Here is the video we created that explains this process in case you would rather watch than read:
The pressure of hydrostatics
First, water generates hydrostatic pressure, which implies that the water's force will press against the limbs to enhance circulation and alleviate edema. The fact that it lessens joint stress is actually the greatest advantage. A large number of our patients who utilize the pool struggle due to knee, back, or other joint pain. Therefore, compared to being on land, we can do a lot more exercise and the body experiences a lot less stress when we are in the water.
Floatiness of water
The water's buoyancy lessens the strain on your body's joints and other components. Standing in water that is chest deep reduces joint tension by about 50%, while standing in water that is waist deep reduces joint stress by around 25%. The water will exert continuous pressure on your movement while you exercise in it.
Resistance that regulates itself
The water's continual resistance is one of its benefits; the more force you exert against it, the more force the water will return. Simply moving more slowly will reduce the amount of resistance. You can therefore choose how taxing the activity is on your body.
The Workouts
Let me now demonstrate some exercises for you to perform. In there, you can simply enjoy yourself. You don't have to do it daily. Almost daily exercise is beneficial, but it's also acceptable to give your body a break. Therefore, three to five times a week would be suitable, and it might just take five to ten minutes at a time to perform some fundamental exercises that will help you move and build strength without being too hot.
Leg lift laterally
Actually, the first exercise we're performing here is for the hips. Our amazing learner is swinging his leg in and out, as you can see. This works the hip muscles, especially the abductors, which are located on the outside of the hip and are crucial for strength, stability, and walking. Up to 15, 20, or 25 could be done. You merely want to push yourself sufficiently by managing the speed—how quickly and forcefully you push against the water—but 75 is too much. Therefore, how hard you want to work on that is essentially up to you.
Aquatic rear leg lift and hip extension
Actually, a small amount of forward and backward kick action is the next workout. Once more, strengthening your hip muscles and slightly strengthening your back for stability.You should avoid stooping too much, as this can strain your back and other structures. Just concentrate on the main hip muscles. You have control over the speed once more. Aim for 15–25 repetitions. You might want to perform multiple sets. You could alternate between left side, right side, left side, and right side. Change things around to give your muscles time to rest and recuperate as well as enjoy a decent workout.
Raising the forward leg through aquatic hip flexion
This is comparable. In fact, if you wanted to, you could mix these around a bit. He is concentrating on hip flexion's forward motion. It's also possible to be moving both forward and backward at the same time. To help you understand the forward and backward motion a little better, we've sort of broken it out. This is an excellent workout to strengthen your hips and move your entire leg.
As we previously stated, water exercises are more enjoyable, and 15–25 repetitions would be suitable. Can you see how much fun he is having?
Squats in the pool
This is an excellent one. There are several reasons why squats are beneficial. Many of the muscles that keep you strong are targeted by them, including the gluteal muscles and the muscles in your legs, front, and back. These muscles are used for walking, climbing stairs, getting in and out of seats, and other activities. It goes without saying that performing them in the water is easier on the body and joints. In full gravity, or on land, many people are unable to squat so deeply, but they are able to move much more in the water.
Complex kickboard push/pull
The following exercise involves just pushing a kickboard back and forth. Although it may appear that the arms are performing a large portion of this work, your core muscles are actually the main muscles involved. Your back muscles and your abdominal muscles. The pressure exerted by the arms propelling the kickboard through the water must be resisted by them. In order to achieve a powerful, secure, and neutral position, you want to tighten your midsection.You want to get your back and spine in a really strong, solid, and neutral position by tightening up your midsection. Simply press back and forth. Though it's not the main goal of the exercise, the arms will get a workout.
PNF
In reality, this exercise is a mixture of the last one in which we swung sideways and forward. He's actually using a diagonal approach in this instance. He is slightly shifting his leg from side to side and forward and backward. He's adding a small element there, if you can see it: he's slightly rotating his foot. We're aiming to combine three planes of motion across the hip rather than simply one at a time since the hip moves in three different planes. Not just side to side, not just forward and back, but all three at once, which is excellent for building a lot of muscle. As you cross, the goal would be to slightly turn the foot outward and turn the toes inward. Even though he isn't doing much of anything in this video, he is effectively engaging a lot of muscles via a variety of planes of motion.
Advances
In this instance, he is merely performing a simple step-up by using the pool step as a ledge. Because the buoyancy of the water relieves some of the stress, this would be an excellent method for folks who have trouble climbing stairs to be able to accomplish it without having to work as hard. With a little less overall resistance, your body can do the task entirely on its own. It would be appropriate to perform 15–25 reps before switching sides. See if you can acquire a second set if the first one doesn't cause enough exhaustion. Enough left, right, left, right to test those muscles, strengthen them, and make them exert a little more effort. As you can see, he is concentrating only on his legs performing the effort rather than clinging to the rail or depending on it to do the majority of the work. You can even advance from the first step to the second, which will be more difficult because there is less water buoyancy and more gravity, if you're feeling good about your life.
To sum up, those are some fundamental aquatic therapy exercises that may be performed; they are excellent for general body and leg strengthening as well as for simply enjoying a decent workout with minimal strain on your body.
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