Blog
Fancy or Flimsy: Footwear Choice Makes a Big Difference in Back Pain
When it comes to footwear, what comes first: style or function?
For many of us, answering honestly, it would be style, right? We often choose shoes on the basis of their good looks, perhaps even the brand, before considering how those shoes will support our entire body. But shoes must be looked at as part of the big picture!The fact is, walking is the action with the most potential for reptitive trauma for our entire body. We should strive to walk about 10,000 steps a day; falling short of this, we are still striking the ground thousands of times per day. Each steps represents an opportunity to reinforce patterns of shock that travel up the body, affecting every joint in the lower body and spine.
Treating Back Pain with Nonsurgical Decompression Therapy
Decompression is a powerful force for your health
Nonsurgical spinal decompression is a mouthful of a term that generally brings to mind thoughts of surgery or being strapped to a scary table. The truth is, spinal decompression is an all-star modality that helps people naturally manage back pain related to the following conditions:
- Sciatica
- Herniated discs
- Degenerative disc disease
- Spinal arthritis
- Spinal stenosis
- Facet joint syndrome
And while you can actually create a decompressive effect yourself by performing certain stretches (child’s pose for example), instrument-assisted decompression increases the benefit. Read on to find out how.
Your Best Golf Season Yet with Chiropractic
Golf is biomechanics at its finest
And the benefit to your body is undeniable! People of all ages use golf as a gentle form of physical exercise and and an extreme test of discipline. It is a game that strikes at the heart of the human experience, where we compete against ourselves to maintain control of our minds and motor control. Along the way, our body is being challenged by a number of motions which are completely unique to the sport- many of these motions carry the potential for injury. Upon deeper investigation, the exercise may not be as gentle as it seems…
The Role of Hydration in Spinal Health
What will it take to get you drinking the appropriate amount of water?
Every cell in your body contains water, and relies on water to perform basic cellular functions that keep you functioning. But why stop at functioning? Why not strive to thrive? Hydration is one of the fastest ways you can improve overall health and, as we will find below, it has extremely important applications in spinal health. And all you have to do is pick up a glass (or preferably a reusable water bottle) and drink!
Chiropractic for Athletes in Milpitas
Feeling your best starts with exercise
The Olympics are an unparalleled display of the power of sports in the human experience. We watch these athletes, who have dedicated their entire lives to their sport, reach for the pinnacle of perfection. But the greater extrapolation that we see is the happiness and sportsmanship inherent in each event; it shows us that sports, and even simple exercise, are incredibly important for maintaining a high level of well being. There is a neurological reason for this, including:
- the release of endorphins, which fight stress and pain, and make you feel happier
- the release of Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor, a protein that has a restorative effect on brain function.
These two factors are why we often feel a reset-effect after exercising. So we can agree that the pursuit of exercise is important- how can chiropractors help athletes maximize their musculoskeletal advantage?
Chiropractic for Tennis Players in Milpitas
Tennis encourages unique stresses on the body
Tennis is a sport that people the world over use for fun, friendship and fitness. For being a low-impact sport in terms of physical contact, it is actually quite a high-impact sport in terms of detriment to the joints. As a sport that involves a lot of unique movements, it places unique stresses at local points in the body, as well as increasing the level of stress on your body as a whole. Chiropractic is a modality that understands the unique demands of tennis, and one that helps people maintain a high level of performance while lowering their chance for injury. Let’s take a look at chiropractic‘s role in the great game of tennis.
Staying Gold: Chiropractic Eases the Effects of Aging
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Aging is felt most keenly in the spine. From our early twenties onwards, many of us gain an awareness of back pain and stiffness that will remain with us until the end of time. Everything from the daily commute and the toil of office work, to the strains of exercise and taking care of a family, add to the burden. An alarmingly small percentage of the population takes proactive care of their spines; they wait until pain or dysfunction strikes before they do anything about it. So here is lesson 1: if you are fortunate enough to have full range of motion and a spine free of pain, take steps to maintain this blessed advantage.
Sleeping Better Sets the Stage for Weight Loss
What happens when we don’t sleep well
Sleep is a cornerstone wellbeing. There is a reason we spend up to one-third of our lives doing an activity that literally involves doing nothing. But as soon as sleep quality suffers, we feel it. The ripple effect has ramifications in happiness, productivity, digestion, pain and a number of other factors. Take weight for example: many studies have discerned a link between sleep inhibition and weight gain. As an office of chiropractic, this concerns us because obesity is one of the key factors that accelerates spinal degeneration.
The Connection Between Glutes and Back Pain Explained
Why training the glutes can help you beat back pain
The network of muscles that support your lower back can also contribute to back pain if they are mismanaged. The greatest problem we face is insufficient strength: unless we regularly condition the muscles involved in core stability, they are going to weaken in relation to your body weight. That increases the burden on the actual vertebrae and, in particular, the intervertebral discs. But even people who take core stability seriously forget that this network extends to the glutes; indeed, the gluteus maximus is considered a minor, or auxiliary, core muscle.
Ignoring Back Pain is a Bad Habit
Your back pain is not something to be ignored
Pain is a signal, and it is always worth investigating. The standard prescription for back pain in America is to just ignore it- it will go away eventually. There are even blogs and news articles advocating this very technique. Unfortunately, the logic is flawed; it relies on the idea that most mechanical back pain heals itself. And this is true- to a certain extent. Back pain will usually go away, but that does not mean the underlying cause has been solved. If you don’t take steps to maintain a healthy lifestyle, this back pain is likely to compound and recur with a vengeance. Part of maintaining that healthy lifestyle is listening to your back pain, and learning more about it so that you can prevent it from compounding down the line.