Active Family Chiropractic

Empowering Your Health

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Spring cleaning and yard work safety

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With spring here it’s important to keep some very important rules in mind when you embark on your spring cleaning and yard work. These are things that can save you from a lot of pain later on.

Warm up!

One of the most important things is to warm the body up before you do any kind of yard work or spring cleaning. This includes arm swings, leg swings, some air squats, just whatever you can do to get your body moving. Even taking a fast walk around your yard to get your blood pumping through your body. It’s very important to avoid straining your body.

Drink Water & Take Breaks

It’s very important that while you’re cleaning make sure to drink plenty of water and make sure that you’re taking breaks. Also, if you are doing a one-sided activity, such as raking, you want to switch sides so that both sides get the same amount of work on the body.

Cool Down!

Finally, when you’re done with the activity a lot of people make the wrong choice. They sit down with a beverage or they reward themselves with some kind of treat such as ice cream. However, it’s most important that after you do a physical activity to reward your body in a positive way. Some of the ways you can reward yourself positively is by stretching and some kind of rebuilding for the muscle tissue such as eating a steak or getting some kind of protein into your system. Also, make sure that you drink plenty of water to replace what you lost.

Follow the steps

Following the steps will allow you to do more and to recover quickly so that you can spend your spare time doing things you love without pain or soreness. As always the way to keep you in optimal health is to get regular adjustments by your CBP doctor. So make an appointment today!

For more information ask Dr. B at [email protected]

 

Tips for a healthier New Year.

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Happy New Year everyone! Let’s start the new year off right by establishing good habits. Here are some tips for a healthier new year.

Meet the four fundamental needs of your body.

#1. Your nervous system.

Without your brain telling your body what to do through your spinal cord, your body doesn’t function. If you’re not taking care of your spine through regular CBP (Chiropractic Biophysics) adjustments. Your spine cannot work at 100% or at it’s highest potential. As a result that can give you lower health, give you more physical problems, more pain, more limitations, and, less energy.

Many people think that to be healthy you need to just eat well and exercise but it’s more than that. However, it’s so much more than that and the first step is to get regular adjustments by a CBP chiropractor.

#2. Oxygen in your cells.

The best way to keep your cells oxygenated is through exercise and movement. That doesn’t mean you have to run marathons or do aggressive workouts. You are able to do this by walking, swimming, stretching, or just moving. That is how old cells in your body get replaced with new cells. That is also how you stay young and disease free. It is through the oxygenation of the body. The best way to oxygenate your body is through movement, aka exercise.

#3. Water intake.

To be healthier this year one of the best things you can do is to increase your water intake, slowly. If you increase your water intake too fast you will, more than likely urinate it out and it won’t be absorbed. The best thing to do is to sip it throughout the day. The goal for each person should be to intake half your body weight in ounces. That is your minimum hydration levels, needed to maintain good function in your body. Anything above that would be great! Anything below that means you are dehydrated.

Dehydration will help to slow down all of your body functions, which ultimately will affect your health. So, in order to be healthier, you have to get more water into your body. Make sure that if you are consuming beverages with caffeine you want to consume the same amount of water in addition to your daily minimum.

#4. Nutrition and eating the right foods.

This is different for everyone. Some people need to eat raw foods only and some people cannot eat raw foods because of their digestion. Some people can eat gluten and some people can’t, etc. Nutrition is not a single answer. Every person has to figure out what is going to work best for their bodies.

Your body will tell you whether or not it likes what you are putting into it. If you feel energized after you eat, if you feel healthier, if you feel good then you know you’re eating the right foods. If you are feeling gassy, or have heartburn, or any of those other signs of incomplete digestion then you’ll know that you are not eating foods that are good for your body. It’s a good idea to consult a registered dietitian in order to get a specific diet plan together.

Use these as a guideline

That’s the best way to be healthier in the new year. Working on these four fundamental needs listed above will help to give you a good foundation for building a healthier you for the new year. So make a plan to see a CBP chiropractor, drink more water, eat better for your body and move more!

For more information ask Dr. B @ [email protected]

 

 

 

 

How to manage stress during the holidays.

