4 Tips on How to Help Clients Make Your PT Routines HabitFinding ways to incorporate physical therapy into the lives of your PT clients can sometimes be overwhelming. Especially with the current climate and your clients not being able to spend time inside the physical therapy clinic. Though there are lots of ways to connect with your clients during COVID-19, it is still a challenge to get your clients to make physical therapy habit.
There are lots of different ways to create habits for your clientele. In order to help them advance their physical therapy goals, you can first help them make the PT routines you create a full lifestyle change! Here are four tips on how to assist your clients in making their physical therapy habit to help them on their journey to recovery.
When it comes to creating a habit, the first thing you need to do is simplify whatever task you are attempting to make a part of your lifestyle change. Because when you break it down, integrating a new habit is essentially trying to initiate lifestyle changes! Therefore, start small and grow from there.
Starting small with your physical therapy is a great way to instill it as habit. Find ways for your clients to integrate their routines into their daily life. Whether you are encouraging them to do their PT first thing in the morning, or simply trying to get them to do little activities throughout the day, it’s important to start small.
Not only will it be easier to do their physical therapy daily, but it will also allow your clients to actually measure and keep track of their progress. For instance, if you want your client to do a task at the end of their PT journey, then start with the basics and have them progress. Just as they would in a more clinical setting.
The daily repetition of the activity is just as important to making your clients’ PT habit. Here are a few ways that your clients can make PT habit by doing it every day:
There are certain aspects of purposefully creating a habit that can definitely work in your PT client’s favor! Because starting off with simple at-home routines, as well as helping them to make PT a part of their day to day schedules, is an excellent start to making PT a habit!
One of the more basic concepts around generating a new habit is following the 21/90 rule. This simply means that if you are doing a certain thing daily for twenty-one days that it will become a habit. Then if you continue on for more than ninety days, it will be a part of a more long-term lifestyle change.
The saying that “human beings are creatures of habit” has long been a part of many cultures. This is because habit formation can become easy, it can make things more efficient, as well as help with health and PT goals long-term. If you help your clients to follow the general 21/90 rule, they could be more successful with their overall physical therapy goals!
It is also important for your clients to keep track of their 21-day success, as well as their longer 90-day life change. Not to mention it will also encourage them to stay on target! Send helpful text messages, remind them how far they’ve come over email, and so many other daily positive interactions. You can also have them purchase a calendar where they can physically cross off each day that they do their PT! This way they can see how well they are doing on their 21/90 habit creation!
Allowing your clients to create positive habits around their physical therapy is an excellent way to help them advance their long-term PT goals. However, there will certainly be times where making their physical therapy a habitual experience will not be fun! When those moments come around, it is extremely important that your clients push through.
There are many different ways you can help your clients understand that their physical therapy is not only important but also necessary. Here are a few ways you can help your clients when they want to quit:
It’s important for both you and your clients that you be willing and ready to help them fight the desire to quit! In order to create a new habit of doing their PT regularly, it is essential that they see the entire process through to the end.
Physical therapy can be difficult. Not only is it time-consuming, but it can also take its toll emotionally and physically. When it comes to making something so intense a part of your normal routine, it’s good to have a few ways to reward your clients for their hard work!
Rewards are one of the best ways to maintain healthy, as well as long-term, habits. They allow clients to have something to look forward to after a strenuous PT routine. Not to mention it give you a way to connect with your clients personally through your reward system.
One way to motivate your clients could be to provide financial incentives for their hard work. This may mean a few dollars off of their monthly clinic visits, a general discount, as well as fun giveaways or gifts. Though they shouldn’t be an extravagant gift, and the discount shouldn’t put you out of business, these types of physical rewards can often lead to greater success with making PT a good habit.
Another way you can reward your clients is through positive reinforcement and praise for their dedication. After all is said and done, it is THEIR body that is not only going through the physical therapy but also growing and changing through their new habits. By reassuring your clients that their new PT habits are helping them reach their goals on a regular basis, you are reinforcing their drive to get to their proverbial PT finish line!
Now that you know that creating habits requires rewarding your patients, steering clear of quitting, using a tried and true method, as well as starting off simply, you can help them stay consistent! Consistency is key to all of these four tips to help your clients make PT a habit.
Helping them to push past their desires to quit each and every time it may occur. Allowing them to be constantly rewarded for their hard work. Instilling the idea that it is ok for them to keep it simple when they start out by reminding them daily it is going to be for the best.
Consistency is found in nearly every aspect of making a new, positive habit. Whether you help your clients with your own constant praise, as well as support, or you allow them to show you their own consistency, it is truly one of the most essential aspects! Not only in generating a new habit around their physical therapy but also with their physical therapy as a whole!
You can not only help your physical clients be more on track, but you can also help your online readers be more consistent with their physical therapy! Using your website and blog to help your online clients build a habit is an amazing way to not only keep them on their physical therapy journey but to also create more amazing content!
The work and dedication that goes into creating, developing, as well as participating in and doing a physical therapy routine is truly amazing. Your clients will definitely benefit from your helping them make their physical therapy a good habit in their lives. Not to mention it will help them achieve their long-term PT goals!
Use small steps to help them get started. Have them stick to the popular rule that it takes twenty-one days to create a habit, and ninety days to implement a lifestyle change. Don’t let your clients quit, as well as allow them to feel rewarded after the fact! These four tips, including keeping your clients consistent in their pursuits, will not only make a new habit, but will also help your clients achieve their goals. Use these tips in your physical therapy clinic, through your website, as well as on your blog to help your clients in their PT journey!
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