Because physical therapy isn’t an overnight cure, and because clients don’t want to come into the clinic every time they want to continue their rehabilitation program, there’s a very high likelihood that your physical therapist will set you up with some exercises that you’ll perform on your own between in-clinic sessions. These exercises help to keep your recovery on track, but because you’re on your own, you’ll need to be a little more focused in order to get the most out of your program. With that in mind, we wanted to share some tips for helping you get the most out of your home-based physical therapy program.
Crushing Your Home-Based PT Program
If you’ve been given some exercises or a specific PT plan to perform regularly until your next scheduled visit at the clinic, here are some tips for having a great session even though you don’t have direct oversight from your physical therapist.
- Ask Questions Before You Leave – Before you leave your session at the clinic, make sure you completely understand what’s being asked of you between sessions. Ask for clarification about any exercises you’re being asked to perform. Printouts or reference sheets can make it easier for you to remember which exercises you should be doing at home, and they can provide guidance on how the maneuvers should be performed. Make sure you completely understand how to perform the exercises in your home-based routine before you leave your PT session.
- Carve Out Time – Another piece of advice we have for our clients who are doing home-based rehabilitation programs is to carve out specific time to do your work. Don’t expect to just find time throughout the day, because it’s easy to push off your exercises or forget about them completely. Set aside a specific time each day and commit to becoming a healthier version of yourself. Consistency is key, so carving out a specific time to do your exercises regularly is essential for keeping your rehab on track.
- Focus On A Few Good Exercises – If you’ve been given an exercise sheet with 8-12 exercises on it, there’s a good chance you won’t get through the whole program. If you do get through the program, odds are you didn’t do everything perfectly. Instead of trying to do a bunch of different exercises, it’s oftentimes helpful to just focus on a few good exercises that you can confidently perform correctly from the comfort of your home. Work with your physical therapist to establish 2-4 exercises that you know how to perform that will keep your recovery on track until your next session.
- Set Attainable Goals – Set some personal goals for yourself between in-clinic sessions. When we’re working towards specific goals, we’re more likely to follow through with our commitments. Keep your goals specific, as a vague goal like “I want to become stronger” isn’t much of a motivator. Even if it’s something as simple as “I want to do my exercises every day this week until my next in-clinic session,” it will help fuel you to do your exercises. Set some goals for yourself to keep you coming back for more rehab every day.
- Return With Feedback – Finally, when you come back to the clinic, come back with feedback from your home-based sessions. Be prepared to let your physical therapist know what worked, what didn’t, what was too easy and what proved too challenging. We’ll be happy to work with you to tweak your home-based program as needed so that you can continue to make great strides in your recovery, but we can’t do that as easily if we don’t know how you’re doing with your home-based program.
If you want to kickstart your journey to recovery after an injury or surgery, connect with the team at OrthoRehab Specialists today. Let us develop a recovery program tailored to your specific needs. For more information, reach out to our clinic today at (612) 339-2041.