Maintenance

My wife and I bought a house last fall, one of my hesitations with buying is the required maintenance and the time needed to do so. I take my car to the mechanic every six thousand miles for an oil change, and I see my dentist every six months for a cleaning. They are forms of maintenance that allow me to continue doing what I want to do on a daily basis. The things we use require time and attention, periodic maintenance is what keeps them functioning the ways we need them to. Physical movement also requires maintenance. Over time, without consistent effort, movement can become more difficult, and we may even lose some capabilities.

When I see new patients, it is often due to a loss of some type of movement. Basic movements like walking, or high-level activities like a clean and jerk can be lost without the fundamental strategies. I will typically employ some form of manual therapy to develop a movement sensation, allowing the system to begin to reorganize. Then, I tend to prescribe a low-level activity that reinforces the manual technique and provides a patient with the tool to make a change and get back to their desired activity level. The difficult part then becomes the repeated practice and implementation of the activity into the daily regimen. It isn’t easy, or even fun, but necessary in order to restore the activity that has become lacking.

A lot of folks feel as if it is a waste of time, they could be doing other things like training or playing their sport instead of doing tedious rehab exercises. Granted, they are not usually as enjoyable as playing a sport, neither is taking money out of your paycheck to save for retirement. The time and attention paid to maintaining a capability will most likely pay dividends in the long-term. The sacrifice now, promotes the freedom to choose later.

Austin Ulrich, Physical Therapist