DPTSI is proud to provide our athletes with the HydroWorx integrated underwater treadmill which is revolutionizing physical therapy, sports medicine and conditioning. These aquatic treadmills smoothly accelerate from .1 up to 10 miles per hour and allow the user to correctly simulate land-based walking, running or sports-specific activities but without the bodyweight and joint impact an individual experiences on land.

There are many benefits of using an underwater treadmill, some of which include:

- • Promotes early range of motion
- • Initiates gait training in a low impact environment
- • Replicates the proper biomechanics of land-based movements to improve gait patterns
- • Improves cardiovascular stamina
- • Increases healing and strengthening of injured tissues
- • Impacts muscle strengthening

HydroWorx offers deep tissue massage by a hand-held hose water jet. In overworked muscles, at the cellular level, it is important to break down the toxic buildup so that oxygen rich blood can bind to the cell and rejuvenate quicker. Sore muscle will recover faster from Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS) for your body to return to homeostasis.

In the United States, those who can perform aquatic therapy are legally regulated medical professionals with the correct scope of practice and the ability to use the American Medical Association (AMA) Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) codes. Aquatic therapy is considered an add-on certification for physical therapists and athletic trainers who often work closely with occupational therapists and exercise physiologists to develop a plan of care for each client.

Common goals of aqua therapy programs include:

• Improving flexibility
• Improving balance and coordination
• Building muscle strength and endurance
• Enhancing aerobic capacity
• Assisting with gait and locomotion
• Reducing stress and promoting relaxation

Aquatic therapy is different from aquatic exercise or aquatic fitness because it is a physical medicine and rehabilitation specialty that requires the involvement of a trained professional and is covered by many insurance providers due to the personalized nature of the treatment.

These are some of the ways that water’s natural properties create an ideal therapeutic environment:

• Warm water provides a relaxing and soothing environment for aching joints and muscles.

• Water’s natural viscosity can be used for muscle strengthening and increasing rehabilitation progressions.

• Buoyancy allows for flotation and reduces the effects of gravity on injured or aching joints and muscles.

• Allowing people with balance deficits to perform exercises without a fear of falling and decreasing pain.

• Turbulence and wave propagation let the therapist gently manipulate the client through the desired exercises.

• The respiratory muscles are forced to work harder in the water, allowing for a natural strengthening.

Compared to other forms of physical therapy, aquatic therapy results in a higher client compliance rate and less pain throughout the recovery process. Opportunities to significantly minimize the pain a client experiences should be taken seriously because with less pain, a client can enjoy a higher quality of life.

Another important advantage of aquatic therapy is that it can often begin before land-based therapy. For athletes looking to get back into competition, or busy professionals who want to recover from surgery as quickly as possible, this makes a water-based program the natural choice.

HydroWorx Underwater Treadmill Marathon Training

HydroWorx recently spent some time with members of the Oregon Project running team, based in Eugene, OR, to see how they are utilizing the HydroWorx 300 Series in Park City, UT. Park City is the team’s summer high altitude training location which allows the athletes to be even more prepared for their upcoming races. Because underwater treadmill running is such an important part of their regular training in Oregon, having it at altitude training is imperative for their success.