The UT Permian Basin Athletic Training Staff learned a better understanding of one of the many state-of-the-art features in the Doc Dodson Athletic Training Room, their new hydrotherapy pools.  Representatives from SwimEx, the manufacturer of the facilities four pools, trained the staff on various exercises and uses of the different pools to be used in rehab and injury prevention.
 
"Paddlewheel current is the smoothest, widest, most consistent current that is on the market," said SwimEx Account Executive Shelly Bean. "It is fantastic for treating athletes and keeping them in condition. There are all sorts of things you can do with the current."
 
Consistency is key because it allows the Athletic Training staff to know how the athlete is progressing.
 
"By having the paddlewheel current you get something that is more stable, smooth, and consistent than other brands that are out there," said Head Athletic Trainer Tom Lechtenberg. "When one day you are at a speed of thirty is too easy and I go to forty I know we are being consistent and we can have a nice progression throughout their rehab sessions."
 
If athletes start to rehab on land too soon it could not only halt the rehab process but it could also do more damage to the athlete. The therapy pools allow the athlete to do exercises that don't put pressure on the joints that are recovering. 
 
"We can take our athletes and start doing weight bearing activities earlier," said Lechtenberg. "When you are in a pool, the deeper you go the less weight you put on those particular joints. I can have an athlete start walking or jogging in the pool sooner than on land, because it puts less pressure on the joints.
 
"We learned a lot from SwimEx today that will help us tremendously. They talked about different implements and things that we can use in the pool helping us with our rehab and other ways to do exercises."

For more information on SwimEx
 
Download the UTPB Athletics App today to follow the Falcons all season long.