Archive for the ‘March 2010’ Category

Many people have never had instruction from a certified personal trainer, strength coach or medical professional on how to work out, whether it’s walking on the treadmill or lifting weights at the gym.  Without the proper form, posture and frequency, workouts can change from a healthy, good event to a sports injury before you know it.  WebMD recently put together a slide show on the 9 WORST exercises that you can do.   They include some of the most common exercises that I see causing injuries in my patients.

Another disturbing trend that I see with patients that work out is that they ignore pain and just “sweat it out” or wait for it to go away.  Although you may have dull muscle achiness after a good workout, pain with certain movements or exercises is not normal and you are doing damage to your body.  Most commonly, weight lifters will develop various tendonitis injuries in their shoulders, arms or hips and continue training anyway or simply stop doing the exercise that hurts.  The tendonitis is a warning light, letting you know that your body needs service.  Over time, tendonitis creates brittle and weak muscle tendons that are prone to rupture that requires a surgical repair.  Not a fun experience!

Sports injuries occur when the body is out of balance and muscles/joints fight against each other instead of moving together.  The earlier treatment occurs, the faster of a recovery the patient has.  The longer these injury patterns persist, scar tissue and other damage occurs creating a deeper injury and a longer treatment plan.

If you are looking to start running this year, I highly suggest joining a Walk2Run group at Dick Pond Athletics in Schaumburg or Carol Stream.  This is a free 10 week program designed to help walkers transition into running without injuries.  Check out their website at http://www.dickpondathletics.com/ for more information.

The next time you go to work out, make sure you’re confident in your form and exercises to prevent injuries.  As always, we’re available to answer questions or help you design a work out program that is safe for you!

On Yahoo’s fashion blog, they recently had an article about how the Ugg sheepskin (and their knock-offs) have very little support for the feet and could be contributing to the epidemic of ankle overpronation and flat feet.  Although they may feel comfortable, the shoes are very “sloppy” and allow the foot to lose it’s natural shape that can lead to a variety of foot conditions including plantar fasciitis, bunions, heel spurs or even knee/hip/low back pain.

Many women that I see in my practice feel like their shoe choices are limited.  Heels make low back pain worse.  Uggs make your feet flat.  Most dress flats offer no support for the arches either.  The best type of shoe to wear is either a laced-up dress shoe or a laced athletic shoes.  The design of a laced shoe automatically gives you more support than a sandal or loafer style.  When you can’t wear a laced-up shoe, try wearing a loafer or Mary Jane style shoe that will allow you to put a custom orthotic in them to properly support the arch.  Most women can even get away with wearing up to a 2″ heel with a properly fitting orthotic device.

If you have questions about shoes, foot injuries or if your feet could be causing your knee/hip/low back pain, feel free to ask me questions.  I’m always happy to assist and even have many contacts in the footwear world to refer you for help!

From ChiroACCESS Research: “A March 2010 systematic review conducted in Germany underscores the value of neuromuscular training in preventing sports injuries. They concluded that “On the basis of the results of seven high-quality studies, this review showed evidence for the effectiveness of proprioceptive/neuromuscular training in reducing the incidence of certain types of sports injuries among adolescent and young adult athletes during pivoting sports.” The pivoting sports included basketball, hockey, handball, volleyball, soccer and floorball. Multiple high quality studies now support the use of training programs to improve proprioception and the research further supports that this proprioceptive improvement translates to reduced risk of sports associated injuries. The benefit is even greater for those with a history of sports injury.

The proprioception neuromuscular training programs varied but included strategies using balance platform devices, wobble boards, single leg stance, stretching, core stability exercises, plyometrics, strength training, and agility training.”

Proprioceptive or balance based treatment protocol is the basis of all rehabilitation that we perform here with patients at Ducat Chiropractic & Wellness Center. Although sports chiropractors have seen good results with these protocols for years, it’s great to see the published research results to back us up!

If you wonder if this type of training can help you or your child avoid sports injuries, give us a call! We’ll be glad to do an assessment and design a treatment plan to help you reach your goals.

Many times I have patients present to my office complaining of frequent headache pain between their eyes or along their forehead.  They either suffer through it or take ibuprofen to take the pain away.  When I ask them about it, they simply say: “Oh that’s my sinus headache.  It always happens after a long day at the computer.” 

As we discuss their symptoms, I ask them if they have any allergies, congestion or any other complaints related to sinus problems.  Nine times out of ten, they answer no to all those questions.  After examination, we find out that their headaches aren’t due to sinus pressure at all.  It’s coming from their upper spine and neck muscles.

One of the most common causes of headache is restriction in the upper neck vertebrae and the resultant tightness in the local muscles.  Many people don’t realize that several research studies have shown that Chiropratic Manipulation is very effective in managing headache symptoms without medication (even for Migraines!).  If you are having chronic headache symptoms, give your chiropractic physician a call.  Help may be right around the corner!

Many chiropractic physicians utilize nutritional therapies with their patients to assist them with a variety of complaints from weight loss to low-energy to digestive symptoms.  What most patients don’t realize is that nutrition can either increase their pain and slow down the healing process of common musculoskeletal complaints or speed up the healing process and help you recover faster! 

The body follows the “Garbage in, Garbage out” model.  If you eat a typical american diet full of refined sugar, white bread, dairy and fatty meats, the body produces more inflammation or “pain chemicals” that make it more difficult to heal and feel better.  If you instead have a diet based on nuts, fruits, veggies and lean meat (i.e. Mediterranean Diet), you will have less “pain chemicals” and will rebound faster from your injury whether it’s in your shoulder, back or knees.

In addition, several supplements have been shown to be effective in decreasing pain while your body is healing.  One of the best researched supplements is Omega 3 Fatty Acids, or Fish Oils.  When you take 3-5 grams of quality fish oils per day, it decreases inflammation and your “pain chemicals.”  Another good supplement is Vitamin D3, which should be taken at 1,000 IU per day.  It has been linked to immune system function, healing and lowering inflammation levels.

If you have any questions and would like to see how nutrition or supplements can help you decrease your pain naturally, please just let me know.  I would be glad to assist!