This week we have a special blog post from Glenwood City trainer and wellness coach Sandy Kopecky.  Sandy regularly works with people to not only increase their strength and endurance but also to help stabilize shoulders, low backs, necks and more. This blog post focuses on ways to stabilize the back and she shares 3 simple exercises she recommends to reduce back pain.

From Sandy…

 

Back Pain….Here are my Top Three Back Exercises that I use in my Training Classes with great success.  Remember the point of these three is not to get stronger, but to build endurance and control of your spine.

  1. The Bird-Dog

This exercise involves the core muscles, back muscles and even the glutes!

~~To start get on the floor on your hands and knees in a quadruped position. Make sure that your back is relatively flat.

~~Raise your left arm forwards and at the same time extend your right leg straight back.

~~Raise your arm and leg until they are in line with your torso. To increase activation of your back muscles even more during this exercise, you can clench the fist of the arm you’re raising,

~~I suggest start with 1- 20 sec hold and switch to the other side and repeat. If you feel sharp pain in back drop leg slightly.

2. Child’s Pose (this is one of my favorites)

There are so many benefits to this…it helps relieve stress, stretches the hips and thighs….Plus Child pose gently stretches the low back, massages and tones the abdominal organs, and stimulates digestion and elimination.  ***Not recommended if you have severe knee injuries or if you are in your third trimester of pregnancy.***

~~Begin on all fours. Exhale and lower the hips to the heels and forehead to the floor. Have the knees together or if more comfortable, spread the knees slightly apart.

~~The arms can be overhead with the palms on the floor, the palms or fists can be stacked under the forehead, or the arms can be along side the body with the palms up.

~~Breathe slowly and deeply, actively pressing the belly against the thighs on the inhale.

~~Breathe and hold for 4-12 breaths.

~~To release: place the palms under the shoulders and slowly inhale up to a seated position.

3. Seated Knee to Chest Stretch

This is especially helpful for those that cannot get on the floor AND for the office workers sitting all day.

~~While sitting in a chair (please make sure the chair is stable), raise one knee as if you are marching until you can reach it with your hands.

~~Use both hands to pull the bent knee up toward your chest until you feel a gentle stretch in the lower back and back of the hip.

~~Your hands can be on top of your knee or behind your knee for comfort.

~~Hold this position for 15-20 seconds, then repeat 3-5 times on each side.

 

Added Tips:

Changing positions, taking breaks, and walking are still great ways to relieve strain, but performing the stretches explained in this article will improve your flexibility and may help reduce your risk for back pain….and of course scheduling adjustments with Dr. Austin will help keep your back pain free.

 

Sandra Kopecky:  Personal Trainer/Wellness Mindset Coach

Sandy’s Health & Wellness Studio

Power Packed Snacks!

Having a mid day energy drop?  Rather than reaching for a coffee, soda or sugar laden snack why not have something loaded with nutrients your body needs AND tastes great? It’s incredibly easy to bring these portable, delicious and absolutely nutrient packed snacks to work, on the road or anywhere else you find yourself needing a nutritious snack.

Peanut Butter and Raw Cocoa Nibs

Of all the power snacks out there this one is probably my favorite.  Just take 2 tablespoons of natural peanut butter and sprinkle 1-2 tablespoons of raw cocoa nibs over it. Never heard of raw cocoa nibs? They are raw fragments of cocoa beans, the magic ingredient in chocolate! Raw cocoa has significant amounts of magnesium, iron, fiber and enough healthy fat to help you feel full and energized after eating it.  Peanut butter? Well, it just tastes great when mixed with chocolate and supplies some protein to help you feel full longer so you aren’t temped to reach for another snack a few hours later.

Blueberries and Chia Seeds with Coconut Yogurt

Soak 1 tablespoon of chia seeds in about 3 tablespoons of water for 30 minutes. Then just mix the berries, seeds and as much coconut yogurt as you want.  Blueberries are chock full of antioxidants, phytonutrients and fiber and are excellent for healing the gut if you have digestive issues.  Chia seeds offer omega 3 fatty acids to combat inflammation, protein and fiber as well as magnesium and other minerals that are essential to overall good health. The coconut yogurt adds flavor and some probiotics which are needed to properly absorb nutrients. This power snack is a bodies best friend so eat early and often!

