Dealing with Chronic Neck Pain

Dealing with Chronic Neck Pain

Any type of pain is no laughing matter. It can ruin your day even your week. When you are dealing with chronic neck pain, it’s a lifetime struggle to stay fit and enjoy life too. As a health care provider, I see many patients with different types of discomfort. Some of it nearly beyond a person’s ability to cope.

Neck pain comes with its own unique problems like stiffness, or trouble sleeping. Rarely is this problem a ‘stand alone’ issue. It interferes with many parts of our life and it shouldn’t.

5 Ways Dealing with Chronic Neck Pain Works

  1. Maybe you’ve invested in expensive pillows only to wake with headaches and neck pain. Night’s can be long when you shift all every 30 or 45 minutes trying to find a way your cervical spine feels relaxed. By morning you wake exhausted. I once invested in a $100 pillow just to stop my own neck pain, it didn’t do much. Yet changing your pillow can have significant benefits.

Chronic Neck Pain and Fitness

2. Not all patients complain about sleep problems along with their discomfort some have problems staying fit with chronic neck pain. I personally have trouble lifting weights; many times neck muscles become stiffer as you try to do a standard workout. So what can you do to sleep better, and do the fitness program you like best?

My discovery and that of the majority of my patients take it slow and go light. Use lighter weight freestyle works best in most cases. For women 3-10 pounds. Men do well up to 35 lbs. If you’re shaking your head why bother, it’s a start. The right moves can make the difference with these lighter routines.

Stay away from bodybuilding moves where you lift your arms above your shoulders lifting heavy weights. This will help reduce pain. Ask your trainer or Accent On Health for some alternatives.  Use a 10 to 20-minute upper body program. 

Chronic Neck Pain and Acupuncture or Dry Needling

 

  1. One of my clients injured years ago when he fell down stairs at work had messed up his knees. Later he realized his neck was hard and stiff too. By then he’d changed careers, but the pain and tightness continued. In Colorado, a qualified acupuncturist or Chinese Medicine professional are fully trained to provide you with acupuncture and dry needling. Insurance covers these in office visits with us too!

     

    So what can you expect for results? Most patients even ones with chronic pain in the neck found acupuncture reduced the pain by 70-99%. Many discover they maintain the relief for 4-6 weeks or more and then schedule ‘tune-ups’ like you do with dental cleaning, car oil changes, or getting manicures and pedicures. The best part is health insurance covers acupuncture OR dry needling. Let our office make a quick inquiry for you dry needling uses a specific code.

Acupuncture Injection Therapy Better Than Cortisone

  1. Remember my client with the fall? With acupuncture, we achieved a 60% reduction in pain and an increase in movement of 45%. That’s good since the injury was very old and there is degeneration, but he wanted to try acupuncture injections to see how much better his chronic neck pain would improve.

The great news – he is over 90% pain-free! He has about 80% better movement, and his tightness is gone. 

 

How’s Your Micronutrients?

5. As strange as it sounds you are what you eat and sometimes you’re not. Recently a client came in struggling with insomnia and nothing else. She proudly announced that she had no other problems. So we did a micronutrient test and a Methylation test. These two together revealed a large problem with her ability to absorb minerals in her food or orally. These are genetic problems that are treated in our office. It had taken four months before she began to sleep something she had never done more than 45 minutes at a time her entire life.

So what does this have to do with chronic neck pain?  She referred many people some with various types of pain all who had problems with their micronutrients, hormones, or methylation. Sometimes we do acupuncture, add fitness and still don’t fix our discomfort because our body can’t restore balance if our ability to absorb our food is low or our hormones are off.

Personally, I don’t know why you have chronic neck pain my job is to help you find out and get you feeling better. Don’t give up on yourself. Don’t buy into the story that you’re getting old or pain happens with age. This isn’t true! Many of these people are in their 60’s or older. Dealing with chronic neck pain can be difficult some things can improve it and help you.

