ACHIEVING ABILITIES
Why Exercise Physiology?
An Exercise Physiologist is a university-trained, allied health professional with an in-depth knowledge of the muscular, cardiac, neurological, metabolic and respiratory systems, and the body's response to exercise. We have the know how to prescribe innovative exercise and movement based interventions with consideration to physiological and physical differences.​ Exercise Physiology looks different person to person and varies depending on your needs and goals.
Exercise Physiology goes beyond just “fitness” (although we do that too!), and may help with the following examples:
Managing a chronic health condition:
Exercise can be a powerful tool in managing a range of health conditions (for example, Asthma, Congenital Heart Disorder, Epilepsy, Type 1 Diabetes), or providing guidance around safety considerations for exercising with a health condition.
​​Improve physical function and independence:
Improved function isn’t just about doing more — it’s also about doing it better and more easily. We help to improve the underlying physical skills needed for independence with mobility, transfers, personal care tasks (often in collaboration with OTs), and the physical strength and endurance for completing daily tasks.
Participation in school and play:
These are essential parts of a child’s learning, social development, and emotional wellbeing. We help build the physical skills and confidence they need to join in, and keep up. This includes building capacity for school tasks such as carrying a bag or using stairs, sitting upright for longer periods, participating in PE, sport or playground games etc.
​Low muscle tone:
Exercise Physiology can help improve muscle strength & control to compensate for low tone, build muscular endurance to reduce fatigue, stabilise joints & improve balance, enhance posture and functional movements, and stimulate sensory pathways to improve engagement of muscles that are underactive.
Sensory Integration and Body Awareness:
When the brain has difficulty processing & coordinating sensory input (what we feel, see, hear, etc.) with motor output (our physical movements), the body may not respond appropriately to sensory information. We can help support those with sensory-motor dysfunction to improve proprioception, the vestibular system and visual-motor integration, to improve movement output.​
Supporting motor development:
Exercise Physiology can help develop gross-motor, sport-specific skills (i.e running, jumping, throwing, catching etc), and general coordination. We can support fine motor skills through whole-body functional training (e.g., core strength, upper limb coordination, grip strength) to build the physical foundation needed for success with fine motor skills.
Healthy Habits & health literacy:
Exercise Physiologists can help with behaviour modification to support increased physical activity engagement and reduce screen time.
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Transition to sport:
Sports participation promotes regular physical activity participation, increased community & social participation. We can help by enhancing the physical attributes and skills required for participation in a chosen sport, developing sport skills in-line with the physical education curriculum to improve confidence to participate, and support transitioning into participation - educating parents, teachers, coaches & club.
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Support in P.E class:
We don’t expect P.E to be everyone’s favourite subject, but P.E should be a successful and inclusive experience.Negative experiences and associations with P.E at school can impact life-long physical activity and exercise engagement, as well as self-confidence. In addition to regular school appointments, we offer various levels of support with P.E.