Ants on a Log

You knew this one was coming right? Actually this kid favorite is a perfect snack for grownups on the run too.  Just cut a few sticks of celery into thirds, spread on either almond butter or peanut butter and stick a few raisins into the nut butter.  Celery is a powerfully androgenic veggie (it promotes muscle growth). It also helps the body flush out toxins that accumulate from air pollution and other environmental toxins.  The nut butter provides protein and fat which helps you feel full longer. Raisins are an overlooked super food. They have plenty of boron, which is used in the bodies energy pathways, and have resveratrol, the super phytonutrient in red grapes that has been shown to promote cardiovascular health.

These snacks are some of my go to eats when I’m busy, stressed or otherwise just need an energy boost.  Try them out and don’t be afraid to tinker with the recipes! Let me know you have any energy boosting snacks you love. It’s always good to hear what other people are up to!

How many people do you know who are really healthy? They have natural energy and a glow about them that just radiates good health? If your having trouble thinking of many people you know like that you are not alone.

 

Despite spending more money per person than any other country the United States statistically lags far behind world rankings for overall health and well being.  Our TV ads are peppered with ads for medicines promising to manage chronic diseases. Our social media feeds are covered with ads for the latest fad diet, supplement or workout program that promises us restored health and yet many people just don’t see the results they want.

 

I have spent years working with nutrition, supplementation, life style changes and chiropractic care and I know that good health is possible. High energy levels are possible. And you don’t need to take medication, eat exotic herbs or work out 5 times a day to achieve it.  That being said you will need to fully commit to becoming healthy. Paying lip service to a healthy diet or taking supplements for 2 weeks then quitting won’t get you any closer to feeling how you want to feel.  These are my top recommendations for common sense steps to improving your health and experiencing higher energy. Start doing these regularly and you almost can’t help but feel better, have more energy and start to move towards a healthier overall state.

1.Exercise Daily
Most of us don’t move enough.  Sedentary lifestyles are as much a risk of disease as smoking and if you don’t use it, you will lose it. A 30 minute walk, a yoga session, weight lifting, shooting hoops. Whatever you like to do, do it! It needs to be enough to get your heart rate up and ideally break a sweat to get the most benefits from exercise and it needs to be regular.  Getting regular exercise improves circulation, helps regulate mood and keeps weight in check.  This one is absolutely critical if you want to be healthy.  Don’t skip this one.

 

2. Eat Less Sugar

Look, we eat too much sugar.  That’s the reason diabetes is skyrocketing in the USA and diabetes increases your risk of just about every chronic health condition known to man. Heart disease, cancer, obesity, you name it and high blood sugar increases the odds you will get it.  Limit the sugar you get to natural sources like berries, watermelon or other fruits.  Ditch the soda, candy, cookies, breads and other high carb (high sugar) foods and you will feel better. Like almost the same day. Seriously.

 

3. Filter Your Water

Tap water is not healthy. The reason is it is loaded with a mixture of pesticide residues, medication metabolites and anything else that gets dumped in rivers or flushed down toilets.  Heck, fish in some rivers  are starting to show both male and female characteristics due to high levels of estrogen like compounds in the water from medications people take.  A high level filter (Think Aquasauna or something similar) will pull out almost of the chemicals in tap water leaving you with a much healthier glass of water.  At the very least use a Britta or something but make sure to filter your water.

 

4. See Your Chiropractor

Yes, you need to do this.  Your body uses your nervous system to communicate with itself.  Any pressure on the nerves decreases the ability of the body to sense and respond to it’s environment.  All it takes is 1-2 adjustments a month to make sure you body is functioning as near 100% as it can. Its easy to do and you will notice a difference in how you feel almost instantly.

