Pull Your Weeds, Not Your Back

As springtime approaches, weather warms up and leaves turn green, many people will spend more time outside planting bulbs, mowing the lawn and pulling weeds. Gardening can provide a great workout, but with all the bending, twisting, reaching and pulling, your body may not be ready for exercise of the garden variety.

Gardening can be enjoyable, but it is important to stretch your muscles before reaching for your gardening tools. The back, upper legs, shoulders, and wrists are all major muscle groups affected when using your green thumb.

A warm-up and cool-down period is as important in gardening as it is for any other physical activity," said Dr. Scott Bautch of the American Chiropractic Association's (ACA) Council on Occupational Health. "Performing simple stretches during these periods will help alleviate injuries, pain and stiffness." 

To make gardening as fun and enjoyable as possible, it is important to prepare your body for this type of physical activity. The following stretches will help to alleviate muscle pain after a day spent in your garden.

Garden Fitness Stretches Before stretching for any activity, breathe in and out, slowly and rhythmically; do not bounce or jerk your body, and stretch as far and as comfortably as you can. Do not follow the no pain, no gain rule. Stretching should not be painful.

·         While sitting, prop your heel on a stool or step, keeping the knees   straight. Lean forward until you feel a stretch in the back of the thigh, or the hamstring muscle. Hold this position for 15 seconds. Do this once more and repeat with the other leg.

·         Stand up, balance yourself, and grab the front of your ankle from behind position for 15 seconds. Do this again and repeat with the other leg. Stand up, balance yourself, and grab the front of your ankle from behind. Pull your heel towards your buttocks and hold the position for 15 seconds. Do this again and repeat with the other leg.

·         While standing, weave your fingers together above your head with the palms up. Lean to one side for 10 seconds, then to the other. Repeat this stretch three times.

·         Do the "Hug your best friend." Wrap your arms around yourself and rotate to one side, stretching as far as you can comfortably go. Hold for 10 seconds and reverse. Repeat two or three times.

Finally, be aware of your body technique, body form and correct posture while gardening. Kneel, don't bend, and alternate your stance and movements as often as possible to keep the muscles and body balanced.

When the Bulbs Are Planted...
If you already feel muscle aches and pains and did not complete the warm-up and cool-down stretches, there are ways to alleviate the discomfort. Apply a cold pack on the area of pain for the first 48 hours or apply a heat pack after 48 hours, and consider chiropractic care.

15 Tips For Better Heart Health

February is Heart Month - Here are 15 tips for better heart health:

1. Get your cholesterol checked

2. Keep your fasting sugar under 99

3. Stop smoking

4. Reduce your alcohol intake

5. Eat a square of dark chocolate daily

6. Aim for 10000 steps per day

7. Add more vegetables to your diet

8. Substitute heart healthy fats for those currently in your diet that are not

9. Eat at least one low sugar fruit per day

10. Learn CPR

11. Get in 20-30 grams of fiber daily

12. Take fish oil daily

13. Exercise

14. Lower your stress

15. Watch for risk factors

 

Make Eating Healthy Fun!!

Make Eating Healthy Fun for you and your Family!

Get creative and try to get a variety of 

vegetables & fruits in your diet.

Have kids take the fruits and vegetables and write their names. 

A great alternative to unhealthy vegetable dip is to substitute Fage Greek Yogurt in place of the Sour Cream. Use cookie cutters on the softer fruits like watermelon. 

Get fit, lose weight, be healthy, and be a good example to your kids by making small changes that over time have big results. 

For more healthy tips visit:  www.freakofnaturefitness.com

Special thanks to our guest posterTosha from http://www.freakofnaturefitness.com/! Visit her blog for more health and fitness tips.

Proper Hydration

One of my childhood friend’s mom, always would preach to us about the importance of drinking water when we were playing outside in the heat and humidity.  She would say that “water is good for the soul.”  After my training and personal experiences, I would have to agree that she may have been on to something.

By the time you are thirsty, your body is already dehydrated. Once dehydrated, endurance is diminished, strength can drop, and the effect can last into the following day(s). Instead of relying on a signal, drink water at regular intervals regardless if you're thirsty or not.

When I was playing college football, the athletic trainers monitored our weight 4 times per day during two-a-day practices.  The reasoning was the possible health risks (people have died due to heat exhaustion), risk for injury (strained muscles), and lack of performance (endurance and mental clarity).

Total water intake at the reference level of 3.7 liters for adult men and 2.7 liters for adult women per day covers the expected needs of healthy, sedentary people in temperate climates.

Very active individuals who are continually exposed to hot weather often have daily total water needs of six liters or more, according to several studies.

Water has many health benefits. Health benefits include:

·         Healthier skin - dehydration can lead to dry, scaly skin

·         Healthier joints - increase synovial fluid

·         Healthier mind & body - brain is mostly made up of water

·         Aides In Weight Loss - water can suppress the appetite naturally and increases the body's ability to metabolize stored fat

·         Increases Energy - It is the medium for reactions involved in production of energy

The average amount of water lost per day includes:

• 16 ounces through respiration (average)
• 16 ounces through invisible perspiration (more if sweat is visible)
• 48 ounces through elimination

Causes of water loss:

• Caffeine/alcohol consumption
• Increased stress
• Hot, humid environments
• Increased physical activities

Compliments to water:

Potassium:

To lower blood pressure, blunt the effects of salt, and reduce the risk of kidney stones and bone loss, adults should consume 4.7 grams of potassium per day.

Calcium:on (more if sweat is visible)

Calcium has a number of health benefits.  However, one of its most critical and overlooked benefits is its relationship with water and muscular contractions.  Inefficient muscle contractions or muscle cramping/spasms can often be related to a lack of calcium in your diet.  Without the proper level of calcium in the system, water and other nutrients cannot move through the proper channels.

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Welcome

We wanted to start off by saying "Welcome!". Gateway Chiropractic Bay Colony is so excited about our new blog. We hope that each of you come away with a bit more information that before. Please feel free to leave us feedback on topics you would like to see covered here on the blog or additional information you would like on topics that we post on. We also post our health tips on both our Webpage, Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest accounts so feel free to follow us at any of these as well.