Joint Ventures Physical Therapy & Fitness

I was diagnosed with a partially torn rotator cuff in early October 2015. It was incredibly painful and I had extremely limited range of motion. My orthopedic doc at MGH recommended a course of physical therapy before taking any more aggressive steps and while I was completely skeptical that PT would help, I followed instructions and went to Joint Ventures in Kendall Square. My therapist was Cathy H. and all I can say is she is AWESOME. She was incredibly thorough in the evaluation session and developed a plan to address the pain. After 5 weeks of exercise and therapy, I have virtually complete range of motion with virtually no pain. I had a visit with my orthopedic this week at MGH and he agreed that there is no need for surgery. Many thanks to Cathy for keeping me away from the knife! I strongly recommend Joint Ventures!

I waited 3 months before a persistent pain and inability to run due to runner’s knee forced me to go visit my Doctor. I was referred to Join Ventures by a friend and I started my sessions early this summer. I had a great experience working with my therapist Laura Demchuk (She’s awesome!). The exercises and explanation helped me recover in just 8 visits and a combination of regular exercises at home/​gym. The staff was always very helpful. I highly recommend this place and especially Laura for your next PT session!

This is an update to prior review.
After discussing my situation with David at Joint Ventures, I decided to give an update. We discussed my situation the customer service and feedback he provided was very good. Customer service, in my opinion, is very important, and David was on top of things.
I will give them a shot in the future.

My wife, who has four spinal fusions, has been working with Claire, who really seems to be helping her. They are much better and less «corporate» than Spalding.

I have been going to Stephanie for past 4 years. She is amazing!!! Aside from having great healing hands, she is knowledgeable and dedicated in doing best work. She is very busy and getting appointment can be challenging sometimes but worth the wait. The prices at JV are reasonable.

Jennie is the best massage therapist I found since moving to Cambridge two years ago and trying at least four different therapists. I have scoliosis and chronic back pain, so finding the right massage therapist can really change my quality of life. I also would like to commend Joint Ventures on their excellent customer service. I first started there with another therapist who did a terrible job on me, and the owner addressed my complaint promptly and professionally.

My PCP got me a referral for PT to treat my back and my knees (different problems with the left and the right knee). As this place was close to where I work, I just walked in to make an appointment.
The administrative assistant looked at my referral and asked me to pick one thing. Apparently they do not understand that the body is a whole thing rather than the sum of it’s individual parts. Here’s a news flash — different parts of the body influence each other. It is completely impossible and highly irresponsible to consider them as completely independent. DO NOT GO THERE!!!

As someone who decided that 2013 was the year to simultaneously train for my first half marathon and first sprint triathlon, enter Jennie into my life. My seemingly brilliant idea left me with a lot of weird knots and kinks in my legs and lower back.
I’ve been to many different massage therapists, but there is something in Jennie’s approach that makes her stand out and above. Through a combination of both deep tissue kneading and different stretching techniques she is able to release my crying muscles, but in a way that is strangely calming and relaxing rather than painful.
While I’ve had other experiences where I’m biting my tongue to divert the pain sensations, with Jennie she is still applying a serious amount of pressure, but I find myself in a soothed-​dreamlike state, nearly drooling into the face cushion. It wasn’t always pretty, I had some serious imbalances and strains from my various athletic pursuits, but everytime I walk out of Jennie’s massages I feel amazing and ready to get back into training.
Jennie is super professional, knowledgable — as she often suggests ways to keep those muscles stay ironed out, and my current go-​to option when I’m in need of an athletic massage.

This is the first time doing physical therapy.
I am very happy with Joint Ventures.
The staff is very friendly. Jessica is my PT, and she does a great job and is very pleasant.

I am a former rugby/​boxer/​lacrosse player and came here after both my 2^nd and 3^rd shoulder surgeries. I worked with Andrew Millet, who is great. Besides being a genuinely good guy, he definitely pushed me hard and I made some significant gains in getting mobility back in my shoulder. I’ve been to a ton of therapists, and Joint Ventures is one of the better ones I’ve been to.

I purchased a groupon for a massage at Joint Ventures two years ago and I have been seeing the same massage therapist every since, Sara Howell. I love what joint ventures represents and their prices are really good!

I’m not a regular massage type of person, they are definitely more of a special treat for me. As such, I have high expectations; if I’m only going to get a massage once every year or so, it had better be good.
Well, it was.
Ammon was great, we talked a little before about what I wanted from it (relaxation/​stress relief) and he definitely struck the right balance of pressure. Previously, I’ve only ever had massages from women, and I wasn’t sure if I would feel weird at all, but Ammon is such a chill friendly guy I was totally at ease. He had some cool music on too (who knew relaxing music existed outside of Enya and Rainforest Sounds?) I definitely recommend JVPT & Ammon!

This was one of the best massage I’ve had. I came here because I got a groupon. I wish I bought the 3 pack!!! I got my massage done by their massage therapist, Stephanie and she was exceptional. We talked quite a bit before the massage so she could understand what I do, my fitness level, and what I was trying to get out of the massage. She showed me a few books to help work on my running technique and posture. I left feeling relaxed, relieved of some stress and tension, but also with some knowledge to make the changes I need.
I’ve been trying to find a place that truly works with you to fix the problems. I plan on trying to work on the things we discussed and will definitely be making another appointment with Stephanie to increase progress.
*The only thing is I agree with a former review. When I walked in the receptionist didn’t say hello. I believe she glanced at me and just looked away. I sat for a minute or two unsure of what to do, feeling a bit uncomfortable.