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The best way to manage your stress during the holidays is to make sure you’re meeting all of the fundamental needs of your body. First, you need to make sure that you get a CBP adjustment before you travel and when you get back. That way the adjustment will help to take away a lot of the stressors which come from sitting in airplanes, cars, and trains and just sitting in general.

The second step is to make sure that you are drinking ample amounts of water. A lot of people don’t drink enough water during the holidays. They tend to drink other things like alcohol, hot chocolate, and things that are dehydrating, so you want to make sure that your water levels are high.

Then you want to make sure that you’re managing your stress with some form of exercise. Whether it be yoga, running, or meditation, anything that is mental or physical exercise will be great for managing stress. Stretching when you get to your location and if you’re sitting a lot around the dinner table get up periodically. Move around, don’t get caught sitting on a couch for 5 hours.

You also want to make sure that you are eating as well as you can be. Even though the holidays tend to be very focused on sugar which is very bad for your body. You just want to be really careful about your sugar intake and making poor food choices and minimize those choices.

You can also take some extra vitamin C to support your body and some extra vitamin B complex is very good for anti-stress. B Complex is an anti-stress vitamin. B complex is really good for people who are under stress on a regular basis. Nowadays a lot of companies make something called adrenal support. This contains a lot of Bs, vitamin C and a lot of herbs that are helpful to support the adrenal glands because it is the adrenal glands that get overworked. Most Americans have overworked adrenal glands because of the stress levels we are under on a regular basis. Taking a supplement like that would be helpful to your body through times of stress.

Another thing you can do is to try to get quality sleep, whenever you can because that is when your body heals when you are sleeping. Lack of sleep can lower your body’s ability to handle stress.

There are other things that you can use to help with stress management, topical things. Lavender oil is very helpful for relaxing the body. Some people like melatonin to help with sleeping in a different place. There are a lot of teas out there that are helpful to relax the body, like chamomile.

Lastly, if you can detach from your electronics at least a half an hour before bed and do something that isn’t stimulating your brain as much like reading, praying, or meditating, doing something that would relax your body will make it easier to fall asleep.

So don’t stress out this holiday season and use this guide to help battle holiday stress. Make sure that you’re keeping up with your CBP adjustments and try to sneak an additional one in.

For more information ask Dr. B at [email protected]

Is it flu season or sugar season.

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A lot of people are hearing on the radio and on television that this is flu season. The flu is around all year long, it isn’t just here during one season. The thing is that the other months of the year people make better health choices. That means that they are making wiser choices on what they eat and they tend to exercise more. They also get a lot more natural sunlight which gives them natural Vitamin D and they tend to drink more water because they are hot.

When the weather starts to get colder, people start to change their habits. They don’t exercise as much, their water consumption goes down, they aren’t seeing as much sunshine and they start to fall off of good habits like eating healthy. People start to eat more comfort foods which are laden with refined sugars, such as Pumpkin Spice lattes, hot chocolate, cakes, and cookies.

When you look at the holidays, the major holidays start in October, during Halloween. Every holiday after that encourages some sort of sugar eating. Thanksgiving, Christmas, Valentine’s Day, and Easter are all major sugar holidays. During these holidays there is a lot of encouragement to eat a lot of pies, cakes, and sugar.

The problem with sugar is that it destroys your immune system functions. It actually suppresses your immune system for 6 hours after eating it. When your immune system is suppressed, it is not working at optimum levels, your immune system is distracted from other things, other jobs it normally has like identifying the flu virus and getting rid of it before it becomes a problem for you physically.

This is what happens in the summer. When you are eating less sugar and are making better health choices your immune system has the opportunity to fight off the flu virus and remove it from your body.

The flu is around all year long, so why the press for the flu vaccine now, during this time of the year? It is because people are making bad health choices. The medical community knows that people are going to be over-consuming sugar in all forms and they are trying to stop an epidemic of the flu.

Should I get the flu shot?

It is a totally personal preference. If you are taking care of your body, making sure you’re eating right, taking vitamin D, drinking enough water and getting adjusted regularly, you should have no need for the flu shot. If you choose to not take care of your body, don’t get regular adjustments, and over-indulge then you might want to consider it.

The biggest take away is that you need to make your health a priority in order to stay healthy. During this holiday season if you know that you’re going to be eating sweets, pies, and cakes, moderate your intake a taste of each dessert will do. You don’t have to consume the whole pie!

