Top 5 Recreational Activities to Combat Stress and Prevent Back Pain
Today, back pain is one of the most common disorders to affect adults. In fact, about 80% of the U.S. population will experience back pain at some point in their lives. That’s a startling statistic, and it gets even worse when you consider that back pain can affect people of all ages, creeds, and demographics and that severe cases of back pain can limit the quality of life and even make it difficult for people to work. So, what’s the solution? How do we protect our spines and cut down on the rate of back pain in our everyday lives? The answer is simple: self-care. By focusing on things like diet and routine chiropractic care, as well as taking part in some spin-supporting activities like the ones listed in this post, you can keep your spine healthy and happy for years to come. Let’s dive in. The 5 Best Recreational Activities to Support Your Spine Some activities aren’t great for the spine (heavy weight-lifting, for example) or long-distance running. Others, however, can go a long to support your spinal health and keep you limber and pain-free for years. Here are a few of our top recommendations: 1. Yoga Yoga has long been touted as the activity of choice for bendy people. For a good reason, though. Yoga, which focuses on combining breath with deep, purposeful movement, is one of the best activities for building and maintaining muscles and promoting proper alignment. Don’t believe us? Take Science’s word for it. According to a 2017 study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, yoga can work wonders to reduce or eliminate mild to moderate back pain. Here’s an excerpt from the study: “Study participants were randomly divided into three treatment groups. One group received 12 weekly yoga classes designed specifically for people with chronic back pain; one received 15 physical therapy visits over 12 weeks; one was given an educational book and newsletters about self-care for chronic low back pain. The researchers then continued to track the participants for an additional 40-week maintenance phase. During this phase, people in the yoga and physical therapy groups were randomly assigned to either continue to practice at home or with a professional—at yoga classes or physical therapy sessions. The researchers found that all three groups reported improvement in physical function and pain reduction. However, people in the yoga and physical therapy treatment groups were significantly more likely than those in the education-only group to stop taking pain relievers after one year. These findings suggest that a structured yoga program may be a reasonable alternative to physical therapy for people with chronic low back pain.” If you’ve never tried yoga before, don’t be afraid to start. Most gyms and local fitness centers offer introductory “gentle yoga” classes, designed to familiarize newcomers with the movements, and ease the body into flexibility. 2. Walking Walking is a simple yet powerful approach to resolving back pain and cutting down on stress. Today, lots of lower back pain is caused by a lack of movement and the subsequent fusing of the lower spine. Most of us sit at desks or in chairs all day, and the muscles and bones in our lower back lose movement and mobility because of it. When you take up walking, though, it promotes gentle movement throughout the spine, breaking up blockages, promoting healthy alignment, and restoring range of motion. Walking also boosts the body’s endorphin levels, leading to enhanced mood, less stress, and better sleep. Even better? Walking doesn’t require any complicated equipment or a pricey gym membership. Just grab a comfortable pair of shoes, some clothes you can move in, and a pair of headphones and get out there! 3. Swimming/Water Aerobics Swimming is an excellent activity for anyone suffering from pain, as it’s gentle on the joints and non-weight-bearing. When you swim, you involve your entire body in the movement, simultaneously activating your abdominals, glutes, hamstrings, arms, and back muscles. If you’ve been suffering from back pain, take a swimming class, or see if your local gym offers water aerobics in a warm water therapy pool. Both activities will help strengthen and repair your back muscles without adding additional strain. 4. Tai Chi Tai Chi is an ancient Chinese martial art that, like yoga, combines breathing and movement. Unlike yoga, however, Tai Chi focuses on slow movements meant to improve balance and reduce chronic pain. While yoga might have you contort yourself into a pretzel, Tai Chi focuses on movements made standing up. Tai Chi has been shown to reduce stress, improve sleep, and promote weight loss, as well. 5. The Elliptical Machine If you’re looking for low-impact cardio activity, spend some time on the elliptical at your local gym. While the movement of the elliptical mimics running, the paddles soften impact and create a “gliding” motion that’s easy on your joints. This is an excellent option for anyone who wants to sweat but doesn’t want to torque their back in the process. Additionally, since the elliptical helps build the muscles in the hips and low back, using it regularly can help you keep your back in alignment and prevent problems from cropping up down the road. Working out for Better Spine Health If you thought physical activity was the wrong thing for your spine health, think again. While some activities will do a number on your spine, others are excellent for strengthening the muscles throughout your lower back, promoting proper alignment, and keeping everything exactly where it should be. Even better, these activities help combat the stress of your daily life, promote better sleep, help you trim down, and enhance your mood across the board! As always, remember to talk to your chiropractor or healthcare provider before adding a new exercise regimen to your life. If you have questions about these activities, or you want to learn more about how to ensure a healthy spine, contact our offices today!
