Keeping It Healthy

As I mentioned last week, fitness and healthy body mass are at the top of the list of common New Year's resolutions.  After laying around eating chocolate for the last six weeks of the year, people don't like what they're seeing in the mirror.  So, what to do about it?

You hear everywhere that to lose weight you need to eat less and exercise more.  Phooey!  First, you need to make certain that your hormones are in balance and that your liver isn't choked with fat deposits.  I am trained to help you determine your status in those areas.

Second, you need to see if your system is overloaded with toxins coming from the environment, cleaning chemicals, personal care chemicals, water, and even food.  If your toxic load is too high, your body is unable to handle the cellular waste that results from weight loss or exercise.  If fitness is your goal, you have to keep your body running clean, just as you do your car's engine, for maximum performance.  At our clinic, we can help you determine your toxic load to see if that needs to be cleared before you begin.

Third, whether you are trying to regain a healthy body mass or get fit, you need to eat RIGHT!  Look back through my blogs and reread the series on eating right.  In that, we learned about low glycemic foods and proper hydration.

Now, let's talk about exercise.  Exercise is essential for physical, mental, and emotional health.  The basic purpose of our brains is to move our bodies,  The more we move, the better our brains function.  Almost all kids with ADD and ADHD are inactive kids.  This condition doesn't seem to affect the kids who run, jump and play.  Exercise helps with depression and other mood disorders.  It is good for the mind, body, and soul.

We discussed last week the need to maintain the machine that we call our bodies.  If we don't, it won't work right and it's performance will be impaired.  Now, let's learn about good exercise and bad exercise (no, not all exercise is good).

As I mentioned last week, if you expect to form a new habit of exercise, it needs to be a form of exercise that you enjoy.  If it's not, then you won't persevere.  Personally, I hate running.  If you see me running, please call 911 because something behind me is chasing me, burning, or about to blow up!  On the other hand, I love weightlifting, hiking, and dancing.  And that is my weekly exercise routine.  Weightlifting 3 hours, dancing 1 or more hours, and hiking, 6 or more hours.  That's on top of an average 55 hour work week.  I only add that to say that exercise can be fit into a long work week.

Is that much exercise necessary?  No!  We need at least 3 1/2 hours of exercise per week.  Now, other things also count as exercise.  House cleaning such as sweeping and mopping is a good workout.   Mowing the lawn is good exercise.  The "act of intimacy" is exercise. Basically, any activity that raises your pulse and makes you breathe hard and sweat is exercise!  The amount of time that you spend at those activities can be deducted from that 3 1/2 hour exercise need.

So, move, sweat, and breathe hard for 3 1/2 a week every week.  That's another step to help you

Live Healthy, Stay Active, and Fulfill Your Dreams

Hammering a Bent Nail

Happy New Year!

At this time of year, many people set goals and make resolutions.  The most common is to lose weight and get fit.  I'm always happy to see that people are interested in their health and especially happy to see people ready to attack the #1 unhealthy lifestyle in America: Obesity.

Many people started at the beginning of the new year with diets and exercise.  Both of these can be tough.  Often, fad diets are unsustainable.  I mean, you just can't eat cabbage or grapefruit at every meal (or AS every meal!).  Meal replacement shakes get old quick.  And then there's that crazy lemon juice and cayenne pepper diet...don't even get me started!

Cleanses and purification are good things, but they must be done sensibly and sustainably.  If you quit too soon or get too sick or weak to continue, you won't get the full benefit.  So, we will be discussing these topics in the coming weeks.

The other half of the equation is exercise.  Many people jump to the idea of running to lose weight.  The intensity of that exercise will certainly cause weight loss.  But, do you enjoy running?  Does it feel good to run?  Do you look forward to it?  Do you feel better afterward?  If you answered no to any of those questions for running or any other exercise, then you will probably find it very difficult to sustain it. You can probably find something more enjoyable that is equally beneficial.  We will look deeper into this as we go through this series.

For now, you need to make certain that your body is able to exercise without damage.  With any exercise, of course you should be certain that your heart is healthy enough to bear the stress without failure.  And for any high-impact exercise, you need to make certain that the joints of your body can take the stress.

