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doing the water therapy on her own, she can walk without her cane he healing properties of water have been known and and says she’s felt more progress in the few months at LifePointe harnessed by many civilizations since antiquity. Today, than in the previous 10 months of land-based therapy. Her trainer that still holds true. At LifePointe, two pools provide is working with her on land-based routines now, and she is feeling physical therapy and aqua fitness classes that benefit more positive every day about getting back to her normal life. She’s many types of clients. even started to lose weight, another factor in her health issues. Monica Sands of Martell is a believer in the healing powers of “My strength and endurance is water. When a year of physical therapy so much better,” she says. “I don’t brought her little to no relief after think I would be where I am today knee replacement surgery, she felt without the warm water therapy at discouraged. LifePointe. Everyone is so helpful and “I struggled for a year after my knee replacement, with doctors telling friendly here. Not just the staff, but me it would just take time,” she says. the other members, too. There is a lot Still, she wasn’t getting better, and the of support and that makes you want swelling and pain were taking their toll. to continue,” she says. “I felt like I had traded one bad Sands now is a member at knee for another bad knee,” she says. LifePointe and looks forward to Finally, Sands saw a different joining some of the aquatic fitness health care provider who discovered classes offered in the other heated that she had other problems that pool at LifePointe. contributed to her bad knee. In fact, Kristi Beyer is an exercise Kristi Beyer, an ASCM-certified exercise she learned, osteoarthritis in her lower physiologist and health coach who physiologist with more than 15 years experience, back coupled with hip and ankle issues, teaches some of the many water leads an aquatics class at LifePointe. helped to cause her knee pain and classes at LifePointe, which are degradation. “I wasn’t using my body separate from the physical therapy correctly,” she says. services. She says she’s not surprised with Sands’ success in the The provider sent her home with a brace and a prescription for water. warm water therapy at LifePointe. “Water is a unique medium where those with all abilities can benefit,” Beyer points out. There, Sands worked for a month with physical therapist Cindy LifePointe’s water options include lap swimming, Aqua Jump Fluitt, doing the same type of rehabilitative exercises she would do “on land,” such as walking, balance activities and lower extremity Start, Aqua Strength and Stretch Express, Arthritis Therapy, and Deep strengthening exercises. But in the water, there is much less weight Water Dynamics, to name a few. on the joint, and hence, there is less pain. “There truly are many, many benefits of working out in the water “Warm water in itself is therapeutic,” Fluitt says. “And the — muscle endurance and toning, cardiovascular fitness, improved compressive force of the water helped with her swelling. When flexibility, improved core strength, less stress on the joints, your patients like Monica don’t have to bear their body weight, they are body temperature stays cooler, and so many more,” Beyer says. “And, able to do the initial therapy with less pain, then transition to landif done correctly, you can burn as many calories as you can with a based therapy, which is, of course, the ultimate goal.” comparable land-based exercise.” n At LifePointe, the warm water therapy pool is a comfortable 92 degrees, and the ramp into the pool (which is called zero entry) To learn more about the aquatic classes and opportunities at means that those who have difficulty getting into conventional pools BryanLGH LifePointe, log on to www.bryanlgh.com/aquatic, or call — even patients in wheelchairs — can access and benefit from the 402-481-6300. warm, healing waters. According to Sands, those waters have done the trick. Now
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