When it gets cold outside, we tend to spend more time indoors doing sedentary activities and it can be difficult to stay active. It’s helpful to plan ahead and set some time aside in your schedule a few days a week to make sure you’re getting the activity you need.
To have health benefits from exercise, adults need a total of 2.5 hours of activity spread across the week, in bouts of ten minutes or more. These activities need to be moderate-to-vigorous intensity aerobic activities. Moderate-intensity physical activities include brisk walking or bike riding. Generally, you know your activity is moderate-intensity if you sweat a little and breathe harder than when you’re moving about day-to-day. Vigorous-intensity activities include jogging or cross-country skiing, and you’re likely to find yourself sweating and feeling out of breath.1 Here are a few tips to help keep you motivated to stay active during the winter months2:
Whatever your activity level is, remember to stay hydrated. It is easy to forget to drink water when it’s cold out, but your body needs just as much hydration in a snowstorm as it does in a heatwave.2 Most importantly, stay motivated. Revisit your goals (or look for tips to set new ones) to make sure you’re still on track. Plan ahead and make sure you can envision your goal as you look ahead towards the finish line. Canadian Chiropractic Association Your feet play an important role in your overall health—they serve as a strong base to your body when you’re standing and walking. However, at times, your feet and body may benefit from extra support by wearing custom orthotics. An orthosis is an externally applied device that is designed and fitted to the body that can help:
Chiropractors are trained to assess if and when custom orthotics may benefit a patient. As part of the assessment, a chiropractor’s evaluation may include observation, gait analysis, functional analysis and neurological and orthopedic testing among others. This will help the chiropractor determine if custom orthotics are appropriate for a patient. In some cases, off-the-shelf orthotics may be best suited to meet the needs and goals of the patient. However, in cases where structural deformities exist and correction may be required, chiropractors will typically refer to a colleague, like a podiatrist, to co-manage the condition. Chiropractors consider the body as a whole. For example, when assessing knee pain they will also look at the function of the back, hip, ankle and foot. Interestingly, patients who benefit the most from orthotics may not present with only foot pain, but rather pain in the ankle, knee, hip or low back, and a comprehensive look at all these biomechanics are reflected in chiropractic training3. The underlying problem doesn’t always stem from the source of pain—a foot dysfunction (e.g., over pronation) can cause pain in other parts of the body. The value of chiropractic training in the field of orthotics, when considering all therapeutic options, involves assessing the entire lower kinetic chain for patients presenting with non-foot pain. Next time you visit your chiropractor, ask whether orthotics may be appropriate for you. Canadian Chiropractic Association Every year in August, as children prepare to return to school, we are reminded of the importance of choosing and wearing a proper backpack. Believe it or not, backpacks can have an important health impact on the growing and developing bodies of children. More so, a heavy or poorly fitted backpack can affect a child’s musculoskeletal (MSK) health—both today and in the future. It’s time to review a few guiding principles to prepare your child for school, keeping their MSK health in mind. It is not uncommon to see children trotting along to school, back hunched forward to balance a heavy or over-sized bag. Unfortunately, carrying such heavy loads long-term can cause problems to a child’s MSK system, and result in back pain—among other things. For example, children may condition their bodies to lean forward, arch their backs, and lean to one side. Creep can settle in the spine, and muscle can become fatigued and strained. This type of physical stress can also alter the posture and gait of children. So how can these health consequences be prevented? It’s simple—help your child choose the correct backpack which will fit their body and is adjustable as they grow. Follow these tips:
For more information on choosing the correct backpack, speak to your chiropractor. Canadian Chiropractic Association We know that physical activity and a good diet go hand in hand when it comes to our health. We also understand the importance of personal hygiene practices, like brushing our teeth and bathing. But do we place a similar emphasis on our sleeping patterns?
Sleep plays an important role in maintaining a person’s health and well-being over the course of their life. During sleep, your body is working to restore itself and support healthy brain function and physical health for the next day.1,2 Therefore, getting good quality sleep can help protect and improve your mental health, physical health, and overall quality of life.1 According to the National Institute of Health, 50–70 million adults in the United States suffer from a sleep disorder or report having insufficient sleep.3 Studies have shown that not getting enough sleep can lead to cognitive impairments such as difficulty making decisions, solving problems, learning and retaining information, controlling emotions and behaviour, or coping with change.1,4 Ongoing sleep deficiency is also linked to an increased risk of health problems including obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and even early mortality.4 Exercise plays a role in how well your body is able to rest-up: research has shown that increased sedentary time is associated with poorer sleep quality than those who reported exercising. Those who exercised more regularly were less likely to report sleep disturbances and daytime tiredness.3 The National Sleep Foundation issued recommendations for appropriate sleep durations. The recommended sleep guidelines show that at different stages of our lives we require different amounts of sleep. Typically, infants and newborns need nearly twice as much sleep as a fully-grown adult, and that duration reduces in slight increments as children grow into adults2:
Canadian Chiropractic Association It is common to have questions and even trepidations before your first visit to any new healthcare provider. Luckily, chiropractors know that new patients may need extra time to discuss their questions or concerns. You can play a role in your own chiropractic care before your first visit. An effective way to be involved in your own healthcare is to learn about what you can expect from visit #1.
Depending on the injury or condition for which you are being treated, initial visits can last from 45 to 60 minutes. Subsequent visits will likely be shorter, but the first visit aims to start building the therapeutic relationship, identifying the cause of the problem and discussing a proposed plan of management. As MSK experts, chiropractors are extensively trained to assess, diagnose, manage and prevent reoccurrence of MSK conditions while specifically addressing your needs and goals. Make sure you communicate your needs and goals to your chiropractor. As mentioned, your first appointment includes a comprehensive assessment to help determine the cause of the problem and how to treat it. To do so, expect that the history-taking portion of the visit may include questions about the following areas of your health:
Building a therapeutic relationship with a new practitioner can take some time, but investing in good communication at the outset can help you maximize the benefit of your chiropractic treatment. Your chiropractor will be happy to answer questions, address concerns and explain different options to you. This may include preventative strategies and changes in lifestyle practices. You may feel some slight discomfort or fatigue after your visit, but it should resolve quickly. After your visit, if you have additional questions or concerns, simply contact the office or write them down to be discussed at a subsequent visit. Canadian Chiropractic Association |
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