Wellness Benefits of a Hydrotherapy Pool
Often under professional supervision, hydrotherapy pools provide both physical and emotional wellness advantages. Using warm water to relax tense muscles mitigates pain and increases range of motion.
Unlike traditional concrete pools, the EWAC Medical stainless steel modular pool has a movable floor allowing therapists to adjust water depth for different therapeutic exercises and even an underwater treadmill optimizing aquatic gait training with less joint stress.
Relaxation
The warm water soothes the muscles of your body and promotes relaxation. It’s known to decrease stress and anxiety levels which can then help alleviate pain and increase range of motion. It also increases the release of endorphins which are natural stress and anxiety reducers. This helps improve mood overall and can aid in reducing symptoms of depression too.
The buoyancy of the water in a hydrotherapy pool reduces your effective body weight by up to 80%. This means that when you are exercising in the water, you can perform exercises at a greater intensity than on land. This is ideal for those with joint and muscle pain, spinal cord injuries, or those who have difficulty moving on their own.
Just like any exercise program, it’s best to consult with your doctor first to see if hydrotherapy is right for you. This will ensure that you don’t push yourself too hard in the water and that you’re safe to participate. It’s also important to listen to your body and stop if you start feeling uncomfortable or overheated.
The warm water in a hydrotherapy pool also allows for hydrotherapy pool increased blood flow throughout the body. This can help improve circulation and heal wounds. However, if you have any open wounds, severe osteoporosis or bleeding disorders, prolonged treatments with warm water should be avoided.
Strengthening
With the help of warm water, hydrotherapy exercise promotes a general level of fitness and helps to alleviate pain. It also aids muscle relaxation, reducing tension in the body and easing movement. This can reduce the risk of delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) after workouts.
Water buoyancy can reduce body weight by up to 80% when submerged up to the chest, meaning clients can move with more ease than on land. This helps to increase the range of motion and decrease the risk of injury while increasing balance and confidence. Additionally, water resistance can provide up to 15 times more strength than on land, strengthening muscles while providing a natural form of training without putting too much strain on the joints.
While some people feel achy after hydrotherapy sessions, this is normal as the body is adapting to the new stresses it’s being put under. As long as the sessions are done regularly, the pain signals will be lessened or eliminated completely.
Aside from the health benefits, hydrotherapy is fun! Public hydrotherapy pools offer a variety of classes, exercises and swimming activities for all ages and abilities. This gives you the chance to socialise with able-bodied friends while improving your physical fitness and confidence. You can even use floating dumbbells, ankle weights and noodles to enhance the resistance of your workout and make your muscles work harder!
Relieving Pain
The warmth of the water helps to relax muscles, reduce pain and increase flexibility. The buoyancy of the water also reduces body weight, enabling clients to perform exercises at a greater intensity than they could on land. The therapist can manipulate the turbulence and resistance of the water to improve balance, coordination and mobility.
Performing aquatic therapy exercise hydrotherapy pool can also help to reduce levels of stress hormones, including cortisol and norepinephrine. This can aid in promoting sleep within chronic pain patients, which will further improve their recovery.
Hydrotherapy sessions are similar to those you would have with a physical therapist on dry land, however, they take place in a pool and are usually slower and gentler. Your therapist will usually be present in the pool with you and will guide you through various exercises depending on your injuries or health needs.
Some people may feel achy or sore after leaving the water but this is normal and will soon subside as your body adapts. If you are considering hydrotherapy, be wary of treatments that make claims about what they can heal or cure. This type of advertising is not regulated and can be misleading and even dangerous. Instead, choose a treatment that has been researched and proven to be beneficial by credible medical experts. This will ensure that you are getting the best treatment for your condition and injury.
Increasing Range of Motion
Increasing your range of movement in your muscles and joints is one of the main goals of hydrotherapy. Exercise in water can provide up to 15 times more resistance than on land, making it a great environment for strengthening your muscles. This increase in muscle strength is achieved through a variety of methods. Using the turbulence and buoyancy of the water, your physiotherapist can alter the amount of pressure on each limb during exercise, meaning that muscles that are further away from the surface of the water receive greater resistance than those closer to it.
In addition, therapists can manipulate the speed and force of movement in the water to assist with increasing your range of motion as well as strengthening your muscles. This allows you to perform exercises that would be unsafe or impossible on land. This is particularly helpful for clients with conditions such as Lennox-Gastaut syndrome (a type of epilepsy that causes jerking movements) and spinal cord injuries.
The warm temperatures of the pool help to reduce muscle spasm and increase circulation, making it a comfortable and safe environment for your rehabilitation. However, some people may experience some aching after the session as their bodies adjust to the new stresses placed on their body. This is normal and should improve with continued sessions and regular attendance.
