene?
I’m a husband, father, son, brother, and dog dad.
I love going for walks, chillin’ by a fire, strength training, the mindfulness & meditation effects I get from practicing traditional martial arts. I love marinating meat, cooking, and grillin’ stuff for my family & friends.
I can GET DOWN with a solid dance party and a dance battle challenge… Even if I lose (slim chance) and rip my pants (it’s happened more than once), I promise you I’ll put up a good fight and we’ll have a good laugh.
My personal philosophy is that my health & family need to come first in order for my professional work to thrive and feel fulfilling.
Without getting TOO personal, I learned this the hard way as I used to have a poor relationship with “professional achievement”. Without realizing it, I used my work (which I love btw) as a way to distract myself from and ignore the shock of almost getting deported by immigration back in 2018. I became so hyper-focused on proving to myself that I belonged through my professional identity, that I started neglecting other areas of my life that really matter to me like my wife, being social, and doing things that brought me joy outside of my work. I’m grateful that I’m on the other side of that now and still able to do the work that I love.
That’s my professional & personal operating system in a nutshell.