Sports & Orthopedic Physical Therapy in Ankeny, IA

Pain or Injury Keeping You
From Doing What You Love?

Get honest answers, one-on-one care and a personalized plan to get back to running, lifting, golfing, pickleball, sports and the activities that matter to you.

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No referral required. Now in-network with Wellmark BCBS of Iowa.

Why Ankeny, IA Residents Choose Stewart Sport and Spine PT

For Active Adults & Recreational Athletes

You’re Doing Everything Right. So Why Does It Still Hurt?

You’ve rested it, stretched it, and maybe already tried physical therapy. Patients come to Stewart Sport & Spine to understand what is actually wrong, receive an honest orthopedic evaluation, and leave knowing what to do next, even when physical therapy isn’t the right solution.

Our goal isn’t simply to make you feel better today. It’s to help you understand your body and create a lasting solution. You’ll leave knowing what’s causing your pain, what you can do about it, and how to keep moving forward with confidence.

Why Choose Stewart Sport & Spine?

Honest Answers. Clear Direction. Confident Decisions.

Honest Answers

You deserve more than another treatment without understanding why you’re hurting. We take the time to listen to your story, perform a detailed orthopedic evaluation and explain what we believe is contributing to your symptoms—and what may not be. If we believe we can help, we’ll tell you why. If we don’t think physical therapy is the right solution, we’ll be honest about that too.

Clear Direction

Getting the right diagnosis is only valuable if you know what to do next. We’ll explain your findings in plain language and give you a clear recommendation based on what we find. That may mean starting a personalized rehabilitation plan with us, modifying how you’re currently training or staying active, or seeking additional evaluation, imaging, or another specialist when appropriate. You won’t leave wondering what your next step should be.

Confident Decisions

We want you to understand your body well enough to make informed decisions about your care—not simply follow instructions. You’ll understand what we found, why we’re recommending a particular approach, what to expect along the way, and what you can do to help yourself. The goal is to give you the knowledge and confidence to move forward and get back to the activities that matter most to you.

FROM “WHAT’S WRONG?” TO “WHAT’S NEXT?”

01 — UNDERSTAND

Find out what’s really going on.

We listen, evaluate, and explain what may be causing your symptoms—without jumping to conclusions or unnecessary treatment.

02 — GET ANSWERS

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Know what you actually need.

We’ll help you understand your options, whether that means rehab, imaging, seeing your doctor, another specialist, or simply giving it time.

03 — MAKE A PLAN

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Create a path that makes sense for you.

Once we understand the problem, we build a personalized plan around your goals, your lifestyle, and where you want to go.

04 — GET BACK TO WHAT YOU LOVE

Return to the things you love.

The goal isn’t just less pain. It’s getting you back to running, lifting, golfing, playing sports, working, or doing whatever matters to you—with confidence.

Conditions We Treat In Ankeny, IA

We work with runners, lifters, golfers, pickleball players, recreational athletes and adults who want to stay active.

Sports Injuries

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Running Injuries

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Knee Pain

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Back Pain

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Hip Pain

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Elbow Pain

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Complex Back, Hip & SI Joint Pain

Still hurting despite trying PT, chiropractic care, injections, or other treatments? Dr. Josh Stewart has developed a specialty in evaluating difficult lower-back, hip and SI-joint problems

Meet Your Care Team

Dr. Josh Stewart

PT, OCS

Owner | Board-Certified Orthopedic Clinical Specialist

Dr. Josh Stewart is the owner and lead physical therapist at Stewart Sport & Spine Physical Therapy in Ankeny, Iowa, where he helps active adults and athletes overcome injuries, understand what’s truly causing their pain, and confidently return to the activities they love.

He has also developed a particular specialty in complex lower-back, hip, and sacroiliac (SI) joint problems. Many of these patients come to Stewart Sport & Spine PT after 5+ years of pain, multiple diagnoses, and treatments that haven’t provided the answers or results they were looking for.

Rhiannon Hermann

Office Manager

Yes, Rhiannon is named after the Fleetwood Mac song (and no, she won’t be offended if you don’t know it!).

At Stewart Sport and Spine Physical Therapy, she runs the front office. She doesn’t want patients to feel like they’re just a number. She wants them to feel like family, like they truly matter, and feel that they are being heard. She likes working because of how we treat all patients like VIPs.

Services We Offer In Ankeny, IA

Whether you’re dealing with an injury, ongoing pain, or something that’s keeping you from the activities you enjoy, we’ll help you understand what’s going on and create a clear plan to move forward.

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Complex Lower Back, Hip & SI Joint Pain

Still hurting after physical therapy, chiropractic care, injections or other treatments? Dr. Josh Stewart has developed a specialty in evaluating complex lower-back, hip and SI joint problems that haven’t responded to typical approaches.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need a referral?

