Hindsight is a great thing when used properly but how many of us have realised too late that you:
- should have bought that jacket when you saw it
- serviced the car when you heard that noise or
- paid more attention to the sound coming from the washing machine
and it has ended up costing you more than normal as you said “ah it will be fine”
Well physiotherapy is no different
Here are 5 clear ways to avoid a large physio bill
When you are injured get it seen to within 5 days.
Golden rule 1: is if it is not settling in 5 days you need to book an appointment to see a physio
The longer you leave it, the longer it may take your physio to get you out of pain as you will begin to compensate.
Getting you out of pain is easy but keeping you out of pain when you have compensated for so long, is a harder challenge to overcome.
Use Ice/Heat to help reduce swelling and pain post injury
If you have an acute injury. One where you fall or trip or roll your ankle.
Get ice on it straight away. Not a bag of frozen peas!!
Get a sandwich bag put some ice in it, add some water and place on the injured areas for 20 mins. Ice and water increases the surface areas that needs to be cooled but also reduces the risk of ice burns.
If you are stiff….Get up and move.
We are all guilty of putting up with pain and stiffness but the easiest way to resolve this is to move more often.
If you are unsure of what exercises to do, there are 100s of free mobility videos on youtube that are guided. Pick one that you like and give it a shot.
Never in my entire life has someone said to me they didn’t feel better after doing some exercises.
My arm/leg/ankle feels weak…..then strengthen it.
People are afraid of making things worse if they attempt to strengthen something that feels weak. What we have learned is that it doesn’t really matter what you do if you stay consistent with it and mix up a variety of exercises. This won’t be as laser targeted as a professional athletes gym program but it’s a start. Pick exercises you have done before and try them again.
Do exercises slowly.
When you get back to the gym after an injury, do not go back to the same intensity as before. For the first 3 sessions build back up to a weigh that is comfortable but still leaves you with energy to complete a few more reps in each set. Most importantly go slow with the exercises. Have a tempo and stick to it. It will make you feel like you are weaker that you are as the time the muscle is under tension is longer but that will help the muscle get stronger. Which is the entire point of strengthening.
