There is a common misconception that therapy must be boring and specific in order for it to work. 

 

Therapy is like cleaning the floor. If you only pick up one piece of dirt/trash at a time, it gets boring, and it takes forever. You can hurt yourself from repetitive use, and it gets old, really fast. It’s much quicker, easier, and more effective if you can do a general sweeping first, and then see if anything needs to be specifically picked up afterward that was missed from the sweeping. Also, if you can make sweeping FUN, you’re more apt to do it, and do it more often, making it even more effective!

 

It’s easy to get stuck in a highly analytical mindset when diving deep into the rabbit hole of therapeutic courses. But we know that general movement also solves a lot of ailments. The problem is, there are so many types of movement, how do we know what kind is the best?

 

The human brain is really smart. It uses the body to carry out instructions to accomplish what it wants to do. If it doesn’t get what it wants or needs, it sometimes creates compensations, causing pain and “dysfunctions” because structures aren’t properly aligned, and tension isn’t balanced. So, if you give the brain what it wants, it doesn’t need to create those compensations anymore. The pain and “dysfunctions” go away. 

 

Specific, analytical, targeted therapy (like manual therapy, treating isolated areas, specific muscle activations, etc) may be needed if the issue has any lingering symptoms that just need an extra “nudge” or helping hand. It’s kind of like if a child wants to bake a cake. They might only need help with taking the cake out of the oven, but they can figure out how to follow the rest of the recipe.  

 

Dr. Karyn Purvis from the Institute of Child Development found that “Scientists have recently determined that it takes approximately 400 repetitions to create a new synapse in the brain — unless it is done with play, in which case, it takes between 10-20 repetitions.” 

 

 

Though she said this about children, the same concept can be applied towards adults, even though learning for adults, in general, is typically slower than it is in children. 

 

PLAY is very therapeutic for humans and animals alike, and when used in appropriate settings, can become customized therapy for a specific set of symptoms (like low back pain, wrist pain, headaches, etc). 

 

PLAY is also a fun thing for people to do, so many psychological and physiological benefits will come from it, aside from the physical. 

 

PLAY is the best form of learning, as it combines curiosity, adventure, competition, goal-setting, fun, reaction training, companionship, all sorts of physical abilities, problem-solving, sensory processing, etc to provide the most well-rounded experience there is. 

 

We’ve found a way to make PLAY into a form of assessment and treatment, so your clients won’t even know they’re being assessed or treated! They just know they’re having fun. 

 

TheraPLAY concepts are perfect to weave into training sessions when your clients have complaints but don’t want to go into “therapy mode.” (After all, they’re there to do physical activity, not lay on a table, right?) TheraPLAY is also great to do with people of all ages who you want to help feel better, but they have trouble with normal therapeutic compliance (like sitting/laying still, muscle testing, specific activation exercises, etc). It’s also great to implement into group settings for people of all ages.

 

 

This course is such a FUN course, that students always feel measurably better afterward, physically, mentally, and emotionally. 

 

 

TheraPLAY is a 2-day workshop with the purpose of educating and helping therapists understand how to incorporate movement and PLAY into their sessions, whether it’s a therapeutic or fitness session.

 

Who should attend:

Physical Therapist/ physiotherapist, Manual/Massage Therapists, Stretch Therapists, Rehab Trainers, Athletic Trainers, Movement Coaches and anyone interested in getting better therapy / rehab results through the introduction of movement. Also great if you have issues yourself, or want to help loved ones who don’t do well with traditional forms of therapy.

Though there will be some reoccuring concepts, EVERY COURSE WILL BE TAUGHT DIFFERENTLY, so students can retake the course as many times as they want, and learn new things each time!

We will cover topics like:

~ Specific types of movements, variations, details, and how to integrate them into the session.

~ Which movements to get you the best “bang for your buck” and how to create movements that are specific for your client.

~ The psychology of assigning movement as “homework” or self care program, and how to maximize client compliancy.

~ How to ensure your client does the movements correctly

~ How to identify the “sweet spot” for amount of time, frequency, and intensity for their self care program, and how to identify if they’ve done too much.

~ How to adjust an exercise so your client can feel what they’re supposed to feel when doing the movements

~ Hands-on practice with each other, and learn how to practice effective coaching, so you can “test run” new exercises on your own outside of the classroom.

~ When “just move more of you more often” is really the answer.

~ Working/increasing ROM of an injured joint

~ Lots of practical games that involve assessment and treatment/training without needing to stop the movement

~ Working with the nervous system, lymphatic system, acute injuries, and chronic injuries through movement and games

~ How to make “treatment” and “assessments” more fun and OFF the table and ON the training floor using minimal/no equipment