21 May How do You Measure Up? Three PT Check Points Explained

You my not think about seeing a physical therapist until an acute injury demands it; however, there are three factors that you can assess right now, at home, to see if you’d benefit by seeing a physical therapist before injury comes knocking on your door. These factors are what can affect your job, recreation, and overall quality-of-life – and the good news is, it’s what physical therapists help improve every day! 

• Range-of-motion: Your range-of-motion refers to how far and freely you can move a joint or other body part. Your physical therapist will know what your ideal range-of-motion should be, and you’ll probably have a pretty good idea yourself. Home Check: Move or stretch normally and see if you notice any areas that feel stiff, tight, or where you feel like it’s harder to move. Is it harder to rotate your left ankle? Do you have trouble bending certain directions? That’s something to notice.

• Mobility: This means how mobile you are – whether you’re walking well, or if moving is a bit of a struggle. Home Check: Do you feel confident when walking? Are you afraid of falling? Do you avoid moving because you’re afraid of injury? These are all things to note.

• Pain: Pain is something we’ve likely all experienced, in one form or another. Sometimes it’s part of a short-term reaction and other times it becomes a droning background noise in our lives. Home Check: Are you dealing with a new injury? How often does pain interrupt your activities? Does pain disrupt your sleep? Is pain leftover from an old injury? Identifying pain can be the first step to addressing it.

Many people who would benefit from physical therapy are experiencing issues in one or more of these areas. In fact, the same way that you ensure good health by visiting your doctor for a physical once a year, you can address concerns and set goals with a physical therapist at an annual PT wellness check. A physical therapist is an expert in the musculoskeletal system, and will work with you to help you make progress on improving range-of-motion, mobility, confidence in your movement, and pain reduction.

If you’ve done a check at home and noticed that you have some tight areas, you’re not moving as well as you could, or you have some pain that’s slowing you down, the good news is that you don’t have to accept it! In fact, almost everyone who works with their physical therapist and on their physical therapy sees improvement! If seeing a physical therapist may help, at Body One, we can even see patients at home thanks to Tele-PT remote appointments. Call to find out how you can see a PT from the comfort of your own home!

If you’re ready to improve how you feel, Body One Physical Therapy is here to help. We’re locally-owned and operated, with three locations serving Central Indianapolis: North Indianapolis/Carmel, Fishers, and Zionsville. Find out how physical therapy with Indiana’s best PT practice can change your life, call Body One today!