 

5. Get 7-8 Hours of Sleep Each Night

Sleep is when your body regenerates.  There is no way around this one.  If you are not getting enough sleep each night then you are slowly wearing out your body one night at a time.  Our bodies can work miracles but if you put 16 hours of hard work in during the day and are not sleeping 7-8 hours and letting your body fix tissue damage, replenish hormones and enzymes and other needed repairs then your asking for trouble.  If you have problems falling asleep try this smoothie recipe about 30 minutes before bed. The ingredients provide the nutrients your body needs to produce melatonin, the hormone needed for sound sleep.

 

6. Take a Probiotic

Probiotics are bacteria that normally live in the human digestive tract, specifically in the small intestine and colon.  It is important to take a high quality probiotic because if you have ever taken an anti-biotic your gut flora is compromised.  Overgrowth of “bad bacteria” in the gut cause stomach pain and bloating with meals, acid reflux and can contribute to many other digestive issues.  FYI, the bad bacteria also LOVE sugar so if you needed another reason to cut back on sugar this is it!  Replacing the “good bacteria” found in probiotic supplements re-balances the gut bacteria and improves digestion and nutrient assimilation. If you live in the modern world, you need a probiotic.

 

7. Do 1 Thing Each Day to Reduce Stress

Stress kills.  Some sources estimate that stress is the underlying cause of upwards of 90% of illnesses diagnosed in the US each year. Why is this? Well, when your under stress your body shifts blood and nutrients out of the core organs and into the muscles. This is done because your body is anticipating a “fight or flight” response.  The problem with modern life is the things that stress out modern humans (bills, schedules, work commitments, etc…) are not things you can fight or run away from , like say a saber tooth tiger.  These slow burn stresses go on and on and if we don’t learn to manage them they burn out our natural defense systems because so little energy is going towards things like digestion, muscle and soft tissue repair, reproduction, etc… Simply put when under stress your body doesn’t get the opportunity to repair itself and its anyone’s guess when it will break down and where.

 

If you need help with any of these 7 ways to improve your health we are here to help. Call us at 715-246-7500 or message us on Facebook. We can help you set up a plan to improve your health and point you in the right direction with nutrition, exercise, chiropractic and more.  Don’t wait, call or message now! You can find good health in the modern world.

 

 

 

 

A large percentage of Americans struggle to either fall asleep or to stay asleep preventing them from getting the regenerative sleep they need to be healthy.  Sleep is a very important process where the body repairs damage to muscle, replenishes enzymes and balances hormones.   All of these are important for good overall health.

 

If you are doing everything else right, not eating a large meal before bed, cutting off caffeine before noon and avoiding blue light (screens) for an hour before bed and still having problems sleeping you might want to try this smoothie recipe. It contains nutrients that specifically aid the body in the formation of the sleep hormone melatonin and gives the body a small blood sugar spike and subsequent drop right before you go to bed which will promote deeper, more regenerative sleep.

 

The Sleep Smoothie

1/2 banana

2 tablespoons tart cherry concentrate

1/4 cup rolled oats

2 tablespoons of peanut butter

1/4 cup raspberries

1-2 cups almond milk

 

Add all ingredients and blend until smooth. Drink roughly 30 minutes before you plan to go to sleep.

 

Remember too that we are always here to help so if you need more help with this recipe or need more help setting up a healthy eating plan call us or message us on Facebook and lets connect! We are here to help you get healthy.

Arthritis is a major health concern in the Unites States today. We know because people with moderate to severe arthritis usually have stiff achy joints that sometimes get more painful with changes in the weather or flare up after seemingly innocent activities. Sometimes it gets so severe that people are bound to wheel chairs or using crutches.  People suffering from arthritis also typically need some sort of pain medication to manage the symptoms adding another layer of complexity to the condition.

 

There are several types of arthritis but for this article we are focusing only on osteoarthritis. Another phrase for thing kind of arthritis is “wear and tear”. This kind of arthritis forms when joints in the body are under some sort of repetitive pressure over a course of months or in many cases years.  Take a misaligned spinal joint for instance. When a vertebra is tipped to the left, thereby putting much more pressure on the left sided joints in that area the body responds by laying down additional calcium to strengthen the area and prevent the bone from fracturing due to prolonged stress caused by the misalignment.

