For me this is where the power of positive thinking comes in. The benefits of exercise are very powerful and I often have to remind myself before and during my exercise routin First I think of how much better I feel physically and the sense of accomplishment I feel when I finish. The more I exercise the stronger & more flexible my muscles are improving my back pain and reducing my risk of injury especially at my age. I have better balance reducing my risk of falling. My energy level is higher and I can keep up with my grandson.  Not to mention all the other health benefits (weight management, lower blood pressure, raise “good” cholesterol, etc). So here are some other ideas to help you stay on track.

1. Have a plan. This maybe a home exercise program that your Physical Therapist developed with you. It could be one you design. The important thing is that you know what you will be doing, how often and what your goals are.

2. Rethink your current routine. If you go for coffee every Sunday, try walking instead of driving. Are there other ways to fit iexercise into your daily routine?

3. Choose physical activities that you like. You will be more likely to keep doing it if you enjoy it.

4. Switch things up and make gradual progressions to your plan. This helps with boredo and keeps the continum of fitness going.

5. Ask family and friends to do exercises with you. Scheduling a exercise time with othe can be motivating.

6. Remember to talk to your Physical Therapist if something is not working or you are ready to move forward with the exercises. Use the professional staff you have available keep your exercise routine on track.

Think Positive, you can do it!

How are those New Year’s resolutions going? is a post from: Physical Therapy Services in Arvada, Colorado ~ Accelerate Physical Therapy

Remember, physical therapy is a process. Seven days a week, you will need to exercise and treat yourself outside of this clinic to relieve the pain and stiffness commonly associated with injuries. We will follow your case until you are well or able to manage without us.

We will provide you with mechanisms and ideas for self treatment. Included among these may be instruction at public fitness centers. We can also help you find the equipment you need for self management and progressive training as Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialists.

About the Author:
Ross Hutchinson, PT, CSCS, has been actively involved in Colorado physical therapy since 1991.
You can contact Ross at his Arvada, Colorado office.

Take Charge of Your Recovery! is a post from: Physical Therapy Services in Arvada, Colorado ~ Accelerate Physical Therapy

Prone Knee Extension

When you can bear weight (check if you are on an ACL protocol), and when you can tolerate pressure through the patellar tendon, move on to this exercise in order to recruit more muscle fibers.  Contact with the ground through the toe placement teaches important “proprioceptors”.  Transition to normal balance and gait depend upon your active stimulation of these muscles and tendons.

Prone Knee Extension with Hip Extension

Standing Knee Extension

Early Knee Exercise is a post from: Physical Therapy Services in Arvada, Colorado ~ Accelerate Physical Therapy

With recent improvements in implant fixation and wear reduction, 95 percent of orthopaedic surgeons who responded to a survey say they place no limitations on swimming, golf, walking on even surfaces, bicycling on level surfaces, or climbing stairs when recommending activities for patients with a well-functioning total hip replacement (THR) or total knee replacement (TKR). Higher-impact activities are more commonly discouraged, and there is a trend towards more activity restrictions following successful TKR.

Nearly all respondents strongly encouraged low-impact activity, patients were discouraged from jogging, difficult skiing, and singles tennis. None of the respondents indicated that they had strong scientific evidence for their recommendations.

Dr. Swanson and his co-researchers, Frederick Dorey, PhD, and Thomas P. Schmalzried, MD, are with the department of orthopaedic surgery at the University of California Los Angeles.

In a different review “Athletic Activity after Total Joint Arthroplasty,” published in the October 2008 issue of the Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery.  This study was conducted by William L. Healy, MD; Sanjeev Sharma, MD; Benjamin Schwartz, MD; and Richard Iorio, MD—documents a trend for hip and knee surgeons to allow more athletic activity after joint replacement, but notes that no good evidence exists to support this trend.

 “High levels of activity may compromise the durability of joint replacement and reduce implant survival,” says Dr. Healy, the lead researcher. “Implant wear has been shown to be related to how much the joint is used as opposed to the length of time the artificial joint has been in place.”

Innovations such as alternative bearing surfaces, large femoral heads, hip resurfacing, unicompartmental knee replacement, mobile-bearing knee replacement, and high-flexion knee replacement offer the potential for high-demand function with low rates of failure, but these potential benefits have not been proven, the study reports.

“We need to keep in mind that surgeons and patients often assess the success of joint replacement differently,” Dr. Healy says. “Surgeons look at pain, function, survivorship, and the need for revision surgery, while patients consider their pain and activity. If the joint allows them to play their favorite sport without pain, they may not be concerned about needing an additional surgery in the future.”

Unlimited low-impact activity ‘OK’ after Total Joint Replacement is a post from: Physical Therapy Services in Arvada, Colorado ~ Accelerate Physical Therapy

Whether the need is to improve strength, restore range of motion, promote soft tissue healing, reduce inflammatory conditions, or to improve body awareness one form of exercise or another can be used to facilitate changes. Here are some exercise facts:

• Exercise helps to reduce pain in joints because muscle balances normalize and improve the joint’s ability to move correctly and therefore reducing joint friction, stress and joint instability in dynamic activities.
• Exercise helps maintain bone integrity by reducing decalcification of bones in those individuals who find themselves less active or who were never athletically minded.
• Exercise helps improve the condition of all cells in the body, including the skin. The profusion of blood through all tissue has a restorative value. We encourage cardiovascular activity to promote the well being of the integumentary system.
• Bowel and bladder functions are greatly enhanced through the use of exercise of the trunk, hips and legs. Exercise of the pelvis and the lower trunk can help to improve elimination and the tone of musculature helps in management of conditions such as incontinence.
• Exercise helps strengthen the cardiovascular system, improves circulation and builds endurance, as well as reducing swelling that may be chronic in inactive individual lower extremities.
• Exercise aids in the prevention of atrophy of the muscles of the trunk muscles, and those of the upper and lower extremities.
• Exercise decreases muscle spasms and restrictions in mobility.
• Exercise helps to lessen the progressive effects of gravity, including poor posture, functional scoliosis and pain associated with the irritation of soft tissue.
• Exercise is very effective when used in the treatment of tendonitis and epicondylitis conditions such as tennis elbow through emphasis of eccentric or negative contractions.
• Unloading techniques using suspension devices, aquatic exercise and/or incremental weight bearing allows higher repetitions to promote accelerated return to normal and athletic activities.

These are ideas that provide natural, inexpensive means to achieve rehabilitation, prevention and wellness milestones

Exercise Cures Common Health Problems is a post from: Physical Therapy Services in Arvada, Colorado ~ Accelerate Physical Therapy

Recent discussion suggests the need for firmer soles, based on the premise that running shoes offer too much cushion.  Changing your running style to foot flat or forward on the foot may take concentration, but improves the whole leg’s ability to absorb shock..  If you exercise on a treadmill, elevate the incline 5% to easily learn this technique, and perhaps instantly reduce your pain.

When you land on your heels, you are decelerating, or braking. Stay off your heels, and avoid slapping your feet. To run faster, lean forward, leading with your chin, holding your spine straight with core muscles. This puts the center of gravity in front of the planted, or stance leg. The more you lean, the faster you MUST move.

Learning to run is well managed by speed coaches who help teach athletes to recognize inefficient running in others and to take responsibility for their own peculiarities. Some people say you can’t coach speed, but athletes with talent and horrible techniques are prime arguments to the contrary. Becoming stronger while the season progresses (with speed training and progressive weight training) are the key elements of our most famous success stories.

Exercise/Jog/Run Off Your Heels is a post from: Physical Therapy Services in Arvada, Colorado ~ Accelerate Physical Therapy