Aquatic Therapy
What is aquatic therapy?
Aquatic therapy is just physical therapy in the water. It’s a pretty simple concept with a lot of benefits! Most of the exercises you might do in water are the same as the ones you do on land - such as walking, squatting, cycling, kicks, resistance. Weights used for resistance exercise in water are not the same as regular weights. They’re typically made of foam but don’t let that fool you! Once you start trying to move those things around under the water, you’ll feel your body working. Exercising in the water can also have great mental health benefits. Many people find water to be soothing, especially during therapeutic exercise when the most comfortable temperature possible is typically used.
Who benefits from aquatic therapy?
Many, many individuals can benefit from aquatic therapy, either as a focus of their exercise program or as an addition to their regular exercise. People with osteoarthritis who experience a significant amount of pain when trying to perform exercises on land may find the low impact of water therapy more useful for making progress toward their physical fitness goals. Individuals with degenerative joint disease or knee, ankle, or foot injuries can find similar benefits. People who have difficulties with metabolic balance might also find aquatic exercise to be better for them. For example, if someone would use more glucose than their body makes in order to do 10 squats on land, they can do that exercise in water so their muscles, heart, and lungs get the activity they need to get stronger without overtaxing the person’s metabolic needs. Water therapy can also be useful for people who have trouble balancing, overuse injuries, traumatic brain injuries, cardiovascular conditions, and much more.
Image obtained from Adobe Stock.
On the flip side, aquatic therapy is not the best choice for some people. For example, open skin lesions may be at risk for infection, especially in changing rooms. Your PT will be able to work with you to figure out what exercise environments are right for you.
Many people enjoy aquatic therapy so much that they’re disappointed when their first session or 2 ends! Your PT will also work with you to make sure your treatment sessions are the right length to get in effective exercise without overtaxing your body.
Can you use any water?
I am not 100% sure on this one. I do know that pools are, by far, the water of choice for aquatic therapy. With pools, there’s a lot more control over the environment so PTs can make sure it’s as safe as possible and they can use a wider variety of equipment. In most therapy pools, the water temperature and depth can be regulated, underwater treadmills and special transfer lifts can be used, there may be bars to hold, ramps, and much more. It’s possible that a PT working with an athlete who enjoys open water swimming might choose to do some therapy in open water but I think that would be a very rare and specialized case.
If you enjoyed this topic and would like to know more, check out these sites:
Choose PT - Aquatic Therapy (podcast to listen to!)
Aquatic Therapy - Pardee at UNC
Have you ever participated in aquatic therapy? Or aquatic exercise classes? I’d love to hear about your experience!
