Are you looking for a safe, highly effective way to recover from an injury or recent surgery? Has arthritis started interfering with your ability to do your typical daily tasks? If you\’re looking for relief or want to do exercises in a way that doesn\’t add stress to your body, aquatic therapy may be right for you!
At Total Performance, our team of physical therapists uses water\’s natural healing properties to help our patients minimize the stress and strain of exercise while providing pain relief and improving their function simultaneously!
Research has shown that getting and staying active is essential for health and well-being, but it can be challenging when exercise hurts or seems to make you worse when you try. Getting active can be difficult when your joints are stiff and achy. The worse your joints feel, the harder it is to do your usual activities.
Fortunately, aquatic therapy at Total Performance is an excellent option for people that want to exercise without adding strain on their bodies. Aquatic therapy is effective for people of all ages and most musculoskeletal disorders causing pain, weakness, or limitations in mobility.
Whether you are dealing with an acute injury, recent surgery, or chronic persistent pain, in all cases, aquatic therapy can help!
Call us today to request an appointment and learn more about our aquatic therapy programs!
What makes aquatic therapy an ideal place to exercise?
Aquatic therapy is a unique intervention used by physical therapists trained to utilize water\’s natural properties to achieve therapeutic benefits. Aquatic-based exercises take advantage of the inherent properties of water, including buoyancy, hydrostatic pressure, and natural resistance, to effectively achieve rehabilitation goals.
Our physical therapists at Total Performance use aquatic therapy exercises to assist our patients\’ healing and maximize outcomes throughout their rehabilitations and afterward in sessions that maintain or improve overall fitness.
Physical therapists are highly skilled at using the physical properties of water to help improve mobility, strength, postural awareness, coordination, and endurance. Our team uses water\’s natural properties to create an exercise program that safely challenges you without provoking pain.
When appropriate, we will manipulate currents in the water to increase or decrease the intensity of your exercises. In addition, we use paddles, gloves, and noodles to increase the intensity of your movements. We can also use deep water to completely unload the pressure on your lower extremities or perform deep water traction for people with lower back issues.
Aquatic therapy is an effective way to improve your function and help you get back to an active lifestyle, and an ideal place to exercise!
What to expect at your Total Performance aquatic therapy sessions
At your initial visit, one of our physical therapists will conduct a comprehensive evaluation and discuss your treatment goals and plan in and out of the water. Our team will use aquatic therapy to assist your recovery and healing.
Fortunately, aquatic physical therapy at Total Performance can benefit most individuals dealing with pain, weakness, or loss of mobility. Our programs are tailored to the individual but often will include the following exercises to help the whole body:
- Walking: forward, backward, and side to side-stepping
- Squats
- Multi-directional leg kicks
- Push-pull with arms (using paddles or gloves)
- Trunk rotations with bent arms in front of the body (use paddles for more resistance)
- Deep water cycling
- Handing on the side of the pool core workout (knee lifts)
All our programs are tailored to address your specific needs and can be modified to suit your physical abilities. Our team can get in the water with you if you are scared of water or nervous about exercising alone.
Aquatic therapy at Total Performance provides a safe, comfortable, and therapeutic alternative to gain strength and reduce pain for patients who have difficulty exercising on land.
Request an appointment today!
If you are dealing with persistent aches and pains or looking for a safe and highly effective way to restore your physical well-being, call Total Performance today and learn more about our aquatic therapy and exercises in the water for the whole body!
Sources:
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6314737/
- https://journals.lww.com/ajpmr/fulltext/2018/02000/Aquatic_Exercises_in_the_Treatment_of_Low_Back.7.aspx
- https://dptportfolios.web.unc.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/2565/2022/04/Aquatic-Intervention-for-Patients-with-LE-OA.pdf
- https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Sandeep-Shinde-2/publication/330472260_Effect_of_hydrotherapy_based_exercises_for_chronic_nonspecific_low_back_pain/links/5cf5f27ba6fdcc847502e3dc/Effect-of-hydrotherapy-based-exercises-for-chronic-nonspecific-low-back-pain.pdf