5 Ways Chiropractic Can Help Cyclists
There are dozens of reasons you love cycling: the wind in your hair, the ground beneath you, the sights and sounds and the healthy activity, jfew. No matter how you cut it, though, cycling comes with some inevitable physical aches and pains thuat can be tough to navigate around. Fortunately, chiropractic care can help. Here are the five biggest benefits chiropractic care offers to cyclists:
Chiropractor Help for Child’s Bicycle Injury – Ridgefieldchiropractic
When it comes to chiropractic care, there are some significant differences in how a doctor will treat a child, versus how they’d handle an adult. This makes sense, given that there are some substantial differences between a child’s body and an adult’s body, and they both need different things. Despite that truth, virtually all patients can benefit from proper spinal care. Regardless of whether a person is 8 or 80 years old, good spinal care and tailored adjustments can help promote excellent health and a sense of overall well-being. If your child has recently been involved in a bicycle injury, for example, here are a few things you should know about chiropractic care, and what a chiropractor can do to help. Why is Chiropractic care so Good for Children? Children’s bodies are changing all the time. Because of this, they tend to respond faster and more completely to chiropractic care. A child’s body is very elastic and, generally, hasn’t been exposed to the same extent of injury and abuse as, say, an 80-year old’s body. That said, some children don’t recognize the signs of orthopedic injury, which means parents need to watch for “tells.” These “tells” may include postural changes (a child who suddenly hunches, for example, or a baby who will only breastfeed on one side), sudden balance issues, or complaints of pain in areas like the back and neck. While childrens’ spines are mobile, this can work for and against them. The mobility is an excellent factor when it comes to chiropractic care, and means that younger patients are very likely to experience positive, long-term effects after their treatments. But it also means that children may be more prone to spinal injuries than adults, who have less fluid spinal structures than their younger counterparts. Need more evidence that pediatric chiropractic care can have outstanding benefits? Here’s what the American Chiropractic Association has to say about the practice: “According to CAA, there are more than 1 million pediatric visits to doctors of chiropractic in Australia each year. Research indicates there is also significant utilization in the United States; a 2007 study in the journal Pediatrics estimated that there are 30 million pediatric chiropractic visits annually.1 The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) previously reported that chiropractic was the most common form of doctor-directed complementary or alternative medicine used by U.S. children.2 The safety of pediatric chiropractic care is supported in scientific literature. A 2008 study of 781 pediatric patients under three years of age (73 percent of whom were under 13 weeks) who received a total of 5,242 chiropractic treatments at a teaching clinic over a three-year period found no serious adverse events.3” The organization goes on to say the following: “The practice of chiropractic in the United States, as in Australia, is regulated to protect patients of all ages. State chiropractic boards in the U.S. issue practice guidelines to DCs on a variety of subjects. Likewise, the Chiropractic Board of Australia has established codes and guidelines for practitioners to ensure that treatment of pediatric patients is appropriate and safe. We are confident the Board can render an appropriate decision in the case at hand based on its previously published guidance.” 3 Ways Chiropractic Care Helps Kids Grow Here are a few of the standard benefits of chiropractic care for kids: Better Sleep. Because chiropractic care can relieve tension, discomfort, and dysfunction caused by injuries and pain, kids who undergo regular chiropractic care may fall asleep and stay asleep easier. Improved Attitude. Anyone who has dealt with an overtired or uncomfortable child knows it’s not fun for anyone involved. By reducing tension in the neurological system and treating subluxations, though, chiropractic care can create better attitudes and behavior in children. Improved Immune Function. Chiropractic care creates better immune function in children. Since young patients have relatively immature immune systems, subluxations can easily impaired neurological function and make it hard for a child’s body to fight off bugs and germs. Correcting said misalignments will go a long way to support effective immune function in children. The Benefits of Chiropractic Care After a Bicycle Accident One minute, your child was cruising along, as happy as could be. The next, they were coming into contact with hard, unforgiving concrete. If your child has suffered through a bike accident, both you and the child know the experience can be scary and painful. In some cases, bike accidents lead to nothing more severe than some bumps and bruises. In others, though, they create real and long-lasting structural damage that can cause ongoing pain. This is where a chiropractor comes in. The truth of childhood is that bike accidents happen. The process of learning to zip around on these fun, two-wheeled vehicles is exciting, but it can be dangerous. And because bikes don’t stay upright on their own, learning to ride one requires balance and, yes, spills. When a child falls off, crashes, or loses control of a bike, injuries can take place. Commonly, these injuries are spinal or joint injuries that result from the hard impact of the bike hitting the ground. In addition to hurting for an extended period, these injuries can have long-lasting effects on your child’s mental health and wellbeing. Sure, scrapes and bruises will heal on their own. But it’s essential to ensure you’re seeking out professional care for more severe conditions, such as chiropractic and orthopedic injuries. What the Doctor Recommends: 3 Steps to Take After a Bicycle Accident Now that you know how vital chiropractic care can be for children let’s talk about what a doctor will recommend for a child who has just been in a bicycle accident. Here are a few must-dos to keep your child happy and healthy: 1. Take a Break From Physical Activity Even if the bike wreck wasn’t serious, there might be underlying bone or tissue soreness that can get worse if the child doesn’t cease activity for a while. With this in mind, children should generally take
