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f you’re like most people, odds are you’re pretty busy. Between work, family and your social life, there’s not always a lot of time left in the day for other pursuits. However, if you’ve suffered an injury and need to pursue physical therapy in order to make the strongest recovery possible, you can’t skip your sessions simply because your day is too busy. In today’s blog, we take a closer look at how you can make it easier to stick to a physical therapy schedule if you live a busy life.

Tips For Prioritizing Your PT Exercises

When life gets busy, we oftentimes look to cut some of the less enjoyable obligations from our schedule. We think that physical therapy is fun and enjoyable, but you may not see it as the most enjoyable obligation, and if you get busy, it can be one of the first things that people drop from their schedule. This can cause major issues for your health, because if you don’t do your PT exercises, you won’t make the strongest recovery possible. This can leave you with lingering discomfort or at a heightened risk for another injury, so you need to prioritize your physical therapy exercises.

Here are some tips for sticking to your physical therapy exercises even though you live a busy life.

  1. Pick A Set Time – If you just plan to do your exercises whenever you find a little free time throughout the day, odds are you won’t stick to that plan every single day. Patients are much more likely to do their home-based physical therapy exercises every day if they pick a time to do their exercises and stick to that time each day. That’s not to say that you should always do your exercises at 7:45 a.m. (although you’re certainly welcome to do that if you please), but you should find a set point throughout the day that works. Many people do their exercises as the first thing they do when they wake up, but others find it best to always do their exercises after lunch, right when they get home from work or before they go to bed each night.
  2. Set Reminders – Set daily reminders so that you can’t use “I forgot” as an excuse. Set an alarm on your phone for the same time each day, or put a sticky note in the bathroom so that you see a daily reminder that you need to do your exercises. Make it easier on yourself to remember your exercises by setting simple reminders.
  3. Log Your Progress – Many people find it easier to keep pursuing their physical therapy exercises when they can see their progress. Oftentimes it’s easier to see that you’re making progress if you keep a daily log or journal about your exercises. Write down what’s going well and what needs improvement, or write about the exercises you are performing so that you can see how you’re improving over the course of time. When it’s easier to see your progress, you’re more likely to continue to pursue this progress!
  4. Wake Up 15 Minutes Earlier – If you’re truly finding it hard to find time throughout the day to do your PT exercises, make some time by waking up a little earlier each day. We know that waking up early to do your exercises each day isn’t the most fun way to start your day, but try to reframe how you view these exercises. You are starting your day with a win. You are starting your day with progress. You are challenging yourself to become a more physically fit version of yourself. That should feel immensely satisfying, and it should make it a little easier to set your alarm 15 minutes earlier than normal each night before you go to bed.
  5. Talk With Your PT – Finally, if you’re facing any personal challenges that are making it tough for you to find time to do your PT exercises each day, talk about them with your physical therapist. Your PT will be able to help you navigate these individual challenges and provide some personalized tips for sticking to your PT schedule. They can also talk with you about the possibility of doing remote PT sessions if travel time is making it hard to get to your in-person sessions.

If you can do all of these things, we’re confident that you’ll be able to stick to your PT schedule despite your busy lifestyle. If you have questions or want help with a physical issue that you are facing, reach out to the team at OrthoRehab Specialists today at (612) 339-2041.

Dr. Andy Masis, PT
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