Find out more by calling our offce. Call today!

720-515-4602

images from BigStock and by John Arano, Jesper Aggergaard, and  rawpixel on Unsplash

What’s Better for Fitness Performance: Carbs or Fat?

What’s Better for Fitness Performance: Carbs or Fat?

What’s Better for Fitness Performance: Carbs or Fat

Today we know a lot more about what to eat and why. So what’s better for fitness performance: carbs or fat? We’ve all heard the saying eat carbs before doing a physical activity and if you’re a mom, the saying went that you fed your child a large meal of pasta before a soccer game.

Nutrition is a significant element for anyone especially those who exercise or consider themselves athletes. Food is the fuel for your endurance and high-intensity. For this reason, carbohydrates have been the food source of choice.

In looking at Fitness performance is it really the best resource for you?

What’s Better for Fitness Performance: Carbs or Fat?

How Carbohydrates and Fat Compare During Exercise:

Our body can store both fat and carbs. Why we have always been told to eat a large bowl of pasta before running a race, or playing a hockey game is that carbohydrates convert to energy faster. Carbs also are the most efficient form for the experienced athlete.

What about fat then?  Fat burns slower. This means it increases endurance and as your workout longer, or run farther having fat before you begin can increase your ability to sustain your running, cycling, or triathlon.

Our body’s store fat limitlessly. This is why we gain weight so eating fat or having a bit of body fat can be a good thing! The available carbohydrate stores are limited to what you’ve just eaten, not eliminated, or converted to fat storage.

There is no straight answer to what’s better for fitness performance: carbs or fat it depends on what you’re doing!

Weight gain and Carbohydrates

weight gain and carbohydrates

Another topic around food and fitness is weight gain and carbohydrates.

If you don’t use up all the calories from carbohydrates, you’ll store these as fat adding pounds and body mass in fat grams to yourself. There is a direct tie between weight gain and carbohydrates.

The key is eating a balance. In 2004, the Australian Institute of Sport found that your body can use a high-fat, low-carb diet by burning more fat during exercise.

Other research those still points out that performance is lost when you add too much fat.

Bottom line balance in all your meals means better performance. Eat the right diet for you to be at a healthy weight. The issue of weight gain and carbohydrates come in when you eat too much of this food group.

Before you move into a high-intensity workout or cardio activity, eat a tiny amount of carbs. Running for the large slice of lasagna or eating a heaping pile of mashed potatoes means weight gain in many instances.

Instead, eat a headful of nuts or sample a few small bites of pasta 30 minutes before activity for the average person. What’s better for fitness performance: carbs or fat is individual to each one. It also depends on what you’re doing as an activity the intensity or the endurance. Finally, consider weight gain and carbohydrates. If you’re looking to lose weight limit high carbs in your diet until you reach your goal weight.

Interested in living healthy? Find out more by calling our offce. Call today!

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images:  Nick Freund | Dreamstime.com – Model with spaghetti, Rido | Dreamstime.com – Man Eating Energy Bar

Burn 100 Calories In 10 Minutes: The Fast Total Body Workout You Can Do At Home

Burn 100 Calories In 10 Minutes: The Fast Total Body Workout You Can Do At Home

I don’t know about you but some days I can’t make it to the gym even though it’s only 5 minutes from my Littleton acupuncture office. Still I know I need a total body workout and I like the idea of burn 100 calories in 10 minutes at home. The problem is it possible without being a super athlete. I know I’m not one and maybe you’re not either.Total Body Workout

Are You Seeking A Total Body Workout?

I went on a hunt for a simple workout that didn’t require equipment and I can do at home on days when I’m in a hurry. If you only have 10 minutes you can’t pull out heavy machines or weights. In my research, I found some ads that promised 100 calories in 10 minutes if you – you guessed it ‘paid’ them money to learn more. I want something I can share with my clients and patients especially those coming in for weight loss here Littleton.

