If you need to have physical therapy, but it's inconvenient or difficult for you to go to a clinic, consider in-home physical therapy. You'll get the same treatments you would get in a hospital, rehab center, or clinic, but you'll be treated in the comfort of your home. The only difference is you won't have access to exercise equipment, but your therapist can adapt to working without it. They'll bring a table and small equipment when it's needed. Here are things your physical therapist might help you with.
Build Strength For Daily Activities
If you're weak due to a medical condition or surgery, the therapist may start slowly by teaching you how to move from your bed to a chair and take small walks. If it's safe for you to do so and you have help, the therapist may encourage you to add a few steps each time you walk. They can arrange for you to have the equipment you need, such as a walker, so you can get around safely and build muscles that help you stay mobile.
Recover From An Injury Or Surgery
In-home physical therapy might involve using weights to build muscles that are weak after an injury. The therapist might also use things around your home, such as stairs, to help with muscle-building and joint movement. They can even use your own body weight to help with recovery.
One of the things the therapist might do is make a program for you to follow between visits so you know what to do every day on your own to help speed your recovery. Your program may include walking, walking on stairs if you have them, exercising, and stretching. The therapist teaches you the proper technique so you do the exercises in a way that doesn't cause pain or harm.
Improve Your Balance
If you have a hard time with your balance, you're at a higher risk of falling. This could make you more sedentary, and being too sedentary isn't good for your health and fitness. In-home physical therapy may help your balance problem so you can feel more confident about moving around your home even if you need to use a walker or some other aid. Taking therapy at home in your own surroundings is beneficial since it teaches you to control your balance in the same setting you'll be living in daily.
The therapist might also show you things to do around your home, such as removing area rugs, that make it safer for you to walk. They may also teach you exercises that help with posture and muscle strength. They can also provide balance training to help you regain your sense of balance or compensate for the loss as well as possible so you can avoid falling.
Contact a local in-home physical therapy provider to learn more.
Do you prefer to exercise at a gym or outside of a gym? There's no right or wrong answer here. It's mostly a matter of personal preference. Some people really find the gym environment to be motivating and enriching. Others prefer the fresh air and the great outdoors; they feel to confined in the gym.
We are not here to knock your exercise preferences, whatever they may be. On this blog, we write for anyone who loves exercise, and even for those who are trying to improve their relationship with exercise. Read a few articles, and we think you may feel more inspired to get moving.