Posts Tagged ‘well-being’
Starting Fresh
For many people who have been exercise-free for years, entering the gym can seem like an insurmountable obstacle. The sheer amount of information available at a second’s notice regarding health and wellness can also be overwhelming and leave you feeling disenchanted. However, the blatant reality is that if you want to live longer and feel better, regular exercise is almost indispensible. Besides helping you to maintain a healthy weight, exercise is good for things like promoting better circulation and stimulating endorphins to help manage stress. If you are amongst the millions of Americans who want to feel better and look better but are at a loss as to how to start, give our office in Park Slope a call. We have found that a face-to-face, human-to-human conversation can be the catalyst you need to get motivated and excited about working out. Here’s how:
- A clear plan: the main benefit of interfacing. There is no grey area or internet overload; we hash out your health goals, your priorities and limitations and go about setting up a plan to deal with achieve success in a concrete manner.
- Starting slow: what are you comfortable with? What are your strengths and what do you absolutely detest? Not everyone is cut out to be a gym rat, but almost everyone can find their happy place with specific workouts and stretches.
- Accountability partner: this is key. Great things are built by teams, and we want to be your go-to-resource for information, chiropractic care, acupuncture and accountability.
- Managing pain: Certainly working out is made miserable by pain. If an injury or chronic pain is holding you back, we need to correct this so you can stop using pain as an excuse.
A fresh start is attainable if you go about it the right way. As a doctor of chiropractic and acupuncture, I am completely invested in your health and well-being. Let’s start on a path toward a healthier, happier you together and let’s start today.
Dr. Karen Thomas, D.C., L.Ac.
Pelvic Tilting and Hip Bridges
A more aerobic lifestyle may be the way to a life free of back pain. Swimming, walking and running are great ways to add movement into your life that stops muscles from atrophying and promotes a stronger set of muscles that will protect the longevity of your spine.
But reducing the amount of time spent in a chair is only the tip of the iceberg. Here are some simple stretches you can do that won’t cost you a thing, but will increase your well-being greatly.
Pelvic tilting: strengthening the transverse abdominus, a key core muscle that will help improve core stability.
- Lay down on your back
- Knees bent, hip-width apart
- Right hand underneath curve in your back
- Press curve of your lower back into the floor (onto your hand)
- Hold 5 seconds then release, repeat 10 times.
Hip bridges: strengthening abdominals and transverse abdominus
- Start in same position: on back, with knees bent at hip-width
- Lift hips until you achieve a straight line between knees and shoulders
- Hold for 5 seconds
- Slowly reverse motion.
- Repeat 5-10 times.
A key way to make your back less vulnerable to injury is to strengthen the core muscles. At your Park Slope Chiropractor, we emphasize core stability to improve spinal longevity. Using simple stretches for short amounts of time every day is a great way to achieve this.
Dr. Karen Thomas, D.C.
Exercise and Chiropractic
Perhaps in response to what has been deemed an obesity epidemic, America has become serious about getting fit. There is more information and misinformation than ever in regards to what makes you fitter or happier.
At Park Slope Chiropractic, we use exercise to help patients manage back pain and boost their well-being. Cardiovascular and strength building exercises synergize with chiropractic care to relieve pain, repair injury and make your body more resilient moving forward.
For patients suffering from low-back pain, we utilize flexion and extension stretches and exercises that help lengthen restrictive muscles and restore flexibility to stiff regions. Core muscles are very important to support the lower back: pelvic stabilizing muscles, adductors (tendons that connect thigh to pubic bone) and the abdominals are all muscles that we promote for strengthening. We also want you to be aware of your thoracic vertebrae (encompassing shoulders and chest) and their role in movement. Learning to use the thoracic region properly can relieve much of the burden of movement from the lumbar region.
Aerobic exercise is another great supplement to chiropractic care: leaving the couch behind and going for a brisk walk has innumerable benefits including keeping muscles toned and promoting circulation.
Call our office in Park Slope at (718) 398-3100 to schedule an appointment and find out how you can start using your body’s full mechanical advantage.
Dr. Karen Thomas, D.C., L.Ac.
Exercise for Well-Being
At Community Chiropractic & Acupuncture, we want to get you moving. Movement benefits all aspects of your life, from physical and mental performance to happiness and peace of mind.
For the insatiable athlete, we seek to optimize your mechanical advantage. As you attempt to specialize your body and discipline your muscles, we provide you with chiropractic care that keeps you flexible and free of injury. Our treatment is effective at quickening recovery times and strengthening the body to prevent recurrent injury.
For the incurable couch potato, we begin gently with advice on posture and simple stretches that maintain the balance of your muscles and prevent them from stagnating. Stretches and breathing techniques can be practiced from the comfort of the couch, although we would love to see you trade the TV for a hike on the trail.
For those of us who are incidentally in the middle, we want to ensure your body’s prime state of health so that daily tasks are not burdensome. Exercise strengthens your body and influences your state of mind. Here are the core benefits of exercise:
- Enhance balance and coordination
- Improve breathing
- Increase flexibility
- Increase strength and endurance
- Make you more resilient to injury during all phases of physical activity.
Through communication, chiropractic care and consistent application of healthy principles, we can effect positive changes in your life. Do not underestimate the power of a simple stretch or an evening walk: keep your body limber by calling our office in Brooklyn at (718) 398-3100 today.
Dr. Karen Thomas, D.C., L.Ac