Legs sore from running around doing all of that Christmas shopping? This stretch is super easy to do but very effective!
The holiday season is full of excitement with celebrations and gatherings throughout most of the break. This brings with it a lot of temptations making it hard for us to stay healthy over the holiday period. To help keep you healthy and happy over these holidays we have put together 12 days of Health and Wellness tips that you can easily implement on your Christmas break:
Day 1:GET ADJUSTED-getting adjusted before and during your holidays may help keep your body balanced so that you can travel long distances comfortably.
Day 2:MANAGE STRESS-take some time for yourself, stay organized and get plenty of rest to help beat the silly season stress.
Day 3:GET ENOUGH SLEEP:-Do your best to keep your normal sleep routine over the holidays. This will encourage a more relaxing night’s sleep.
Day 4:TRAVEL RIGHT-Sitting for extended periods can cause havoc on your body. Be sure to stop and stretch if you are driving or stretch your legs down the aisle on long flights.
Day 5:TAKE A BREAK-Listen to some soothing music, do yoga or get a massage to help you relax and rejuvenate.
Day 6:REDUCE HEADACHES NATURALLY-the business of your holidays can trigger headaches try to avoid these by staying hydrated and keep up with your regular chiropractic adjustments.
Day 7:START YOUR RESOLUTIONS NOW-You don’t have to wait until the new year to start your resolutions. Every day is a new chance to start over, there is plenty of time between now and the new year to accomplish great things!
Day 8:KEEP YOUR FEET PAIN FREE-Lack of support from shoes that are too lose or too high cause many issues including misalignments to your knees, hips and spine!
Day 9:STAY ACTIVE-Keep your energy levels high and help burn off those extra Christmas lunch kilos by keeping up with your exercise regime over the holidays.
Day 10:EAT WELL-Bring along your own healthy meals to parties and gatherings and keep your plates balanced with lots of fruit and veges.
Day 11:STAY HYDRATED-limit your caffeine and alcohol intake just because you are on holiday doesn’t mean you have to celebrate every day with a glass of champagne. Make sure you drink plenty of water to steer clear of dehydration.
Day 12:LAUGH & ENJOY-Take some time these holidays to reflect on what this season is really about, Enjoying spending time with friends and family! Eat, celebrate and LAUGH! Laughter is one of the best medicine, it boosts your immunity, lowers stress levels, decreases pain, prevents disease and of course; strengthens relationships
Many of us will be travelling to spend time with family and friends during the holiday season. Whether youb re taking a plane, train or driving the car or camper van, inevitably you will be sitting for a long period of time and prolonged sitting as well as other travel stresses can wreak havoc on your body. Taking a few simple precautions can help make travelling more comfortable and keep you pain free these holidays.
-Lumbar Support: Many seats are not designed to provide adequate low back support. Carry a small towel with you on your travels; you can roll it to the appropriate sized based on how much support is needed.
-Keep moving: Getting out of the car every couple of hours to move and stretch will reduce the risk of any swelling, fatigue or discomfort in your muscles. Also getting up from your seat in the plane or varying your seated position occasionally will help with circulation.
-Luggage: Always use luggage with wheels. Not only does this take pressure off your back, it is much easier to maneuver and you have less risk of muscle strains in your back, neck and shoulders. Keep your carry on luggage to a minimum and when lifting your luggage bend at the knees, and hold the items close to your body.
TIP: Pack a tennis ball to use as a self-massager whenever you need. Put it between your back and a wall or the floor and roll side to side and up and down to give yourself some quick relief.
This exercise not only helps strengthen the muscles that pull the head back into alignment over the shoulders (upper thoracic extensors) but it also stretches the scalene and sub-occipital muscles.
Keep chin down so head is not looking up and push the head back.
The chin tuck exercise can be done leaning against the wall as well and at numerous times throughout the day, such as while sitting in the car or at the desk at work.
The repetition of this exercise throughout the day also helps develop good postural habits
Itb s that time of year again! As the holiday season peaks itb s easy to get caught up in all of the excitement. These months of course are a time for celebration but most of us tend to over indulge. As fun as it is to over indulge at the time, at the end of the day we are suffering the consequences.
We want to enjoy this time of year, looking after your health during this time can greatly improve your experience and the memories you make. So here are some tips to help you stay happy and healthy this holiday season:
There are many nutritionists out there preaching about the health benefits of removing wheat from your diet, why is this? For as long as we can remember wheat has been a staple for humanity; why all of a sudden has wheat gained such a bad reputation? Here are the facts!
Modern day wheat is not the same as your grandparents ate. Scientists have developed new hybrid strains of wheat to create hardier wheat fields and fluffier pastries. These strains of wheat contain entirely new forms of gluten, not found in original plants. Our bodies were never made to process this modified wheat and now that scientist have found a way to liquefy gluten, it’s found in everything from processed meats to shampoo, it is very hard to decrease our gluten exposure.