8 Ways to Improve Your Golf Swing This Spring
The golf swing: it’s the technique that has launched 10,000 ships, so to speak. Agonized over, practiced, and attempted time and time again, it’s one of the essential considerations in the entire game of golf. With all those things in mind, it makes perfect sense that people are always, always trying to improve theirs. If you’re in that boat, here are a few simple things you can do to enjoy a better golf swing this spring: 8 Tips for a Better Golf Swing This Year Whether you’re a new player looking to learn a stronger set of basics, or an experienced golfer trying to beat your friends on the green this year, these eight tips will help create a stronger swing and more balanced swing geometry: 1. Keep Your Hands Low Lower than you might think. The reason for this is simple: when you limit the height of your follow through, you reduce the height of your shots. This, in turn, lowers the ball flight. You can also move the ball back in your stance or select a stronger club to use, while also swinging easier. No matter what you’re aiming to accomplish, these tactics are less reliable and harder to execute, though. With this in mind, keeping your hands low is a simple way to get started on the path to enjoying a better golf swing. When the trajectory of your shots is as low as possible, everyone wins. 2. Keep Your Spine and Forearm in Alignment For the most powerful swing, you want to be on-plane at the top of it. To this end, your forearm should be parallel to your spine at all times, with your left wrist flat and your arms and elbows arranged to form a triangle. Keep that formation tight and structured for best results. This improves your backswing and makes it easier to rotate your shoulders correctly. 3. Drive From Your Body Many people make the mistake of thinking that the power of their golf swing comes from the arms. This is a misguided assumption. The power comes from your body. Here’s a simple hack to remember this as you swing: put the club behind the ball with your body in a full, dead-stop position. Don’t take a backswing, though. Instead, try to drag the ball into the air. If you’re using your hands to control the club, you won’t be able to do it. If you’re using your body, though, it’ll be easier to get the ball into the air more consistently. This will translate into your downswing, and make it easier to turn entirely through the ball as you downswing. 4. Master the Hinge If you’ve ever watched amateur golf, you’ll know that they have a hard time making powerful shots for two reasons: first, they are frequently too close to the ground with their takeaway. This delays the proper wrist hinge and takes it too far into the backswing. This, in turn, causes the posture to break down and alters the angle of the pivot. These flaws, in turn, create mis-hits and a lack of control and distance. To combat this, it’s essential to take a series of simple steps designed to gain control and reduce the length of the swing. To begin, you should create a 45-degree angle between the left arm and the club shaft as you set up a swing. During the takeaway, take this one step further by keeping the hands close to the ground and moving the clubhead quickly. The goal, here, is to create an environment where our left thumb points up toward your right shoulder as quickly as possible. When you can hinge your wrist while your left arm is parallel to the ground, you’ll manage to set your wrists much earlier in the backswing. This, in turn, sets your wrists and eliminates the need to “overswing” at the top of a shot. 4. Make Better Use of Your Elbows Some players swing with their elbows pointed out to the side, while others keep them tight to their bodies. This just goes to show that golf swings are as much about personal style as they are technique. At the end of the day, though, there are a few ways to position your elbows more effectively, to promote a draw. If you want to develop a powerful draw, the best bet is to focus on your right elbow. Instead of letting that elbow fly up toward the sky, keep it tight to the body, aligned down the right side of the shirt. Placing the elbow in this area keeps slices at bay and promotes powerful draw, all while making it easier to drop the club on the downswing, and foster improved control and maximum power. 5. Focus on Developing the Solid Plane If you make contact with the ball with an open face, you’re at risk of slicing. To prevent this, use a golf ball box. Stand it on its side and align it with your target line. As you strike, aim for a groove path that will allow the shaft to graze just over the box. If you want to slice, use the box and set it up on the same line, but just a bit forward of the golf ball. Make sure you avoid hitting the box! 6. Keep Your Thumbs Down To stop the clubface from closing prematurely, keep your thumbs-down as you approach impact. This is a unique yet simple movement, and is designed to slow the closing of the club face, while also eliminating any shots that curve up or toward the left. This is a simple hack, but it can have a powerful and long-lasting impact on your swing. 7. Combat the Early Release The early release is a dreaded golf event. It happens when the body moves too far forward, in front of the golf ball. If this happens, the club lags with an open face, and your hands automatically work to fix the gap. The
6 Ways to Manage Golfers Elbow
If you’ve ever experienced golfer’s elbow, you know exactly how uncomfortable and inconvenient it can be, and you’ve probably looked for a way to solve it. Fortunately, you’re not alone in this, and there are ways to manage your golfer’s elbow so it doesn’t manage you. Here are six fast tips: