Athletes put their bodies under stress, it’s up to us to help mitigate the damage

In the pursuit of specialization that many athletes enter in preparation for their sport, they put their body through all kinds of motions that can cause injury. Even though you are doing your body a great service by building muscle and improving cardiovascular function, (among many other things), your body is likely taking on more impact than a person who takes no exercise. This impact varies in degrees, especially depending on the sport, but all impact is likely to cause degradation. We seek to limit the degree of degradation and therefore, lower your likelihood for injury.

All that being said, athletic injuries do still occur in MIlpitas

The most common injuries to befall an athlete are sprains, strains and tears that result from trauma, whether forceful or repetitive in nature. Here is how we help treat the injuries: 

• Chiropractic adjustment: restoring alignment to the spine, alleviating nerve impingement, restoring function to spinal joints. 
• Spinal mobilization: low-force adjustments target a spinal segment to improve range of motion.
• Myofascial release: reducing pain allows you to focus on stretching and strengthening, an integral part of rehabilitating an injury.
• Improving circulation: circulation brings the necessary nutrients and oxygen to an injury which facilitates the repair process.
• Ice and heat: further improves circulation and facilitates the healing process. 

Treating athletic injuries with chiropractic in Milpitas

Ideally, we would begin helping before the injury occurs! In support of preventing injuries in the first place, we evaluate the body to determine spinal imbalance that can also affect muscles and detect points of tension in the musculature that can leave you prone to injury. If you want to find out how chiropractic can optimize your athletic life, give our office in Milpitas a call to schedule an appointment today. 

The bridge could be one of the most important movements you’re not doing 

When it comes to back pain, one stretch-cum-exercise stands above all as offering you some kick-ass treatment for your tender back. The bridge, in its many forms, can be used to reverse many of the problems associated with sitting too much, poor posture, and repetitive trauma injuries that are coming to define life in the 21st century technological world. 

Benefits of the bridge for people with back pain in Milpitas: 

• Elongating the spine
• Stretching every muscle in the back
• Targeting muscles that directly support the spine
• Opening up hips and shoulders
• Toning the glutes and hamstrings
• Improving circulation

When you sit for the majority of the day, many of these muscles fall by the wayside, weakening and contributing to limited range of motion. This is a dangerous proposition for you and your spine: with weaker supportive muscles, you are more prone to injury from simple daily movements. It is important to focus on undoing the tightening and weakening that you put your muscles through when sitting at your desk all day; it is important to do a bridge after a hard day of sitting. 

Bridge for back pain in Milpitas

There are many different types of bridges and we are sure that one of them will suit you. However, it is always a good idea to speak with a health professional when you are considering adding a movement like the bridge into your health care routine. Give our office in Milpitas a call, where we can show you how to bridge effectively to account for your particular spine. 

Why is core stability important?

Core stability may as well mean spinal stability, which is why it is important to develop your core as more than just a nice looking six pack. There is a whole network of muscles here that work together to support your spine and prevent injury from daily movement. Weakness in the core muscles is one of the most culpable elements for spinal dysfunction and back pain. A strong core will: 

• support your spine
• allow you to perform daily motions without incurring injury
• contribute to good posture
• keep you upright and pain free as you get older 

So what are the muscles within the core that are so important? Let’s meet one set.

Milpitas, meet your erector spinae muscles, an important set of muscles for stability in the lower back

The erector spinae muscles run from the base of your skull down to the sacrum, comprising the core muscles along the way. They support your spine from top to bottom as well as your head, allowing for lateral trunk flexion but more importantly trunk extension. If you have ever sat up straight in your chair after slumping for an extended period of time, you have experienced the sensation of activating your erector spinae muscles. Weakness in the erector spinae muscles puts your back at risk for strain and thus, is often present when people complain of indiscriminate back pain.

How we help establish core stability and reduce back pain in Milpitas 

Exercises such as deadlifts, and back extension exercises performed with different equipment are important for adding strength the erector spinae- but there are stretches and strengthening movements that can be done without gym equipment as well. If you suspect that weak core muscles are contributing to your back pain, give our office in Milpitas a call to schedule an appointment today. It is always a good idea to converse with a health professional before starting any new regime for strengthening muscles that support the spine. We can ensure your spine and supportive muscles are balanced and ready to receive the benefits of exercise as well as advise you on which exercises will benefit your body best. 

Trigger points are a great source of pain, but what exactly are they? 

The fascia is a layer of tissue that covers the muscles and spreads uninterrupted throughout the body. Following injury to a muscle, there is often an accompanying epicenter of sensitivity. This is called the trigger point; the important distinction is that trigger points are not areas of scar tissue within the muscle, but rather an area of increased sensitivity that causes discomfort and pain when pressurized. Often this pain can be felt in other parts of the body, seemingly unrelated to the injury, in what is known as referred pain. 

Chiropractic treatment for trigger points and myosfascial pain in Milpitas

Trigger points can develop in any skeletal muscle, (those that provide stability and movement to joints and bones) and because of referred pain, it is important to know exactly where the pain is originating from. Because myofascial pain does not show up on X-rays, MRIs or CT scans, we use a more hands on approach to detect trigger points. At our office in Milpitas, we use manual pressure to search for trigger points in the muscles that correspond to your pain. From here, we use treatment methods including:

• Myofascial release
• Active Release technique
• Heat and Ice
• Electric stimulation and ultrasound
• Specific stretching and strengthening

Are you suffering from recurrent trigger point pain in Milpitas?

Trigger points also develop due to deficiencies in lifestyle; repetitive trauma, poor posture and high levels of stress contribute to heightened muscle tension which often translates into trigger points. We help you identify behavior that leads to heightened muscle tension and give you ways to dispel it in the moment. Give our office a call to find out more about what we can do to help detect and defeat your myofascial pain. 

Shoulders are among the most active joints in our bodies

The glenohumeral joint is the ball and socket joint between the scapula and humerus; it is the joint most people are referring to when they say the word, “shoulder.” This particular joint interacts with three other joints to make up the entire shoulder complex and there are a host of muscles, tissues and other ligaments that go into supporting the shoulder, keeping it stable and providing for its range of motion. 

What is shoulder instability?

Shoulder instability is most often the result of structural compromise in the glenohumeral joint; when the fine tuning between joints and muscles fails and the ball separates from the socket, you can definitely argue that there is some instability happening. A partial separation of the ball from the socket is called a subluxation, while a complete unjoining of the joint is called a dislocation. Instability, subluxation and dislocation are all underlying causes for a host of symptoms related to shoulders including pain, dysfunction and limited range of motion. If you feel that something is amiss in your shoulder, it is important to get an assessment to determine the true cause of your dysfunction. Athletes who use their shoulders a lot, including throwing sports or swimming, need to devote extra attention to the health and strength of their shoulders. 

How chiropractic can help people suffering with shoulder pain in Milpitas

Chiropractic treatment for shoulder instability begins with a thorough assessment and medical history to determine the specific cause of your dysfunction. Chiropractic adjustment and mobilization are effective at maintaining spinal alignment and proper nerve signalling to the shoulder region. A conditioning program will then be put in place to strengthen the muscles, tendons and ligaments which create the supportive network around the joint. If you suspect something isn’t quite right with your shoulders, or you have been suffering from instability related pain, give our office in Milpitas a call and let’s start correcting this today.