What Makes Strength Training and Conditioning Important in Rehabilitation?
Your physical therapy program is customized to meet your needs. Whether you’re looking to reduce pain, prevent injury, or recover from surgery, your physical therapist will create a specialized program to help you meet your goals.
Strength training and conditioning are commonly used in rehabilitation programs. But what makes strength training and conditioning so important to your recovery? And how does it help to improve your mobility? Here, we’ll dive into some of the key reasons why these two types of exercise are often recommended in physical rehabilitation programs.
IMPROVE MOBILITY AND REDUCE PAIN
Strengthening exercises aren’t just a way for you to “bulk up.” Strength and conditioning are specifically used to help build muscle fibers, which can help to improve flexibility and balance. One key way proper strength and conditioning does this is by strengthening the muscles around an injured and recovering area. For instance, if you have runner’s knee, it’s important to strengthen the muscles surrounding the patella to prevent excess pressure from impacting the joint and causing more damage. Strength and conditioning through a physical therapy program can help to boost mobility, improve flexibility, and reduce pain caused by high-impact activity.
IMPROVE JOINT FLEXIBILITY
Injuries to the joints can restrict our range of motion. Joint flexibility is especially important because we use our joints every day to move our arms and legs. As we mentioned above with our runner’s knee example, oftentimes injuries can be caused by a lack of strength in the muscles surrounding a joint. Improving the strength of the muscular tissue around the joint reduces the “tightness” you feel when moving that part of your body. It also helps to reduce inflammation and symptoms of arthritis.
IMPROVE POSTURE
Strength and conditioning aren’t just used to strengthen the muscles around the joints. They’re also great for strengthening the muscles around the spine. Up to 46% of physical therapy patients seek out local physical therapy offices for back pain management. Poor posture can often put unnecessary pressure on the lower back, which can lead to slipped discs, nerve pain, and more. With the help of a spine physical therapist, conditioning can strengthen the muscles in the back to improve your posture and provide your spine with the support it needs.
If you’ve suffered an injury and have been recommended sports physical therapy by your doctor, consider visiting your local physical therapy office at B Physical Therapy. Our physical therapists are certified in CSCS to help make strength and conditioning a customized part of your rehabilitation program. To learn more about our local physical therapy office or to schedule a consultation with us, contact B Physical Therapy today.
