THERAPEUTIC EXERCISES aimed ultimately at optimising/ improving FUNCTION and QUALITY OF LIFE are a main focus of physiotherapy treatments. Therapeutic exercises address the following areas:
- FLEXIBILITY (upper and lower limb, spinal/torso musculature, all other connective tissues). This allows for balanced muscle action around the joints, optimum joint range of motion, and lack of excess tension in all of the body’s tissues (muscle, ligament, tendon, fascia, respiratory and pelvic diaphragm, viscera/organs, nerves-spinal/peripheral).
- STRENGTH (core, legs/arms/spinal/pelvic floor musculature)
- CARDIOVASCULAR FITNESS
- ENDURANCE
- COORDINATION
- PROPRIOCEPTION – this refers in part, to the body’s ability to tell what position our body parts are in without the use of vision. For example, in the dark you lift your arm up and you know that without being able to see your arm. This is especially important for many areas of function, one example being when you are walking on uneven ground, such as in a field, the proprioceptor nerve endings continuously feed information to the brain on the position of the foot and ankle, helping to prevent ankle sprains from occurring, by activating the appropriate muscles in the lower limb to prevent excessive motion at the ankle joint. When someone does suffer an ankle sprain, this proprioceptor function often has to be specifically targeted with appropriate exercises to prevent recurrent ankle sprains occurring, which is a very commonly occurring result of an ankle sprain. This applies to all joints, i.e.recurrent knee and shoulder sprains after the initial event.
- BONE DENSITY/STRENGTH
- EXERCISES TO HELP REDUCE PRESSURE ON BULGING SPINAL DISCS – McKenzie Approach
- RELAXATION