Make sure that if you’re going to eat sweets you are drinking more water, getting more sleep and try to get some exercise in. Also, try to schedule an adjustment with your CBP doctor and get your spine right for the holidays.

For more information ask Dr. B at [email protected]

What is the definition of health?

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CBP Definition of health.

The definition of health for everyone is different. If you ask the general populace to write down what their general definition of health is, a lot of people would write down, not having any pain, which is a very limited view of health. In Chiropractic Biophysics they promote 100% nervous system function as being healthy. If you have 100% nervous system function then your body should work at 100% as well.

Along with that, you have to make sure that you are exercising. You also need to make sure that you are hydrated with a good source of water. That you make sure to minimize and manage stress. Lastly, you need to make sure that you are eating properly for your body. That means finding out what fuels you better and on the reverse what drags you down.

Health is very different for everyone and it is up to each person to individualize and really think about what it means to be healthy for them. Then they have to figure out what steps they need to take to make that happen.

How do you achieve optimal health? 

Always start with your spine because that controls your whole body. Having a spinal check up done with a  CBP chiropractor, which is a complete exam and x-ray analysis.

Once any structural issues are addressed the next step would be to stay with whatever you can stay consistent with. If adding extra water to your body every day is what you can do then start there until it’s a habit. If exercise seems more doable, start there. You have to start with baby steps and commit to them. Don’t add anything until you have done them regularly for about a month’s time before you add something new and then you can be consistent with it. Otherwise, you’ll get overwhelmed if you try to change everything at once and then you won’t do anything.

Health is very different for everyone and it is up to each person to individualize and really think about what it means to be healthy for them. Then they have to figure out what steps they need to take to make that happen.

And as mentioned earlier the first step is to make an appointment at a Chiropractic BioPhysics office. Get your spine checked and start the path to optimal health.

For more information contact Dr. B at [email protected]

Why are my neck and back muscles always tight? Part 2: Not exercising or stretching enough.

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Have you ever wondered why your neck and back muscles are always tight? There are a number of factors that contribute to this. Bad posture, not exercising enough and bad nutritional choices are only a few. In this 3 part series, we’re going to talk about the biggest contributing factors to neck and back tightness.

Not exercising or stretching enough or at all.

Your structure, the bones of your body, dictate what your muscles are doing. If you have a poor spinal structure, you will have bad muscle function. Additionally, not exercising will cause your muscles to break down and become useless. There are easy ways to get moving.

  • Try Yoga – Yoga is the practice of strengthening and lengthening your muscles. Holding poses and easily moving from one movement to the next will help provide much-needed oxygen to your blood and muscles. Yoga creates long lean muscles and can boost the metabolism.
  • Take cues from wildlife – Many of us have animals, dogs, and cats that bring joy to our lives. Besides running and lounging, they do a lot of stretching. Try to mimic your animal for a day. If they stretch, try the stretch they’re doing. You’ll notice that you’ll start to feel more awake and refreshed throughout the day.
  • Join a social activity – People who build their social network by participating in shared activities tend to live longer and don’t we all want longevity in life? Find something that interests you. Believe it or not, getting out of the house to attend a group meeting or function will dictate that you walk somewhere and walking is exercise.
  • Everything is easier with a partner – Accountability is key to exercising. Having someone you’re accountable to will allow you to keep exercising, especially if that person is relying on you to be their exercise partner. Knowing you have someone to commiserate and rejoice with can inspire you to move more.
  • Dance like no one is watching – So you’re not someone who exercises and you’re not into stretching or yoga, that’s ok. Create a playlist of your favorite songs. Fill it with songs that there is no possible way you can sit in your seat for while you listen and dance! It only takes 1-2 good songs a day and you’re on your way to moving and providing oxygen to your muscles.

Whatever you choose just move.

No matter what you do, it’s important to move, not only for your structure and health but for your mental health as well. Doing any of the activities above will help you to forget about your stresses for a bit and that will give you the freedom to want to move more.

What are some ways that you move? Share in the comments below.

For questions on what stretches you can do at home, talk to your Chiropractor and contact Dr. B at [email protected]

Make your New Years Resolution to include Chiropractic care as a priority.

