At Results Physiotherapy, we find success when combining hands-on manual therapy with an exercise plan and education about how to keep your body healthy in your environment. As we slowly begin reopening the country, we understand that not everyone is comfortable leaving their homes, which is why we would like to provide information on a commonly asked question: What are the in-home exercise options that can help me recover from injuries, prevent future injuries and aid in flexibility?
We have great news for you, you don’t need to join a gym to give your body the care you need. In fact, there are plenty of different things that you can do to get back into physical shape, work on your new year’s resolutions, or incorporate some at-home exercises and stretches to help you overcome some of those muscle deficiencies and aches you could be experiencing.
Exercising at home with some low impact exercises is a great way for you to let your body know that it’s time to get to work on getting used to physical activity in your routine once again. Jumping into a new exercise program or getting your body ready for some physical activity can feel like a tall task, but low impact exercises are a great way to help your body get reacquainted and comfortable with physical activity at a much more moderate pace.
The best part of incorporating some low impact at-home exercises is that you can do them all from the comfort of your own home. A lot of individuals don’t feel comfortable starting a new routine by going to the gym regularly, and at-home exercises are a great way for you to get comfortable with working out again while re-engaging some of those core muscle groups that might have been on the backburner for quite some time. Exercise, especially low impact at-home exercises, can help individuals of all ages which is why it’s essential to understand why you should incorporate a regular exercise routine to help out your body.
You might have heard the age-old saying that you need to incorporate some form of exercise into your routine, and the saying still holds true to this day. We all know that exercise is a key piece that contributes to our health and is crucial in maintaining positive habits and activities within our bodies. By strengthening and stretching your muscles through exercise, you can receive incredible flexibility benefits and increased mobility in your body. These outcomes from exercising can reduce back pain, help you recover from injuries faster, prevent future injuries, and improve joint health over time.
There are plenty of benefits associated with routine exercise and the impact it can have on your body. For instance, exercise can help individuals overcome chronic health conditions or manage symptoms from underlying health concerns. Some of the most common health problems that routine exercise can help with includes depression, arthritis, anxiety, diabetes, high blood pressure, and metabolism issues.
Exercising can also help your body in a variety of indirect ways. A good example is the release of endorphins that can occur when you exercise regularly, achieve new fitness goals, or set new personal bests in your fitness routine. If you’ve ever worked out before, you probably set a goal for yourself to get motivated. A goal can be as simple as jogging down the block without feeling like you’re breathing too heavily or perhaps you’re looking for something a little more complex like running a marathon. Your goal doesn’t need to be cardio related, perhaps it’s strength related and you’d like to add a little strength so you don’t feel like you’re struggling to perform every day activities around the house or at work.
Whatever your goals may be, when you accomplish those goals, you’re sending off endorphins that can also impact you and your body by creating additional energy boosts, improved mood, and even better sleep. Another fantastic thing about getting back into routinely exercising is that it can help you overcome some of those aches and pains that you’ve been putting up with or nagging you for quite some time. For instance, one of the most common aches and pains that exercise can help improve is lower back pain.
Approximately, 80% of people experience low back pain at some time in their life. Using exercise to increase flexibility yields many positive benefits including: reducing chronic lower back pain, reduced muscle spasms due to nerve irritation or improper posture and lowering blood pressure. Exercise is proven to help mood, memory, sleep, cardiovascular health, weight management, and can reduce the toll stress places on your body. If your body is tight and lacks mobility, you are more likely to get injured and experience reduced functionality in your body until you recover. If your body is going through aches and pains due to stress, then you might be contributing to the lower back pain you’re feelin gwithout even knowing about it.
The good news is that you don’t need to completely overhaul your lifestyle to incorporate some exercise into your routine. At-home exercises give you an opportunity to incorporate movement and strength-building exercises into your routine without forcing you to schedule time in your busy schedule or navigate complex traffic patterns to get to your local gym. If you’ve already got a good exercise routine going on, then you can always use low impact at-home exercises to supplement your existing workouts and get in some physical movement and activity on those rest days.