For instance, if your spine is not straight, then when you exercise the additional forces will cause your spine to buckle.  It's just like hitting a bent nail with a hammer.  So, before you start an exercise regimen, have your spine checked.

At our clinic, we are offering a spinal exam and 30 minute medical massage for $30.  Call for an appointment.  This is one way that we can help you

Live Healthy, Stay Active, and Fulfill Your Dreams!

Boost Your Energy Levels by Keeping the Power On

We have learned that we can triple our energy levels through how we eat, drink, and breathe.  Today, we'll look at how to keep the power flowing through our bodies so that we will have more energy!

Our brains generate electrical impulses that flow through the spinal cord and nerves.  The different cells, tissues, organs, and systems in the body are controlled by brain through these impulses.  The activity of the cells of the body generates electricity to send impulses back to your brain, a feedback loop, providing information to your brain on the status of the body.  Through this information cycle, every function of the body is controlled.  Dr. Terry Rondberg estimates that the total energy in the brain at any given time is equal to that of a lightning bolt!

The functions controlled include breathing, blood pressure, hunger, pulse rate, movement, and all of the millions of other functions happening in our bodies all of the time.  Our brains are very busy!  This is why only 10% of our brains are available for conscious thought.  In fact, Dr. Sperry, a medical doctor and Nobel Prize recipient, said, "90% of our brain's energy is used for posture alone."

Problems occur when there is interference in the nerve flow.  Misalignment of the spine, called segmental dysfunction or vertebral subluxation, result in nerve irritation and this interferes with the flow of the nerve.  In fact, Dr. Chung Ha Su did research at the University of Colorado and found, "Subluxations can reduce nerve flow up to 60%."

Wow!  Think about that.  If the nerves controlling your legs are only getting 40% of the impulse through, then the muscles are contracting accordingly and walking takes two and a half times more effort.  Removing that interference would make walking tremendously easier!

Frequently, my patients report to me that after their adjustments, they have increased energy, the lights seem brighter, colors appear richer, and even their sense of smell is better.  The most effective way to Increase Your Energy by 300% is to remove nerve interference by getting regular chiropractic adjustments!

And increasing your energy will help you

Live Healthy, Stay Active and Fulfill Your Dreams!

Increase Your Energy by Breathing

Now, this is not as silly as it sounds!  Sometimes, we find ourselves oddly fatigued, especially those with office jobs.  The monitor seems to be lulling us to sleep.  Often, we combat that by getting up and moving around to wake ourselves up.  That is valid, because our bodies were made to move and our brains were made to move them!  There is an additional tip that I can offer.

When we are sitting still for long periods, our muscles are not requiring much oxygen, so we don't breathe as deeply or as frequently as when we are active.  However, when working our brains are consuming oxygen rapidly.  This leads to low oxygen and high carbon dioxide levels in the blood, and that leads to drowsiness.  So here is the answer to that.

Deep abdominal breathing will increase oxygen levels, decrease carbon dioxide levels, and stimulate the immune system.  This is a simple breathing exercise that will increase your energy levels.  Inhale slowly, taking 2 seconds to fill your lungs.  Hold your breath for 8 seconds and then exhale slowly taking 4 seconds to empty your lungs.  Repeat this for a total of 10 breaths.

Do this 3 times a day (at 10, 2, and 4) to increase overall energy levels.  Add extra sessions when you find yourself tired or yawning.  When you are sick and can't exercise, do this 10 times per day.

This will increase your energy levels dramatically and help you

Live Healthy, Stay Active, and Fulfill Your Dreams!

Have More Energy Than You Know What to Do With

Last week we learned about increasing our energy levels by eating certain foods and keeping them up by avoiding others.  This week we’ll talk about how to increase your energy by drinking!

I’m not talking about energy drinks; I’m talking about water!  It’s the third most crucial necessity of life.  We can survive less than a week without it!  Water comes in many forms, some good and some bad.  Let's sort out some of these.