 

This is the normal physiological response of the body to additional pressure on a bone. The “use it or lose it” principle if you will.  This is all good until it goes on for too long and the extra accumulation of calcium begins to protrude out potentially pressing on nerves exiting the spine and reducing the range of motion in the joint in the areas where the bone growth is occurring.  This can also lead to inflammation in the joint capsule and surrounding soft tissues leading to chronic inflammation in the joint.

 

As a chiropractor I see people everyday with misaligned spinal vertebrae. In many cases there have been there for years!   I often treat people with moderate to severe arthritis with chiropractic, which keeps the joints moving however once the arthritis is formed I will always be managing their pain.

 

I can tell you without a doubt the #1 thing you can do to prevent or dramatically slow down the formation of arthritis in the spine is to get adjusted 1-2 times per month!

 

The reason for this is that chiropractic adjustments find areas of the spine (and shoulders, elbows, wrists, hips, knees and ankles) where bones are misaligned and stressing the bone causing the body to lay down extra calcium and corrects them.  Keeping as much normal function of the joints as possible is one of the major benefits of chiropractic care and what prevents or dramatically slows down the formation of arthritis.  There is no other therapy that does this. Arthritis is such a widespread problem and much of it is so preventable.

 

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Summer is great time of year. We can finally get outside and get active and do all the projects we’ve been waiting all winter to get going on. The extra sun exposure also ramps up our vitamin D levels and gives our skin a nice healthy tan.

 

For most people the months leading up to summer are not very active and so when the warm weather hits we get out there and get going before our bodies are fully acclimated to being a bit busier.  This is where many people run into problems, especially early in the season because the tendency is to work hard right from the get go. Mowing lawns, planting flowers, boating and camping all come to mind. But I can tell you from almost 10 years of experience that the surprising leader of summer back problems in my office is… Gardening!

 

Yes, you read that correctly. Gardening!

 

Gardening is great. It gets people outside and working in the dirt plus you get the reward of harvesting all those delicious tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers and more. But lots of the physical work involved with gardening is very hard on the spine, especially the lower back. Specifically the hoeing and weeding cause most of the problems because they involve leaning forward and pulling for extended periods of time. This puts significant strain on the muscles and tendons in the lower back leading to repetitive strain injuries that I often see in my gardening patients.

 

Of course once the area is injured getting it to see the chiropractor is the best way to resolve the issue but here are a few tips for preventing injuring the back in the first place.

 

1- Work in short bursts of time rather than one big chunk of time. This lowers the risk of overuse injury. Overuse in the short term is the #1 reason people hurt their backs gardening.

 

2- Avoid leaning over for long periods of time when weeding or hoeing.  Leaning forward puts additional strain on the low back and increases the likely-hood of injury.

 

3- Be especially careful when doing any kind of lifting not to lift and rotate at the same time. This puts a shearing motion in the spine that is very hard on the low back.

 

Gardening is a great summer hobby. Just make sure you are protecting yourself from injury and you should have a great summer gardening season!

 

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Have you ever had a night when you couldn’t sleep? You spent hours tossing and turning, trying to relax and get some health restoring sleep only to finally drift off an hour or two before the alarm went off and wake up feeling like the walking dead?

 

Why is it that you feel so terrible the next day? Well, one of the primary functions of sleep is for the body to heal muscle tissue, regenerate organs, restock hormones and enzymes and rest the mind.  This takes place in cycles of sleep, each designed to restore certain parts of the body. When we miss even a single night of sleep the affects on the body are acute and make for a long day.

 

As a doctor who works specifically with the muscles, joints and associated connective tissues one of the first questions I ask new patients is how well do you typically sleep at night? The reason I ask this question is that after an adjustment the muscles, tendons and organs at the end of the nerves being pinched increase the amount they heal. Sleep, being the primary restorative time, is when the majority of this healing occurs. If a person is not sleeping well then the amount of healing will be less and more treatments will be needed in order to resolve the problem.

 

This is the single most important reason behind getting enough sleep. If you don’t your body is not regenerating as much as it should be and your health will suffer. The cumulative effects over time can be far ranging and destructive and simply making getting good sleep a priority can fix this. In general adults need 8 full hours of sleep per night, kids need 10-12 hours of sleep per night.