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In the new year, we make resolutions to get fit, to be healthier and to be better people. One thing can help us achieve all of our goals…regular visits with your Chiropractor. In our quest to be better, we cannot ignore those things that will help us achieve our goals. Whether it’s dieting, exercising or improving our wellness, having a support system will help you achieve your resolutions faster. Starting the new year off with a trip to your Chiropractor can help you achieve all your wellness goals.

Diet

If we want to be healthier, we have to look at our diet and understand that when we constantly overindulge, we will never reach our health goals. Having someone to speak with about a nutritional plan provides you with an accountability partner. The reason why most diets fail is that people try to go it alone, without any support. If improving your diet and therefore your health is important to you, seek out a diet buddy. Someone who will not only diet with you but will be there to share in your triumphs and fails.

Your Chiropractor is one of those resources. They are a wealth of information so utilize them and ask them what you can do to help improve your diet.

Exercise

It is important to move. To be healthy, it is important to be able to sit, stand and walk, among other things. Being able to care for oneself is very important, as is the ability to look after others. If you’re a parent, you want to be healthy for your children. For an athlete, it’s important to be fit. However, if you want to live, it’s important to move. If you cannot exercise, essentially stretch and move, then how can you be healthy? Just having a good stretching routine to do daily can give you much sought after energy and mobility.

Looking for a stretching routine, your chiropractor can give you guidance that will help improve your range of motion and increase your energy levels.

Wellness

Diet and exercise fall under the category of Wellness. It is important that while we’re making our resolutions, we are also making appointments with those people who are going to help us achieve our goals. The one thing a lot of people forget to do is make an appointment with their Chiropractor.

If you’ve read any of our previous blogs, you will know that caring for your spine is the most important thing to invest your time and energy into. This new year, make it a point to have your spine checked. Knowing which subluxations you have and how to address them can help you on your way to a healthier you.

For more information contact:

Dr. Bianca at [email protected]

Four Essentials of Health with Dr. B.

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Continuing on the theme of health, let’s talk about the four essentials of health. They are nerve flow, oxygen, nutrition and hydration. These are the essentials, meaning you cannot live without them. Why can’t you? Keep reading.

1. Hydration

Hydration is very important to our overall function. Without it, there would be major problems within our system. Water is used to help maintain the balance of fluids in our bodies. Since we are made up of around 70% water, when we become dehydrated, our body lets us know. We can experience headaches, nausea and fatigue. If you were to go without water for more than four days, all of your systems would cease to function and you would cease to live.

So how do you stay hydrated? Drink at least half your body weight in ounces every day to maintain good hydration.  Keep in mind that if you consume a caffeinated beverage, make sure to increase your water intake as well. Since caffeine acts as a diuretic, it can cause dehydration.

2. Nutritional Choices

Our nutritional choices can affect our health in major ways. Eating too much sugar can lead to inflammation, like eating too much fat can lead to the clogging of your arteries. So we have to make smart choices about what we eat. Believe me, I know fried food tastes good, but it’s not good for you. Making the correct nutritional choices can help you to care for the one body you were given. Making a conscious decision to eat well helps promote a mindset of caring for your health.

Imagine your dream car. Imagine owning it. If it says that the only gas you can put in it is 93 grade or higher, would you put an 85 grade of gas in your car? No. You would put in the gasoline that helps to keep your dream car running in perfect condition. The same should be true for your body. Take care of it and it will take care of you.

3. Oxygen

When we talk about oxygen, we’re not just talking about the air we need to breathe. If you cannot breathe, you suffocate and all of your systems will shut down. However, we not only need oxygen for our breath but for our cellular function as well. We need oxygen for our cells to stay healthy and to move. Oxygen is needed for our cells to move and burn fuel such as sugars and fatty acids. When oxygen is breathed in, it is transported to our red blood cells which are then used to produce energy throughout our body.

However, just breathing does not help circulate the much-needed red blood cells throughout our body. We need to move in order to help that process along. This is why it is important to stretch and to exercise. Movement circulates oxygen and red blood cells throughout our body, producing new healthy cells and removing old or damaged cells. When we live a sedentary lifestyle, we are not giving our body the chance to circulate needed oxygen and stay healthy. So get up and move…movement is life.