First, let's look at soft drinks, which are mostly water; however, you can’t use them for hydration because all of the sugar and salt in the drink will actually draw water out of your body. With their sugar content, they’re really liquid candy. “Diet" soft drinks with artificial sweeteners have the same effect.  

So, soft drinks aren’t for hydration.  Unsweetened iced tea is a hydration drink, though I don’t recommend it as your sole source of water.  Many people enjoy the flavor of tea without sugar.   I have advice for those who don't.  First, avoid sweet tea at restaurants. Many restaurants mix 5 pounds of sugar into 3 gallons of tea.  That comes out to 379 calories per 16 ounce glass!  That’s more than a soft drink, and you’ll be thirstier than before you drank it.  So, sweeten it yourself. Even if you put four teaspoons of sugar into a 16 ounce glass of tea, you still only have 64 calories and it won’t have enough sugar to dehydrate you.  You may go “stir crazy” getting the sugar dissolved, but you’ll be healthier and have more energy.

Coffee is very similar.  If you use creamer, use cream instead.  That's much healthier and keeps the hydration qualities intact.

Now for milk, which is a hydration drink. It is a solution of bubbles of proteins and fats floating around in water.  Here’s the best news of the whole post:  Chocolate milk is the ideal recovery drink after a workout!

Now water:  Well water is best; filtered city water is next.  After that is reverse-osmosis water.  Avoid distilled water because it can dilute your electrolytes and cause problems with your heart.  There are many exotic waters out there from glaciers and whatever.  The important thing is that you drink water.

Overall, you need to drink about 1 ounce of water for every 2 pounds of body weight.   Less than half of that should be tea, coffee and milk.  Nothing else counts!  By changing your drinking habits, you will be able to Increase Your Energy and

Live Healthy, Stay Active, and Fulfill Your Dreams!

How to Increase Your Energy by 300%

There are four necessities of life: Food, Water, Air, and Nerve Supply.  We can live about a month without food, a week without water, an hour without air, and less than a second without nerve supply.  So, to increase your energy by 300%, you have to maximize each area.  Over the next few weeks, you will learn the four key components to maximizing energy:

1. Power Meals
2. Power Drinks (no, not energy drinks)
3. Power Breathing
4. Power Release

Let's start with Power Meals.  We learned about this earlier this year and for an in-depth discussion of this topic look back at earlier posts on this topic.  To recap, we want to stick with low-glycemic foods.  Those are foods that do not cause huge spikes in our blood sugar. So, we want to avoid potatoes of any kind, white or wheat flour, sugar, and white rice.  Stick with fruits, vegetables, dairy and meats.  Remember that corn is a grain, not a vegetable, so eat it sparingly.

An example menu for this type of eating would be:

Breakfast: 

• Bacon - 2 strips
• Eggs - 2 or 3
• Tomato slices
• Fruit slices

Lunch:

• 6 oz. meat
• 1/2 cup green vegetable
• 1/2 cup red or yellow vegetable
• 1/2 cup cruciferous vegetable (broccoli, kale, cauliflower, brussel sprouts, cabbage)

Dinner

• 6 oz meat
• salad with lettuce, tomato, cucumbers, carrots

That will keep your energy constant through the day and keep you from crashing!

Eating Power Meals is part of how you increase your energy by 300% and will help you

Live Healthy, Stay Active and Fulfill Your Dreams!

Garbage In Garbage Out

Viscero-somatic Reflex

How a toxic life can cause subluxation and bad health

Viscero

Pertaining to the soft tissues and organs of the body, such as the stomach, lungs, liver, gallbladder, etc.

Somatic

Pertaining to muscle and bone, such as vertebrae (spinal bones) and spinal muscles.

A viscero-somatic reflex occurs when irritation of an organ or tissue due to toxins sets up a reflex action/reaction where muscles of the spine spas and cause spinal misalignment (subluxation).  The resulting spinal misalignment (subluxation) then blocks or interferes with the nervous system and causes further damage to the organ or tissue.

Toxins Include

Alcohol

Caffeine

Artificial sweeteners

Food additives

Preservatives

Food colorings

Drugs (prescription, over the counter or recreational)

Smoke

Air pollutants

Water pollutants

Soil pollutants

Pesticides