While working with seniors on a travel therapy assignment, it's likely that you'll alter some of the rehabilitation exercises used in each session. This is a great way to ensure that patients are building strength and range of motion, and it also limits the likelihood of injury. Some seniors may be hesitant to keep up their physical activity following rehab, but you can provide them with some alternative options – rather than having them settle for NEAT exercises.
Adjusting a workout routine
As we age, so do our joints. This may make it more difficult for a once frequent runner to keep his or her routine. Reuters encourages seniors to focus on strength training in order to build lean body mass, which can help alleviate that stiffness and improve recovery time following an injury.
"We recommend approximately 20 to 30 minutes of resistance exercises two to three times a week," Dr. Wayne Westcott, co-author of "Strength Training Past 50," told the source. "Then try to have an equal amount of aerobic activity four to five days a week."
On travel PT jobs, this can prove to be extremely beneficial information. While the goal of your rehab sessions with patients is generally to focus on rebuilding strength in a certain part of the body, you can also act as an advocate for senior wellness. Too many aging adults get in the mindset that there's no need for working out, but it can have a number of health benefits.
Advantages of exercising as a senior
Once someone reaches their golden years, they are more likely to suffer from some type of health issue. However, those who are 65 years or older, are generally fit and aren't suffering from some type of limiting medical problem should maintain their workout routines for a variety of reasons. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention pointed out that even 10 minutes at a time can improve the wellness of a senior. Depending on the capabilities of the patients you are working with on travel physical therapy assignments, you may want to encourage one of these routines:
- 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity aerobic activity weekly and two or more days a week of muscle-strengthening workouts
- 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity and two or more days a week of muscle-strengthening exercises
- Between 75 minutes and 150 minutes of aerobic activity that ranges from vigorous- to moderate-intensity and two or more days of muscle-strengthening activities
Be sure to drive home the point that 150 minutes works out to be a little more than 20 minutes per day, if the patient is exercising on a daily basis. Additionally, those 20 minutes can be broken down to two 10-minute workouts.
There are some things you will want to keep in mind when recommending an exercise routine for your patients, such as age, history of heart disease, respiratory issues, blood pressure levels, any medications being taken and any other past medical issues. So, before their rehab is complete, make sure to keep an open dialog with those you are treating as a travel PT. You may be successful in creating healthy habits that outlast your sessions with them.