07/06/2025
What is periodization?
Periodization is a planned variation in training specificity, intensity, and volume. It is absolutely necessary to progress your training variables to improve...get the gains. Athletes and general exercise people use it AND those in rehab.
What does periodization look like in rehab?
A lot of the time people use the 3x10 method......zzzzzzz boring!
This method does NOT progress to return to sport or work or daily life variations.
More often or not periodization patterns in rehab are linear ie. gradual increase in intensity while decreasing volume over time. In the athlete world, they can be undulating ie. frequent variation of intensity and volume, often on a weekly or daily basis.
Often, musculoskeletal injury goals including pre and post op, to achieve within the planning time frame, called phases, are:
🏃♀️Muscle endurance/stability
🏃♀️Hypertrophy
🏃♀️Strength
🏃♀️Power
Agility
In the chronic disease world eg. Stroke, the phases' goals are different. Their goals may include neuroplasticity principles and motor learning:
🧠Task-specific: Repetition of correct gait patterns.
🧠Neuroplasticity: High frequency, intensity, and challenge.
🧠Motor learning: Visual/auditory feedback early; reduce as automaticity improves.
🧠Dual-tasking: Cognitive challenges in later phases (e.g., counting backward while walking).
🧠Functional: Real-world relevance as independence improves.
These goals are still structured over time.
Why is periodization for chronic disease matter?
(e.g. cancer, stroke, heart disease, diabetes, MS)
💪Often present with a reduce exercise tolerance. Periodization allows for tailored progression—starting with lower intensities and building safely over time. Its aimed at preventing symptom flare-ups (e.g., fatigue in MS or breathlessness in COPD).
💪Targets multiple physiological systems- cardiovascular, musculoskeletal, neuromuscular, and metabolic systems.
💪Improves adherence and motivation with measurable improvements
💪Enhances physiological adaptation- aligns with principles of exercise physiology like overload, recovery, and adaptation.
💪Optimizes functional outcomes- in neurological or frail populations, there is benefit from cycles of motor learning, skill acquisition, and functional carryover e.g., walking speed in stroke rehab or stair tolerance in heart failure clients
💪Allows for individualized recovery and setbacks- chronic illness is not linear ie. symptom flare-ups, hospital visits, or fatigue cycles can occur. A periodized plan can adjust volume/intensity accordingly while staying goal-oriented.
🫶Each phase needs to have a minimal effective stress to cause adaptation
🫶The phase must include: stimulus, recovery, adaptation
🫶As well as frequency, volume, intensity for tissue remodelling and building resilience
🫶There must be gradual increases in challenge
🫶It must be specific! No room or time for random exercises
Rehab isn’t foam rollers, massage guns, therabands, or cookie-cutter sets with light weights. Rehab is training—well-prepared, intelligently planned, and purposefully designed training, tailored to the individual and the injury. If you find yourself stuck with 3x10, let me know and we'll shake things up and get you progressing!