4. Nerve Flow

Without a doubt, this is the most important and why it was kept for last. Nerve flow is the connection of your nervous system with your brain. Without brain activity, you cannot function. Once a person is brain-dead, they have no control over their body or any function within. This is why it is important to care for your spine and keep it in good health.

Every cell in your body is dictated by your brain and your nervous system is the brain’s communication pathway. Every single thing in your body is controlled by your nervous system and you only have one. You cannot get a spinal cord replacement like a heart or lung transplant. Once your spinal cord is severed in any place, communication from your brain is cut off from below that break and cannot be repaired.

You have to make a conscious decision to care for your spine. Many people see Chiropractors as pain management…that they only have to go care for their spine when it’s in pain. This is called reactionary care. To wait for something to be wrong before you fix it. We should, instead, care for what we have and look at our spines as something we need to care for. Because our spine encases our spinal column, the main hub of communication for our nervous system, we should do what we can to keep it in prime working order. Misalignment in your spine (subluxation) can have many side effects, ranging from allergies to numbness to pain.

So how can we care for our spines? By having regular appointments with your CBP Chiropractor. These types of chiropractors are trained professional doctors who can help you maintain a healthy spine and therefore healthy function.

Change your way of thinking. We need to care for what we have instead of treating what we’ve broken.

For more information or if you have additional questions contact Dr. B at

http://af-chiropractic.com/contact-us/

Holiday Health Tips from Dr. B.

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It’s the holiday season and during this time of the year, more than any other, we tend to indulge. Not only do we indulge, but we don’t take care of ourselves. The holidays are not only a time to celebrate but for many, it’s also a time of great stress. We tend to sleep less, eat poorly, and not work out. Here are some tips on how to stay healthy during this hectic season.

Moderation.

We’ve heard it all before but there’s a truth in it. At holiday time we all want to be able to eat whatever we want, and we can, as long as we do it in moderation. Instead of having a whole bottle of wine, maybe restrict yourself to one or two glasses. Instead of having three full desserts, take a small tasting of each. Instead of having two or more helpings, remember one of the best things about the holidays is left-overs!

Being responsible for the quantity you’re consuming can help deter the extra pounds you may have put on if you allowed yourself to overindulge in everything. This will also help you stay healthy.

Stretching.

During the holidays you may find yourself staying at someone else’s house and/or traveling. While traveling, you want to make sure that you get up and walk around. Anytime you are in a seated position for more than 2 hours at a time, take a break, get up and shake out your limbs. This will help maintain the flexibility and the health of your muscles. This will also help minimize any subluxation you may build from extended stretches of being in the same position.

Minimize stress.

The holidays can be a stressful time of the year. If there is anything you can do to maintain health, it’s to try to minimize your stress. Make sure during this season to take time out for yourself. You can do this either by meditating or praying. Schedule a massage for yourself or a facial, just make sure that you’re taking time to center yourself and relax in all of the craziness.

Sleep.

During this time of the year, you may find yourself staying at someone else’s house. Most people have a hard time sleeping well at other people’s houses. We like our own beds, pillows and our own environments that we’ve created in our homes. Do what you can to recreate that environment, wherever you travel.

Sleep is incredibly important to our health. Make sure that you’re able to still get a good amount of sleep during the holidays. Bring your own pillow, sound machine, whatever you need. Using sound machines can help to block out external noises and promote a calming environment. Diffusing lavender oil or placing a small dab on your temples can promote calm and rest. Use these tips to help get a good night sleep.

See your Chiropractor.

This cannot be said enough. While we all get wrapped up in the holiday season, we cannot forget to take care of ourselves and that begins with maintaining your regular chiropractic adjustments. During the holidays, we are more susceptible to subluxations. This comes from all the bags we carry from shopping and traveling. In order to maintain good health, regular chiropractic visits are essential. During the holiday season make sure to keep all of your chiropractic appointments and think about adding one or two additional, if you can.

For more information contact DR. B at Active Family Chiropractic and have a wonderful holiday season.

About Us: Learn about Chiropractic Biophysics (CBP) through the stories of a CrossFit athlete, a passionate artist, and parents of twin babies

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