How Strength Training Can Help You Become Healthier and Stronger
Everyone desires to be healthier, stronger, and more active. This may feel difficult to accomplish sometimes due to pain, injuries, or poor diets. Pain increases undesirable chemicals in your body that cause stress, creating a challenge when it comes to exercise. All of this also affects your endocrine system, which regulates your hormones and controls almost everything happening in your body. Fortunately, strengthening and conditioning exercises can effectively ease your pain while simultaneously strengthening the affected part(s) of your body.
Our highly trained therapists in Collingwood, Stayner and Wasaga Beach, ON can create a personalized strength training plan for your needs and goals. They have the right knowledge and the time to listen, evaluate, and guide you toward a pain-free, stronger, and healthier lifestyle. Request an appointment with Peak To Shore Physiotherapy today to learn more and start a new chapter on a healthier you!
Strength, flexibility, and conditioning
There are approximately 642 skeletal muscles in the body. This means that your strength and flexibility play an important role in your health. Your muscles not only help you move, but they support your circulatory and breathing systems. A stronger and more flexible you means a healthier you. Relieving joint or muscle pain and guiding you on proper strength training exercises are integral parts of our specialized therapy treatments.
Strength training helps in building muscle mass, and it is typically the final step in a rehabilitation treatment process. Whether you are recovering from an injury or an underlying condition that is causing you pain, resistance training will help you get back to your optimum physical performance.
Muscle conditioning is an essential part of staying healthy and fit. Therapeutic exercises incorporate a combination of strengthening, stretching, and aerobic conditioning are a central component of almost any treatment plan.
When you engage in a regular program of gentle exercises, you can recover more quickly from pain and are less likely to have future episodes of pain. Muscle conditioning exercises usually focus on three key areas: strengthening, stretching, and aerobic conditioning. Below are a few examples of muscle conditioning exercises you will experience at Peak To Shore Physiotherapy in Collingwood, Stayner and Wasaga Beach, ON.
Strengthening exercises
Many exercises can help strengthen the spinal column and the supporting muscles, ligaments, and tendons. Most of these back exercises focus not only on the lower back, but also on the abdominal (stomach) muscles and gluteus (buttock), and hip muscles. Strong core muscles can provide pain relief because they support the spine, keeping it in alignment and facilitating movements that extend or twist the spine with less chance of injury or damage.
Stretching exercises
Stretching is usually recommended to alleviate pain. Stretches are designed to target muscles that cause pain when they are tight and inflexible. Hamstring stretching is almost always an important part of an exercise program. Most people do not stretch these muscles, which extend from the pelvis to the knee in the back of the thigh, in their daily activities.
Another stretch that is often helpful in easing sciatica is the Bird Dog move: After getting on their hands and knees, individuals extend one arm and the opposite leg. The arm and leg extensions are then alternated. A more advanced version of this exercise is the Plank Bird Dog move, in which the extensions are done once the person is in the plank position on their hands and toes.
Low-impact aerobic exercise
Some form of low-impact cardiovascular exercise, such as walking, swimming, or pool therapy is usually a component of recovery, as aerobic activity encourages the exchange of fluids and nutrients to help create a better healing environment. Aerobic conditioning also has the unique benefit of releasing endorphins, the body’s natural pain killers, which help reduce sciatic pain.
These types of muscle conditioning exercises may be done separately or in combination. If you are suffering from pain and need treatment, contact Peak To Shore Physiotherapy to schedule an appointment and return to a pain-free, active lifestyle.
What does it take to be healthier?
Health is a relative term. It means that your body is operating at a high normal range in all the different systems from circulation, breathing, digestion, and more. Anything you can do to help your body achieve more of an ideal state is a step towards a healthier you.
At Peak To Shore Physiotherapy, our strength training programs will get you back on track to living a happy and healthy lifestyle. Our therapists will design a treatment plan with the best exercises for an effective and speedy recovery.
These exercises will be dependent upon which part(s) of your body is in need of strengthening. This may include bodyweight exercises (such as squats, push-ups, or planks) or exercises using additional tools (such as barbells, resistance bands, exercise balls, or hand weights).
7 tips for a healthier, stronger, and more active you:
Strength training is an important part of reaching your peak physical potential, but there are other health and wellness techniques to keep in mind while you’re doing so:
- Limit your sitting: Get up every 30 minutes and walk around at work and home. Prolonged periods of sitting can cause muscles to stiffen up and become weaker.
- Get up and move: Exercise regularly, even if it’s just walking for a short time every day. Moving will help keep your muscles loose and will avoid losing their strength.
- Nutrition and portion control: Keep your intake of food nutritious, at a comfortable level. Fueling your body with the correct foods will increase your energy and make it easier to exercise.
- Drink more water: Water keeps your body systems functioning at their optimum levels. This will also make exercise (and muscle recovery!) much easier.
- Breathe: Work on your deep breathing techniques to increase oxygen intake and get your lymphatic system moving.
- Get enough sleep: Sleep at least 8 hours a day. It is best to get into a routine so you go to bed and wake up on a regular cycle. This helps your endocrine system, which controls several aspects of your body.
- Take care of aches and pains: Don’t let any long-term problems linger. Get professional help at Peak To Shore Physiotherapy by scheduling an appointment today!
Are you ready for a change?
Peak To Shore Physiotherapy is here to help you with all your strength & conditioning needs. Contact us today to schedule your appointment and get back to a more active you!