Update– I was contacted by Dave, the owner, regarding my review of Joint Ventures. He was very apologetic and requested that I give them another chance. I feel assured that he truly cares about the feedback of his clients and that he will use the feedback to help provide positive experiences. I will indeed give Joint Ventures another try the next time I require physical therapy but probably at another location.

I never write reviews. Ever. However, my experience here was so good that I felt like I was doing the world a disservice by not letting them know where to go for the best deep tissue massage.
Jenny was brilliant. I have very bad posture and because of my desk job I sometimes get the worst pains in my neck area. Yesterday it hurt so bad that i thought i was going to pass out. I was able to get an appointment for 30 minutes and she really worked and stretched my muscles. It was exactly what i needed and the relief was almost instantaneous. In fact I didn’t even realize i had limited mobility. Needless to say, I feel much better and will be going there more often. I have been to lot of massage places and therapists but this one outranks the rest of them by a land slide.
I highly recommend going here if you have a problem area.

Best massage ever.
Backstory — I don’t get massages. I think they are too good and too expensive to enjoy on a regular basis and I’ve had my fair share of bad experiences. As you jump into the world of massage, you’re gonna need to consider a few things.
First — What’s your goal? Relaxation? Knot removal? Stress Relief? These things matter. A massage intended to remove your knots is going to make you sore the next day. It might even hurt like a bitch as you lay on the table. Maybe not a good choice for first timers. Jennie at JV had me fill out a form that asked what my goal was and tailored the massage to my needs: knot removal (needed some serious digging in) with a hint of stress relief and a focus on shoulders/​neck. AWESOME.
Second — Forget the awkwardness of stripping down to your birthday suit and just do it for the best experience. The lower back is often a trouble area (for me anyway), and having the interruption of the panty line kinda ruins it. But I’ve established this from experience. At JV, I chose not to go nekked, but kind of regret it.
Third — know your venue. If you get a massage that involves lots of oils and exfoliants and whatnot, ask them if they have a shower facility. It really sucks to get massaged and then have to walk out with a layer of lather. JV used like a massage lotion and then wiped me down with a steamed towel (equally acceptable to a shower, IMO).
Fourth — know yourself. If you have sensitive areas or sore areas — let the massager know so it doesn’t come as a surprise (loose toe nail, achilles tendonitis, über ticklish area, etc.).
Also, people, the most professional approach is to not have a conversation during the massage. It can lead to awkward discussion and takes away from 100% relief. I explicitly asked Jennie what her style was and told her that I’ve learned over the years that I can’t stand it when massagers talk during the appointment. She assured me that this was her own policy, unless the client asks questions. Perrrrrfect.
So anyway; perhaps the massage came at the perfect culmination of massage experiences, and to be honest, I had low-​ish expectations. Jennie’s massage blew all others out of the water; she could apply the pressure I needed to address my shoulders and accurately worked on every tickle-​zone without actually tickling! It was a massage unlike any other and I highly recommend going here, especially if you are looking for a sports/​stress relief-​type massage.

Just visited for the first time and got a wonderful massage from Stephanie. She asked fantastic questions and was so responsive to my answers. The only reason this is a 4 instead of a 5 is the office set-​up. The room we had was open at the top of the wall to the main area, so I could hear music from the other room, doors, etc. Also, there was a large window in our room, so — despite the shades — it was impossible to get it really dim. Not the most relaxing atmosphere. All in all — the PERFECT massage, and totally worth the slight weirdness of the surroundings. I’ll definitely be back.

Having now completed my course of treatment at JVPT I just wanted to reiterate how great this place is. I’m very satisfied with my progress, and plan on gladly paying out of pocket ($ 70.00 for a 30 minute session) to return on occasion for a tune-​up now that my health insurance benefits for this injury have run out.
These guys really understand being passionate about sports and physical activity, and they’ll work with you to get back to normal activities as soon as possible. The fact that I herniated 2 discs in October, and am currently beginning training for a May half-​marathon speaks to their dedication.
Thanks JV!

I had a wonderful massage on Friday night at Joint Ventures in Kendall Square, they even stayed open late to accomodate me. I was actually having back trouble and my masseuse worked on it specifically, and this morning it’s completely gone! They also used these wonderful warm packs on my back and neck, it was really very lovely. Am definitely looking forward to going there again.

I’ve been working with Susana for knee issues since late July and she is phenomenal. I’m a runner and it was really important to me that my physical therapist understand that. She’s friendly and knowledgeable and goes above and beyond to help. I’ve emailed her with questions at midnight and woken up to a response.
I’ve also been going to Chung for chiropractic services and I really enjoy him too. The best part of having my chiropractor and physical therapist in the same office is that they can discuss and figure out the best course of treatment. That’s definitely worked to my benefit.
Otherwise — the facilities are not huge, but they don’t really need to be. Everything is clean and well-​maintained. It’s in a convenient location for me (as I work at MIT) — it’s only a couple of blocks from the Kendall t-​stop. The front desk staff (Krystal and Danielle) are so friendly and I always enjoy chatting with them when I come in.
Bottom line: Highly recommend Susana. Highly recommend Chung. If you want to work with two professionals who clearly care about the well being of their patients, those are the ones to go with, although I’m sure that many others at that location are just as great.