From Resistance to Resilience: The Benefits of Implicit Mobility and Strength Exercises for Dogs

Hey there, K9Yogi's!

Ever notice your pup starting to resist their regular exercise routines? You're not alone! Just like us, dogs can develop a bit of psychological resistance to exercises they used to love. But don't worry, we've got a fun and effective solution: implicit mobility and strength exercises! Let's dive into why this happens and how these subtle workouts can make a big difference in your dog's life.

No motivation to exercise!

First off - some definitions

Explicit Therapeutic Exercise

Explicit therapeutic exercise refers to structured and intentional physical activities prescribed to achieve specific health and fitness outcomes. These exercises are clearly defined and usually come with detailed instructions on how to perform them. They are often designed to address specific physical conditions or goals, such as improving strength, flexibility, balance, or cardiovascular health. K9Yoga Workouts are an explicit form of therapeutic exercise.

Characteristics of Explicit Therapeutic Exercise:

Structured Routine: Clear and precise instructions on how to perform each exercise.

Goal-Oriented: Aimed at achieving specific health or fitness outcomes.

Measurable Progress: Progress can be tracked through repetitions, sets, duration, or intensity.

Supervision: Often requires supervision by a therapist, trainer, or professional to ensure correct form and prevent injury.

Explicit exercise plays a VERY important role in developing new movement skills, or correcting poor movement patterns or bad movement habits, and should form part of every dog's healthy mobility plan.

Implicit Therapeutic Exercise

Implicit therapeutic exercise involves physical activities that incorporate therapeutic benefits into everyday movements or playful activities. Unlike explicit exercises, these are less structured and are integrated into natural behaviors or enjoyable tasks, often without the individual (or animal) being fully aware that they are engaging in therapeutic exercise. This approach can reduce resistance and make the exercise more enjoyable and less stressful.

Characteristics of Implicit Therapeutic Exercise:

Natural Movement: Mimics everyday activities and natural behaviors, but with the intent of exploring how to do these activities in healthier, more balanced ways.

Engagement and Enjoyment: Designed to be fun and engaging, reducing psychological resistance.

Subtle Integration: Therapeutic benefits are embedded in activities that don’t feel like traditional exercise.

Flexibility: Easily adapted to the individual’s needs, preferences, and physical abilities.

Why Do Dogs Develop Psychological Resistance?

Dogs normally love routine and predictability, and are excellent at 'predicting' what is about to happen from subtle cues in their environment. This is called associative learning.

The downside of this is that negative experiences can quickly create a negative bias in your dog when they encounter the same situation. And unfortunately we cannot always control the experiences our dogs have, no matter how much we want to protect them and do the best for them. This can be something as simple (and unpredictable) as a car backfiring in the street and startling them while they are in the middle of an exercise. Or maybe you had a really stressful day at work and rushed into K9Yoga class - but you were a bit more irritable than you meant to be and your dog didn't enjoy the session. 9 times out of 10 our dogs will bounce back from experiences like this, but sometimes these environmental cues become 'poisoned' - the dog has developed a negative association or expectation of the situation.

The Magic of Implicit Exercises

So, what can you do if your dog has fallen out of love with the K9Yoga Studio (or any other training)? Make the K9Yoga poses and exercises you know implicit by turning them into a game!

Get your dog to place their front paws on your lap and do Stand Strong while pretending to scratch their sides.

Hide their ball under a bench in the park to get a Playbow or Crawl.

Get them to balance on a fallen tree while out on a walk

Dog balancing on a log

Do Swan Dive on the kitchen step for their dinner.

Get them to back up out of the bathroom (it's OK, we know they followed you in) - and make a big fuss at the end!

Final Thoughts

Transitioning to implicit mobility and strength exercises can be a wonderful way to keep your dog happy, healthy, and engaged. It’s all about making movement fun and natural, just like it’s meant to be. So next time your pup gives you that look of reluctance, switch things up and try one of these playful, stress-free exercises. Your furry friend will thank you, and you’ll both enjoy the benefits!

Happy playing!

Got any favorite implicit exercises for your dog? Share them in the comments below! We’d love to hear your tips and tricks.