No. Iowa is a direct access state, which means you can see a physical therapist without first getting a referral from a physician. If pain or an injury is keeping you from running, lifting, golfing, playing sports or simply staying active, you can schedule directly with Stewart Sport & Spine and start getting answers without waiting for another appointment.

What do I need to wear or bring with me?

You should dress in comfortable, loose clothing that allows you to move easily and doesn’t restrict circulation. Depending on your condition, your physical therapist may also recommend special shoes or a brace. You should also bring any paperwork related to your medical history, including x-rays, ultrasounds, and doctor’s notes.

How long are appointments?

Most appointments are approximately 40–60 minutes and are designed around individualized, one-on-one care.

Rather than bouncing between multiple patients or spending most of your appointment working independently, your time is focused on evaluating your progress, addressing what needs attention and determining what you should work on between visits.

Our goal isn’t to fill an hour. It’s to make your time with us valuable and purposeful.

Do you take insurance?

Yes. Stewart Sport & Spine is in-network with Wellmark Blue Cross Blue Shield of Iowa. We also offer cash-pay and out-of-network insurance options for patients with other insurance plans for those who prefer to pay directly for their care. Insurance benefits and coverage can vary by plan, so if you’re unsure about your benefits, contact our office, and we’ll help you understand your options before getting started.

How often will I need to come to physical therapy?

There is no one-size-fits-all schedule.

How often we recommend seeing you depends on your injury, how long you’ve been dealing with it, your goals, how you’re responding to treatment, and what you can successfully work on between visits.

Because our sessions are individualized and one-on-one, our goal is to make every appointment purposeful. We’ll recommend a plan based on what we believe you need—not an arbitrary number of visits or a standard schedule everyone receives.

What if I've already tried physical therapy?

You’re not alone. Many patients come to us after already trying physical therapy, chiropractic care, injections, medications or other treatments without getting the results they hoped for.

Rather than simply repeating what you’ve already tried, we start by understanding your history, what treatments you’ve received, how you responded and what may have been overlooked. Sometimes a fresh set of eyes, a more detailed orthopedic evaluation and a different approach can provide clarity when previous treatment hasn’t.

Our goal isn’t to give you “more PT.” It’s to better understand why you’re still having the problem and determine the most appropriate next step.

What makes your approach different?

We believe great physical therapy starts with understanding the problem—not simply treating where it hurts.

Every patient receives individualized, one-on-one care with a physical therapist. We take the time to listen to your story, perform a detailed orthopedic evaluation and explain what we find in language that makes sense.

You’ll understand what we believe is contributing to your symptoms, why we’re recommending a particular approach, and what you can do to help yourself.

And we’re not interested in keeping you in physical therapy longer than necessary. If we believe we can help, we’ll explain how. If we don’t think physical therapy is the right solution, we’ll be honest about that too.

Honest Answers. Clear Direction. Confident Decisions.

What happens at my first visit?

Your first visit starts with a conversation. We want to understand what’s bothering you, how it started, what activities you’re having difficulty with, what you’ve already tried and—most importantly—what you want to get back to doing.

From there, your physical therapist will perform a detailed orthopedic evaluation based on your specific problem. We’ll look beyond just where you hurt to understand how your movement, strength, mobility and surrounding areas may be contributing to your symptoms.

Before you leave, we’ll explain what we found, answer your questions and give you a clear recommendation for what should happen next.

The goal is for you to leave your first visit with a better understanding of your problem and confidence in your next step.

Do I have to stop exercising or playing sports while I'm in physical therapy?

Not necessarily—and in many cases, we don’t want you to.

If running, lifting, golf, pickleball, recreational sports or another activity is important to you, our goal is to find ways to keep you as active as safely possible while addressing the problem.

That may mean temporarily modifying certain movements, adjusting training volume or changing how you’re performing an activity rather than stopping altogether. As you improve, we’ll progressively build your capacity so you can return to the activities you enjoy with greater confidence.

Physical therapy shouldn’t just be about getting you out of pain. It should prepare you to get back to doing what you love.

What if you don't think physical therapy is right for me?

We’ll tell you.

Part of providing good care is recognizing when physical therapy isn’t the appropriate next step. If your evaluation suggests that you may benefit from imaging, further medical evaluation, or another healthcare specialist, we’ll explain why and help point you in the appropriate direction.

We don’t believe every person who walks through our door needs to become a physical therapy patient.

Sometimes the most valuable thing we can provide is an honest answer about what you should do next.

How do I get started?

Getting started is simple. You don’t need to wait for a physician referral or wonder whether physical therapy is the right next step.

Schedule an evaluation with Stewart Sport & Spine and tell us what’s keeping you from doing what you love. We’ll listen to your story, evaluate the problem, and help you understand your options.

If we believe we can help, we’ll explain what we’d recommend. If we don’t think we’re the right fit, we’ll tell you that too.

Start with answers. Then decide what comes next.