 

There are also some things you can do to improve your sleep if you struggle falling asleep or staying asleep.  Cutting off caffeine by around 10am, not looking at phones, computers or TV screens 1 hour before bed and having a specific wind down routine each night can make a big difference in sleep quality.  If you are still having problems sleeping and need further help don’t hesitate and call my office today. We can help identify why you are having problems sleeping and help make a plan to help you sleep better and get the regenerative sleep you need.

 

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Did you know that high blood sugar is a leading contributor to countless diseases in the United States?  It’s been called a silent epidemic because so many Americans have blood sugar issues and either have no idea or are not doing anything about it even though they know they have chronically high blood sugar.

 

Having high blood sugar leads to diabetes. In fact, high blood sugar is so common now there is even a garden variety diagnosis for it called “Pre-Diabetes.” This is the medical way of saying you don’t have diabetes yet but your just about too. This is dangerous because high blood sugar is linked to cancer, auto-immune disease, chronic inflammation and many, many other health conditions.

 

The most common way American doctors treat diabetes or high blood sugar is through medication  that lowers blood sugar. The patient will typically receive some diet counseling and then off they go to take the drug the rest of their life. This is silly because for many people the cause of the high blood sugar is what is going in their mouth in the first place!

 

To put it in the simplest terms eating carbs causes blood sugar to spike.  This is a physiological fact. Thus in order to lower blood sugar the first thing to do is eat less carbs! But we can take it a step further and this is the 1 change you can make to greatly improve your bodies ability to regulate blood sugar.

 

Eat all your daily calories in a 6-8 hour window.

 

Yes this will mostly likely mean skipping breakfast. This sounds hard for most people but after the initial shock most peoples bodies get used to this in 1-3 weeks.  Anyone who has read my blog posts before knows that I like specific reasons for my recommendations. The reason this will help regulate blood sugar is because it allows the body more time to clear sugar from the blood between meals and will give your body long enough between meals that it will actually start to eat away at the fat reserves accumulated due to excess sugar in the blood.  This increases how sensitive your body is to insulin(how well it uses insulin to clear blood sugar).  The more sensitive your body is to insulin the better.

 

When you body is more sensitive to insulin it becomes easier to manage weight, you have less inflammation and your energy levels stay higher and are more even than when your blood sugar is a constant roller coaster.  What you eat is important too and I will go over that in another post but assuming you are eating a relatively balanced diet eating your calories in a smaller window can really help people with pre and full blown diabetes.

 

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We’ve all been there. One minute your doing something around the house or at work, the next your bent over double because of excruciating low back pain that seemingly came out of nowhere.

Most of the time our reaction is “oh no I threw my back out” but the truth is unless you did something specific to cause the pain such as falling on concrete or slipping on a slick surface there was some underlying problem that has been building up for several weeks or longer.

So what are the top 5 causes of these underlying problems with our spines that eventually lead to the “threw my back out” moment? Each of the following is something you probably do often so read on and learn which movements and activities are the most likely to cause injury to the spine.

 