Low impact at-home exercises also give you an opportunity to stick to your physical therapy homework. One of the ways to ensure continued success and gradual improvements in your physical therapy outcome and treatment program is to make a commitment to following the recommended guidelines set forth by your physical therapist. Your physical therapist might assign you some PT homework which is to get your body moving and engaged in some of those at-home exercises which can help you reinforce what you’re doing and learning at your physical therapy appointments.
Exercising doesn’t need to be a commitment to a full gym day to get your blood pumping, it can be as simple as a 20-minute walk accompanied by a few minutes of full-body stretching. There are plenty of at-home exercises that you can incorporate into your routine to get the blood pumping, body moving, and gain access to many of the benefits we’ve outlined above when you exercise. We’ve outlined some of the best low impact exercises you can incorporate into your routine when you’re at home.
Low-impact exercises are perfect for people who are recovering from an injury and need workouts that have a low impact on their joints. Low-impact exercises are typically ones that keep one foot on the floor to help balance and have low resistance to help you get your heart rate up without risking significant injury. These exercises can build flexibility and strength around your joints and therefor protect these joints when you perform a more high-impact activity.
A few low-impact activities include: yoga, swimming, cycling, and walking. It’s important to keep your blood pumping, your muscles building, and your body moving to improve flexibility within your body over time. These exercises may be low impact, but they are still working your muscles and contributing to your overall health and wellness.
The great thing about low impact exercises is that there are plenty of activities and exercises that you can do to get your body moving without causing too much resistance to those joints and injuries you’re trying to overcome. You can even make your at-home exercises more exciting by creating some circuits so it doesn’t feel like you’re constantly doing the same thing over and over again. You can mix up your exercises to create different stages to make sure that you’re targeting multiple muscle groups and building cardio at the same time.
If you are eager to get started completing low impact exercises at home, here are a few moves to get you started:
Check out some amazing low-impact exercise tutorials here: https://www.healthline.com/health/fitness-exercise/low-impact-cardio#reverse–lunge-front-kick
These exercises we’ve outlined above are great for making sure that you can perform compound movements that target multiple muscle groups, joints, and help you build cardio and get the blood pumping at the same time. For those individuals who are short on time or are looking to get in a quick workout, these low impact exercises are great when you’re at home and need to get the heart rate up a bit.
At Results Physiotherapy, we create personalized exercise treatment plans that are specialized to each patient’s needs. Our recommended exercises range in flexibility and impact. These exercises are suited to improve mobility in our patients and assist in any recovery necessary. Our in-home physical therapy is a great option if you’d like to continue meeting with your therapist in person and receive hands-on therapy from the comfort of your own home.
Concierge in-home physical therapy provides the same level of high-quality care that you receive in our outpatient clinics, but brought to your home. We bring our table, our hands-on cream, weights, bands, TENS unit, and anything else that our patients might need. We are able to deliver the same manual care that our patients receive in the clinic in addition to a personalized, prescriptive exercise program that meets their functional needs.
Another option to continue working with your physical therapist while at home is telehealth via virtual therapy. We value relationship building and one-on-one care at Results, which is why we’ve created virtual physical therapy options that allow our therapists to continue providing expert care to each patient. Our therapists are able to assess your range of motion, demonstrate stretches and personalize a workout plan for you on your mobile or desktop device.
Our physical therapists want to help you to get back to living the life you enjoy without pain! The road to recovery starts with understanding how flexibility and exercise contribute to your overall health currently as well as in the future. We are here to help you strengthen your body, learn about how your body functions, identify areas for improvement and provide expert care.
Connect with a physical therapist and Book an Appointment Today to get recommended insights on how you can incorporate some at-home exercises in your routine safely and get better, faster with physical therapy.