This is creating a real danger to our health, and in some cases even causing chronic illness. One common disease caused by wheat irritants is celiac disease When the immune system reacts abnormally to gluten causing bowel damage. Even if you don’t suffer from an autoimmune disease such as this wheat can still affect your health, it has been linked to over 55 diseases! How so?
Well, when any part of your body is injured the immune system’s response is inflammation. The proteins found in wheat trigger this response in the gut. Inflammation in the gut messes up that system of border control. It loosens the junctions between cells in the gut wall so too much stuff can pass through. This is often described as making the gut leaky (hence the popular name of leaky gut) the larger, undigested food molecules, toxins, yeast and forms of waste can now flow freely through the blood stream. When your immune system cannot fight off all the foreign organisms running through the blood stream they absorb into the tissues of the body and cause inflammation. This can cause the symptoms of poor health that we all know of as; headaches, itchy skin, IBS, mood swings, Lupus, Rheumatoid arthritis, fatigue and brain fog. the list goes on.
So what’s the solution? The best solution would be to give up grains all together and stick to eating wholefoods (fruits, nuts, seeds and lots of veg) and use organically made/grown products.
Start by kneelingB down and sit on your heels. Breathe in and bring your arms up to touch your hands over your head and stretch them up as far as you can without lifting your body. Breath out as you start to separate your hands and lower your arms back to your torso.B Slide your hands over your thighsB onto the floor in front of you supporting your weight as your torso moves forward. Rest your forehead on the floor if possible.B Breathe deeply as you hold this stretch for 30 seconds.
One of the most common reasons for time lost at work is low back pain! We count on our spines to support our bodies- support or posture and support our movements as well as protect our most vital body systems (the nervous system). Our spines are built strong and resilient so we tend to forget that it needs to be taken care of until we feel pain. Think of your body as a machine and your spineB is the mechanical parts that make the machine move and function. Just like any machine the mechanical systemB (spine and nervous system)B needs to be maintained to function correctly.
Work, sport and other physical activities, diet and our emotional wellbeing become recurring behaviours that cause a form of stress to our spine. Factors such as,too much sitting, not enough exercise or movement, eating unhealthy foods, lifting incorrectly or lifting too much in one go are common factors of stressB in the workplace. This stress can cause the spinal joints to stiffen up in parts, causing other parts of the spine to move more to compensate. ThisB eventually leads to over useB and sprains the flexible joints. These recurring “mini-traumas” can lead to people hurting themselves by doing trivial things, like bending down to pick up a pen. Although a small and simple task, when you have over utilised your spine without keeping it maintainedB it becomes the “last straw” and ends in pain & altered body movement or function.
Most low back pain sufferersB feel the pain come and go, however when the pain has subsided it does not mean that the problem is resolved. Even the smallest of daily tasks we do can put stress on the spine, and since we are doing these things constantly there is a build up of spinal stress. This is why it is more than likely to return and become worse the next time, if left untreated!
Your body is a self-healing, self-regulating organism controlled by the nervous system. Stress on the spine can put pressure on your nervous system and alter the bodies own healing abilities. Chiropractic works to correct the spinal joints and relieve the stress on the nervous system improving the mind/body communications. Chiropractic can also help to correct posture and ease muscle tension giving you the opportunity to move freely.
Lower back pain can also be accompanied by a verity of symptoms. if you have or have had any of the following then it is time you see a Chiropractor!
Don’t suffer with lower back pain. Move freely, be able to work productively and live life to the fullestB by maintaining your spinal health with Chiropractic care!
Stand in front of a chair or bench.B Balance one legB on the chair/bench. Keep yourB leg straight do not bend the knee,B (for extra support try holding onto a doorway or wall) Point toes upward and hold stretch for 30 seconds. You should feel the stretch in your hamstring straight away. For a deeper stretch, keep your back straight and lean forward at the hips. Hold the deeper stretch for only 10 seconds then swap sides doing the light stretch first for 30 seconds and then leaning forward for a deeper stretch for 10.
Do you suffer tension headaches?
One of the most common health issues experienced by Australians is theB headache! Headaches can be a result of many things starting from; dehydration to stress to muscle tension. Good lifestyle choices can help to prevent headaches. Prevention of headaches seems to be the best treatment, although even when living the healthiest lifestyle headaches may still arise.B Tension headaches are most common, 90% of headache complaints are from tension headaches usually caused from some form of stress to the body, mental or physical. Other causes may include poor posture, concentrating on phone or computer screens for too long or mental stress such as anxiety etc.
Tension headaches usually start off as a dull ache and a build up of tension around the scalp or neck. The feeling of pressure pushing around the inside of the head isB usually what isB described by the suffer, often this feeling of constriction is caused by tiny muscle contractions. When you are suffering tension headaches the best solution would be to rest in a dark room, use icepacks or remove the tension in your neck musclesB by massaging the area.
Prevention is the key to treat re-occurringB headaches. Chiropractic careB may help with this. Spinal adjustments correct any subluxations in the spine improving blood flow and reducing muscle tension around the head and neck.