While searching for a “recommended chiropractor near me” online, you probably came across rehabilitative exercise, which could be one of the recommendations of a physical therapist or chiropractor, depending on your specific condition and situation. Unlike regular exercise, rehabilitative exercise is designed to restore you to full health after an injury or surgery.

Understanding rehabilitative exercise 

Unlike regular exercise done to maintain health, rehabilitative exercise is a treatment that will help a patient recover their strength following an injury that hampered their ability to perform their daily tasks.

• It focuses on making you stronger and returning you to your full form before you were injured. 
• Combined with other forms of therapy, it can help decrease pain, increase strength, boost flexibility, and improve joint mobility. 
• While it’s primarily designed to help regain strength after an injury and improve flexibility following a surgery, it can also help with arthritis, skeletal problems, chronic pain, and fibromyalgia. 

How does rehabilitative exercise strengthen your body? 

After injury or surgery, the affected part of the body tends to weaken or even experience atrophy. Before things worsen, rehabilitation is done to speed up recovery and make your body stronger. 

• Rehabilitative exercise is like the EMDR therapy you need when you’re overwhelmed and exhausted. It involves a variety of methods that target affected areas of your body to restore them. These include stretching, weight training, chiropractic care, and exercise plans.
• Depending on your condition and determination, recovery can either happen quickly or gradually. 
• Rehabilitation first works on reducing pain and swelling, followed by slowly building up your strength through different activities. These include step-ups, pelvic tilts, and hamstring curls.

Essential aspects of rehabilitative exercise 

Strength training 

• It helps improve muscle strength, especially around the problem area. People with a chronic musculoskeletal condition can also benefit from strength training.
• Overall strength is achieved through a combination of different exercises and tools, such as resistance and body weight exercises. 

Functional movements 

• The training involved helps you regain the ability to perform everyday tasks that may have been hindered after an injury. 
• Functional training focuses on the muscles necessary to walk up the stairs, change clothes, or even clean the home. 

Balance exercises 

Your range of motion and movement can be affected after an injury or due to certain conditions like osteoarthritis. 

• Rehabilitative exercise helps you regain balance and improve stability by strengthening your core muscles. 
• Some of the activities involved are weight shifts, single-leg balance, bicep curls for balance, and tai chi for balance.

Range-of-motion exercises 

The goal is to help improve joint function that may have been affected by an injury, surgical procedure, or certain conditions. 

• The exercises are carried out to help a patient gently and gradually increase the range of movement in joints and muscles.
• Range of motion exercises can be passive, active, or active assistive, depending on your specific needs. A passive range of motion exercise, for example, uses an assistive device or is performed with the help of a therapist to help a patient regain or maintain joint flexibility. 

Whether you were injured or suffering from a chronic musculoskeletal condition, rehabilitative exercises can boost your health and well-being. Even the simplest idea of living independently despite an injury can greatly contribute to your confidence. If you’re looking for a chiropractor to assist you with rehabilitative exercise, Injury Relief Chiropractic (Digital Distinct) is the company you can trust.

Adam Mulligan, a psychology graduate from the University of Hertfordshire, has a keen interest in the fields of mental health, wellness, and lifestyle.