  1. Sitting– Do you do office work? How about after work watching TV or maybe you have a long commute to and from the office? Whatever the reason whenever we sit for extended periods of time the lower back is under much more pressure than when you are standing or laying down. Over time this causes the muscles to fatigue and shift more body weight onto the spinal joints causing them to slowly slip out of place. This leads to increased pressure on the nerve exiting the spine and over several weeks leads to back pain, sciatica flare ups and more. If you sit more than 2-3 hours a day consider getting up and walking every 20 minutes or so and adding some stretching into your daily routine.
  2. Improper Lifting Technique- Admit it. You have done this one. At one point or another most of have gotten lazy and bent over to lift something and just forced it up using the upper body and back. The reason this is such a common way of injuring the back is because when you lean over and lift with the upper body instead of bending at the knees and using your legs is because you then isolate the much smaller upper back muscles. The lower back gets stuck stabilizing the upper body instead of helping lift which commonly leads to lower back strain/sprain injuries.
  3. Shoveling/Raking– The motions involved in these two activities are bending and twisting.  This motion, no matter what you are doing, puts the spine at serious risk for injury because of the shearing motion placed on the vertebral discs.  This is a seriously compromised position and the chances of injury rise exponentially when you lift and twist compared to a straight on lift.
  4. Tech Neck– This is a relatively new phenomenon thanks largely to smart phones and other fancy new gadgets. People spend much too much time looking down at the screen and repetitive strain eventually fatigues the muscles and causes the neck vertebrae to shift and pinch nerves in the neck. This leads to muscle pain in the neck and shoulders, shooting pain down the arms and sometimes numbness in the hands in extreme cases.
  5. Sleeping on the Stomach– Sleep position is an easy way to either help or hurt your spine.  Sleeping on the back is the best position followed by the left side, then right side. It’s never good to sleep on your stomach because it extends the neck and compresses the neck and upper mid back. Laying like this for several hours will cause the bones in the neck and upper back to shift, stressing muscles, pinching nerves and leading to neck and shoulder pain.  This can also compromise the lower mid back and lower back if you are laying in positions to compensate the neck and upper back compression.  Moral of the story… don’t sleep on your stomach.

 

While this list is far from comprehensive these are the 5 most common sources of non-traumatic injury I see in my office.  Notice that each one is caused by some form of repetitive strain on the pain and typically develops over time.  Also, take note that everyone does all of these at some time or another.  Your spine is  dynamic and responds to stresses put on it so it is important to maintain it’s health and integrity.  If you have problems with neck and back pain, sciatica, tingling in the arms and hands or other related issues contact us and see if we can help.

 

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We all know chiropractic adjustments are great for feeling better and maintaining the function of the spine. But when should you first start getting your kids adjusted? This is the one question I hear most often from parents and here in this article, is the answer.

Your spine begins to bear weight from the second you are born. And as such the inevitable process of wear and tear beings to accumulate from then on.  Now, this process of wear and tear takes a long time to show any appreciable effect. However, even though it begins very slowly it is accumulating over time.

That means that the ideal time to start getting adjustments for kids is as soon as they are born. Adjustments for newborns are nothing like adjustments for adults. As the child ages the techniques and methods used will change to suit their growth.  Starting on a regular chiropractic adjustment schedule as a child will very likely save the person lots of pain and struggle down the road as it greatly reduces the wear and tear on the spine over time because it keeps the spinal joints moving properly.

This is also why I am always recommending adults get adjusted at least 1 time per month (I go once a week). To greatly slow down and reduce the amount of wear and tear on the spine as we age.  Think about it. If person A has been getting adjusted since they were a child and has gotten 400 adjustments by the time they are 40 and person B has only recently started getting adjustments at age 35 because of recurring low back lets say, who has the spine that is in better shape?

Obviously the answer is person A since they have been regularly maintaining their spine for the better part of 4 decades. You don’t wait until your 30 to see the dentist do you? Of course not because you want to have teeth all your life. The same goes for your spine. Start taking care of it as soon as you can and keep taking care of it and you will be pain free, mobile and enjoying life while many around you are succumbing to “old age” and missing out on the joys of life because they failed to maintain the structural marvel  that is their spine.

 

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Arvold Chiropractic Blog

Getting to the Foot of the Problem

Posted by Austin Erickson | 0 comments

The most common cause of back pain is a spinal subluxation, or a bone out of place.  Once a bone is not in the proper alignment it places stress on the spinal joints which if not corrected leads to degeneration … Continue reading →

The #1 Most Overlooked Cause of Back Pain for Parents

Posted by Austin Erickson | 0 comments

Being a parent is hard work.  We don’t always get enough sleep, are usually in a hurry and have multiple places to be and generally have uber-busy lives.  One aspect of this that is often overlooked, especially for parents of … Continue reading →

The 3 Biggest Signs of a Pinched Nerve

Posted by Austin Erickson | 0 comments

As a chiropractor I see many different presentations of pain every day in my office. And while many cases present with the most typical kinds of pain associated with musculoskeletal injuries (dull, achy and tight pain) often patients present with … Continue reading →