Tag: Posture

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6 Tips For Establishing a Health Routine

healthy routine

The key to maintaining optimal health is follow through. Start with something small like stretching each morning. And then follow through. If you succeed at an easy one, it will actually strengthen your willpower, thereby improving your ability to succeed at the next, more difficult one.

Once you have a series of successes under your belt, you will be better able to tackle the really tough ones, like changing your diet or working out. Here are 6 tips to get you started on creating a health routine that works for you:

1. Make a List, Check It Twice. List making is a good organizational strategy. Make a list as part of your daily health routine the night before. When you make a list of the things you’ll do the next day, such as going to the gym, attending that meeting, picking up vegetables for dinner in the evening, you’ll be clear about at least 80 percent of your day. Knowing what to expect can help you hit the ground running when the sun comes up.

2. Do The Most Important Thing First. Early in the morning (after your coffee of course), you’re likely to have the most energy, and the fewest distractions. Start your day by focusing without interruption on the most important or challenging task you can accomplish that day.

3. Set Goals and Limits. If goals are excessively restrictive or vague, you will be less likely to rise to the challenge. Establish clear nutrition and health goals (dessert two times a week; a half-hour walk five times a week, etc.). Consistency is key to success with anything in life but especially when it comes to your health. Keep track of the foods you eat each day for free with My Fitness Pal.

4. Stick to Your Plan. It’s important to have a habitual routine – and to follow through with it – so you can streamline your schedule. Do the same things in the same order at the same time each day. Try out a routine for a few days to see what works best for you. Keep up with your workouts and chiropractic adjustments, and develop a consistent routine for healthy eating. Once you experience how great your body is designed to feel and function – you will feel sluggish and unsettled if you start missing your adjustments, workouts or eating unhealthy – which in itself is a strong incentive to get back on track.

5. Focus Your Positive Energy. One great way to start your new morning routine is by taking a few quiet moments after you wake up to focus your positive energy for the day. You can achieve this through meditation, thinking positive thoughts, doing affirmations, or practicing visualization exercises. Studies have shown that regular meditation may lower blood pressure, boost the immune system, and help relieve stress and fatigue.

6. Stop worrying. “The secret of health for both mind and body is not to mourn for the past, worry about the future, or anticipate troubles, but to live in the present moment wisely and earnestly.” You can’t fully appreciate today if you worry too much about tomorrow. Realize that tomorrow is going to happen whether you worry about it or not. And since worry has never accomplished anything for anybody, redirect your mental energy elsewhere.

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Why Is Alignment Important?

True Health starts with an aligned spine

The human body craves alignment. We work most efficiently when we are aligned. Ideally our bones should be supporting our weight (not our muscles) but when we lose normal alignment – the muscles pick up the slack which results in muscle strains, sprains, and tears. When we lose proper alignment we see joints begin to break down or wear out – due to uneven weight distribution.

Anyone who has ever driven and maintained an automobile for an extended period of time has likely dealt with an alignment problem. The effects of a simple curb nudge, fender-bender or direct collision may create a misalignment that is not immediately obvious. Our bodies are very much like automobiles – and we may not realize that our own alignment is off until an ankle sprain leads to knee trouble or the occasional ache develops into chronic pain or worse yet – we need a knee or hip replacement.

As chiropractors, we understand the human body is better able to deal with stressors when there is balance in the spine – allowing the nerve system to work free of any structural interference. The focus of chiropractic care is to keep the bones of the spine (vertebrae) in their proper relationships with each other, which enhances the function of the spine and nerve system in order to allow the body to fully express its maximum potential and work optimally. Continue reading “Why Is Alignment Important?”

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5 Tips For a Better Sleep Tonight

 

If you are having trouble sleeping at night, you are not alone. More than one-quarter of the U.S. population report they occasionally do not get enough sleep, while nearly 10% admit to experiencing chronic insomnia.

Getting a good night of sleep is one of the cornerstones of health, your body needs this time to repair and heal. Six to eight hours per night seems to be the optimal amount of sleep for most adults, and too much or too little can have adverse effects on your health. Research shows that inadequate sleep can have disastrous effects on your weight loss efforts, impair your concentration, and weaken your immune system.

There is good news though, because starting tonight, you can improve the quality and quantity of your sleep. Here are 5 ways to get back on track: Continue reading “5 Tips For a Better Sleep Tonight”

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Chiropractic During Pregnancy

Chiropractic care is an important part of prenatal care. Often times, preexisting but unnoticed imbalances in your spine can become stressed during pregnancy – resulting in an uncomfortable pregnancy for many women. Did you know that the American Pregnancy Association promotes chiropractic care during pregnancy?

Some of the benefits are:

  1. Relieve and even prevent the common discomforts experienced during pregnancy
  2. Restore balance to pelvis resulting in an easier, quicker, safer delivery
  3. Reduce nerve system stress, improving your body’s ability to function naturally
  4. Supports natural, non-invasive birthing procedures

According to recent studies, chiropractic care may result in easier pregnancy including increased comfort during the third trimester and delivery and reduced need for analgesics (pain medication). In one study, women receiving chiropractic care through their first pregnancy had 24% reduction in labor times and subjects giving birth for the second or third time reported 39% reduction in shorter labor times. In another study, the need for analgesics was reduced by 50% in the patients who received adjustments. In addition, 84% of women report relief of back pain during pregnancy with chiropractic care.

It is not just the mom who benefits from chiropractic care, it can comfort the baby as well. If your pelvis is out of balance in any way, the ligaments which attach to the uterus can become torqued and twisted, which may restrict the baby’s movement. Specific chiropractic adjustments (The Webster Technique) can correct sacral misalignment, balance pelvic muscles and ligaments which in turn removes torsion to the woman’s uterus, its resulting constraint to the baby, and allows the baby to get into the best possible position for birth.

Chiropractic is a natural approach to health that helps an expectant mother gain confidence – in herself, her body, and her baby. You deserve to have the best chance at a successful pregnancy and childbirth, and you can only do that with a nervous system that is running free and clear of interference.

Did any of you visit the chiropractor when pregnant or plan on doing so?

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Pediatric Chiropractic Explained

It often comes as a big surprise to people when they find out that I adjust children, and not only children – but BABIES!!?? The question that always follows is, “Why would a child need a chiropractic adjustment?”

Health is about balance, so the first question we’ll answer is: How does a child come out of balance? Physical traumas – they are a common part of growing up and there are a number of especially common times that they may occur. Trauma from birth and childhood experiences can cause subtle misalignment of the spinal bones that can interfere with the nervous system and contribute to a myriad of health issues. As a chiropractor, I assess how your child’s spine and nervous system is adapting to the lifestyle stressors placed upon it – and if needed – perform chiropractic adjustments that gently and effectively correct these misalignments so the body can function properly. Continue reading “Pediatric Chiropractic Explained”