The holiday season can be a hectic time, and if you’re not careful, this time of year can actually be hard on your health. Fortunately, physical therapy can work wonders at minimizing or managing some of the most common sources of stress this holiday season. In today’s blog, we share five ways that physical therapy can make the holidays a little easier on your health.
PT Can Counter Common Holiday Problems
Let’s explore some of the ways that the holiday season can be hard on your health and talk through how physical therapy can help you overcome these issues.
- Weight Gain– Whether you’re munching on some Christmas cookies or sneaking a snack out of your stocking by the fire, it’s easy for your diet to get derailed during the holiday season. Gaining weight can put additional stress on your lower body and the joints you use most. Physical therapy can help you stay active and burn calories so that you can maintain or even lose a little weight during the holidays.
- Decreased Movement– When the temperatures drop, it’s easier to stay inside where it’s warm instead of going outside to exercise or driving to the gym. It’s normal to become a little less active during the winter, but this can cause problems for muscles and joints that rely on regular stress to keep them healthy. Moreover, a decrease in activity can also lead to an increase in weight. Physical therapy exercises keep you active during the winter and ensure that your body is less affected by the colder winter months. We can also help you develop healthy exercise or dietary habits so that you can navigate the health challenges posed by the holiday season.
- Stress– Under the surface of holiday cheer, the winter season can be quite stressful. As we’ve talked about on the blog in the past, stress can take a physical, mental and emotional toll on your body and your health. Let your physical therapist help you find a healthy way to manage and alleviate the effects of stress. It’s impossible to eliminate all sources of stress from your life, but if you learn how to better manage stress when it manifests, you can lessen its impact on your health.
- New Year’s Resolutions – Health-focused goals are the most common New Year’s resolutions that are made heading into January, but they are also the resolutions most likely to fall by the wayside. You can make it easier to stick with your health-focused resolutions by connecting with a physical therapist. We can help develop a fun and engaging exercise routine that keeps you motivated to continue coming back for more. Physical therapy centers around helping clients hit their goals, and resolutions are basically a goal you have for yourself, so let us help cultivate a plan that helps you achieve your fitness goals.
- Seasonal Injuries – Finally, we can also help you overcome any seasonal injuries that may develop this winter. Whether you slipped on a patch of ice, wiped out on the skiing hill or experienced an unexpected collision on the ice rink, we can develop a rehabilitation plan that sees you make a strong and speedy recovery. Don’t spend the holiday season indoors because you’re slowly recovering from an injury. Connect with a physical therapist and let us develop a recovery program tailored to your specific needs that helps you get back to all the activities you love sooner.
For help with any physical issue this winter or any time of the year, reach out to the team at OrthoRehab Specialists today at (612) 339-2041.