Harbor Physical Therapy

You might have seen stability balls at the gym and thought, "what can I use this for?" Well, stability balls are a great tool to use for a home or gym workout! You can use a stability ball to work on core strengthening, balance/stability, and flexibility. Physical Therapist often use stability balls to help their patients reach their rehabilitation goals. Below, you will find some examples of stability ball exercises:
1. Core strengthening- performing bridges and planks using the stability ball. Sitting on a therapy ball performing marches.
2. Balance and stability- performing a lunge with your back leg on the ball.
3. Flexibility- performing a hamstring stretch by lying down and placing your leg with knee straight on the ball.

Try incorporating a stability ball into your workout to vary your exercises to increase the challenge.

Everyone loves to wear heels but did you ever think about what it does to your calves? Wearing high heels can cause calf tightness because your ankle is constantly in a plantar flexed position (toes pointing downward). This position increases the contraction of the calf muscles (gastrocnemius and soleus). Over time, wearing high heels can shorten these muscles which would lead to tightness of the calf muscles and potentially pain/muscle strain.

No need to worry! Physical therapy can help! Physical Therapy helps by providing relief through stretching, strengthening exercises, manual therapy, modalities, footwear education, and postural assessment. If this sounds like you, please get in touch with us so we can help you get rid of that calf pain!

Squats are one of the most fundamental exercises for building strength and improving mobility. Squats target the core and lower body muscles, including the quadriceps, hamstrings, glutes, and calves. These muscles are essential for daily movements like walking, standing, negotiating stairs, and bending over. Strengthening these muscles helps to prevent future injury and improves your overall balance and stability.

You can increase the challenge of your squat by adding a weight, using an increase range of motion, performing it on a balance device, or performing different types of squats by changing your positioning.

This exercise is very versatile and can be performed at any age and any fitness level. If you would like to learn more about what type of squat is best for you, feel free to contact Harbor PT to lean more!