DEFINITION
It is the set of movements, postures and activities that allow the physiotherapist to improve or restore a function lost by the patient or prevent its dysfunction.
It consists of the use of exercises of:
- “Elongation”
- Joint mobility exercises
- Strenght
- Equilibrium
- Breathing
The role of the therapist is fundamental: he is the one who, in addition to creating a personalized program for the patient adequate to his abilities and health conditions, must help him put it into practice by checking that the execution and the correct sequence are carried out with appropriate intensity, speed, duration and recovery phase, in a safe environment and with adequate spaces.
“Stretching” exercises
The classic stretching exercises. They can be carried out in different ways, at different times, with loads to be adapted to the goal you want to achieve with the patient. The term “stretch” is improper because in reality most of the time you do not really stretch the muscle fibers, but you simply improve the way in which the muscle, its fascial system and the nervous system respond to reaching different positions in which all these systems must be able to slide to accompany the joint throughout its range of motion in a free and painless way.
Joint mobility exercises
These are exercises and methods of execution that allow you to work more precisely on the movement of the joint in order to improve flexibility.
The function of joint mobility is to: • mobilize the joint within its specific range; • Stabilize the joint within its physiological seat, both in static and in dynamic; • Coordinate the various joints that collaborate in unison for the execution of compound and complex movements, stabilizing some and mobilizing others based on the specificity of the movement being performed.
Force
Very often this is what classic rehabilitation programs lack: the development of strength. In some cases it becomes essential to be able to resolve a pathology such as chronic tendinitis. Strength exercises applied correctly are the only ones capable of modifying the structure of the tendon.
Equilibrium
The recovery of balance becomes essential to complete a trauma / operation rehabilitation of the lower limbs or to complete a vestibular rehabilitation.
Breathing
Breathing is essential at every stage of rehabilitation. Often targeted breathing exercises can make a difference in many problems and support adequate recovery, especially with disorders related to stress and the temporo mandibular joint.