National PT Month
Every October, American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) celebrates National Physical Therapy Month to help bring awareness to the profession and the benefits it has to offer. The first National PT month was in October 1992 with the theme “Back Into Action With Physical Therapy.”
This year’s theme is “Move better, Feel better” with the focus on the ChoosePT campaign which was launched last year. This theme highlights the importance of movement and the role PTs and PTAs play in helping people get moving.
Most people, even before the pandemic, were not getting enough physical activity. It is so important to get the recommended amount of daily physical activity, regardless of age or ability, or activity intensity. Even going for a walk during lunch breaks or after dinner or yoga can help give our bodies the movement it needs after sitting for extended periods of time. When we move our bodies, we feel better (it might take some time to talk ourselves into a physical activity, but the benefits are so worth it)!
If you have little ones, sometimes it is harder to fit in your favorite physical activity. However, it can be beneficial to little ones that they see or even join you in the physical activity. Here are some ways to add some movement to your days with little ones:
- Go for a walk after meals or while little ones nap.
- Dance with music.
- Play a game of twister, red light green light, freeze tag, etc.
- Make an obstacle course inside or outside (tunnel, hopscotch, follow the line, jumping, etc.).
- Ride bicycles (depending on age).
- Do a family exercise (free ones on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0_2gU2E0HOQ).
- Yoga or movement story (free on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OP35lIWpm4w).
- Play a sport (basketball, baseball, soccer, etc).
- Move like animals throughout the house or outside (bear or crab walk, penguin waddle, dinosaur stomps, frog hops, etc)
- Walk around a park picking up flowers, rocks, maybe even bugs!
If you’re concerned about your child not getting enough movemen, and it seems to be affecting their overall health (getting out of breath when walking short distances or using stairs, difficulty with keeping up with peers during recess, etc.), please contact Sidekick Therapy Partners to schedule a free PT screening this fall.
-Whitney Castle, PT, DPT
References
American Physical Therapy Month. (2021). National Physical Therapy Month. https://www.apta.org/national-physical-therapy-month