Although physical therapy and sensory rooms serve two different purposes, there are four essential tools that work well for both; floor mats, skill shapes and trainers, crash pads, and wall padding.
As your trusted friends for all things floor mats, we’re here to walk you through the physical therapy and sensory playroom essentials any therapy or sensory room should have to give patients the best session possible, every time.
Four Physical Therapy and Sensory Room Essentials
1. Floor Mats
From therapy exercises to sensory play, comfortable and supportive floor mats are a must. Interlocking foam floor mats serve as an excellent all-around flooring option throughout the room. They also come in multiple colors and traditional wood-grain floor mat patterns for a more personalized or professional-looking space, depending on your design theme, and the audience served.
On top of these base-level foam floor mats can be exercise-specific mats, like slip-resistant yoga mats and personal exercise mats for space-saving sessions, or larger folding exercise mats ideal for several therapy exercises or general sensory play among one or a few children.
2. Crash Pads
Next up on our list of essential therapy and sensory room supplies are crash pads and landing mats. Whether you are guiding a patient through exercises and need extra precautionary tools to prevent further injury, or you’re operating a children’s sensory room and require sensory crash pads to help stimulate tactile and vestibular input through jumping, landing, and, well “crashing,” crash pads and landing mats are the perfect solution. Choose from multiple thicknesses and sizes based on activity and space availability.
3. Skill Shapes & Trainers
From gravity-assisted physical therapy exercises to sensory play focused on climbing, balance, and coordination, skill shapes and trainers like incline mats and tumbling octagons are our third group of essential mats for therapy and sensory rooms.
Incline mats can be used for balance and positioning in physical therapy or general play and exploration during sensory play, along with tumbling octagons. Each comes in three sizes: small, medium, and large. These sizes correlate with the user’s height, so depending on the age and height of your patients, one or two sizes may work better than other sizes. Among the list of essential sensory playroom tools are balance beams. Our foldable foam balance beams come in sizes perfect for toddlers and young children to help improve balance and coordination while offering sensory stimulation safely and effectively.
4. Wall Padding
While wall padding may be less common in physical therapy settings, they play a pivotal role in the safety of children playing in sensory rooms.
Wall padding is a high-impact foam wall covering designed for indoor and outdoor recreation areas like gymnasiums, gymnastics studios, sensory rooms, and more. They are easy to install and help protect running, jumping, tumbling kids from crashing and hurting themselves against an otherwise solid surface. They can also play a role in helping to calm children who become overstimulated and need a space to regain equilibrium.
In physical therapy rooms, wall padding can offer extra support to patients working through a number of exercises, providing them with a stable and supportive surface to apply their body weight or rest after a challenging session.
Find all of Your Commercial and Residential Essential Mats at We Sell Mats™
No matter what kind of therapy, fitness, or sensory room you’re looking to design or revamp, We Sell Mats™ makes it easy to find the best residential and commercial flooring mats for every activity. Choose from dozens of styles, colors, and multiple materials to create the most supportive room you, your children, or your patients can rely on to safely and effectively work on their strengths, weaknesses and improve their quality of life.
Looking to create sensory, physical therapy, or fitness rooms in a residential setting? All of our fitness mats, foam floor tiles, and gymnastics mats are perfect for the home and office, with many featuring designs for easy transport, storage, and cleaning. Shop today to discover the best mats for every application, all in one easy place. Shop today!