My Goal: Burn 100 Calories In 10 Minutes At Home

What I discovered and tried were a series 10 movements you do until you’re done. So the faster you move the sooner you finish. I don’t recommend these for my acupuncture patients who have pain and trouble with the high-impact or high-intensity workout. Although you can modify every exercise without a trainer to let you know what to change it could be difficult.

So let’s look at the different drills

  1. Butt Kickers: If you can’t get your feet up high enough just lift them as high as you can.
  2. Jumping Jacks: If you can’t do all of them start with one!
  3. Uppercuts: She says sitting on the floor though the video also shows standing – much easier!
  4. Hip raises: Believe in yourself and lift as far as you can. Soon you’ll be raising higher and higher.
  5. Renegade Rows: I modified these by leaning against the wall on not the floor until I could use our picnic table! I still can’t row on the ground, but that’s okay. It’s all about doing it right. Watch your form.
  6. Pikes: Start slow do a few and add more as you can. If you try to over-do-it, you become sore and will not be back the next day.Burn 100 Calories In 10 Minutes
  7. High Knees: This is my favorite exercise; it’s so easy to do. Lift as high as you can and aspire to raise higher
  8. Mountain climbers: These can be fun once you get use to doing them. A hint keep your neck straight or you get dizzy looking back at your feet!
  9. Crab Touches: Definitely you feel your core muscles getting stronger as you do these.
  10. Push-Up Jacks: Don’t worry if you can’t do these on the floor. I do them either against a wall or sturdy table. Watch the video for more modifications.

 

Jenna’s video no longer is available on The Today Show however she has a Pinterest page with the exercises. Jenna Wolfe

This Is A Workout You Can Do At HomeWorkout You Can Do At Home

Acupuncture can help with weight loss and pain management though both should also include an eating program and fitness routine. When working with locals here in Littleton with acupuncture I believe in empowering them with an at home fitness plan. Losing weight doesn’t mean hours at a gym just think you can burn 100 calories in 10 minutes and get a total body workout.

 

 

 

 

Images: BigStock
Today Show http://www.today.com/health/burn-100-calories-10-minutes-jenna-wolfes-total-body-workout-2D80198245

East vs. West Medicine The Acupuncture Story

East vs. West Medicine The Acupuncture Story

acupuncture

Hand drawing scale with Western versus alternative medicine.

How To Treat Migraines Or Back Pain

Do you like your eggs over easy or scrambled? Country music or jazz? A trip to the Bahamas or skiing in the Colorado mountains? Each example falls into the same category within its genre and are choices depending on a person’s taste or preference.  Eastern and Western medicine treat the same ailments but with a different philosophy. Eastern medicine including acupuncture seeks to help a patient heal. Western medicine provides relief from symptoms like pain through drugs or surgery. A patient with back pain using western medicine may be prescribed drugs or surgery.

These are excellent methods for short-term relief. Surgery is ideal when there are no other options; first try all your options as surgical procedures are permanent and can’t be reversed if you don’t like the results.

migraines

Using Acupuncture A Good Idea

This same patient if they decide to try eastern medicine would experience acupuncture to reduce pain and inflammation. Acupuncture would improve circulation of blood so the tissues can heal and it relaxes muscles so they stop hurting.

Eastern medicine and acupuncture focus on whole food formulas enhancing natural healing.  Western medicine uses forced actions with laboratory medications.

Shorten Your Healing With Eastern Medicine and Acupuncture

Acupuncture focuses on the Yin and Yang of Eastern Medicine with an emphasis on the flow of Qi.  Qi is the flow of energy that sustains living beings.  Acupuncture dramatically reduces the amount of time for injury and illness healing than traditional Western medicine treatment of the same injury or disease.  For instance, a repetitive migraine problem can be resolved within twelve to fifteen acupuncture treatments and western medicine will treat the same ailment with medications ongoing forever.back pain

While we can compare east vs. west medicine, the truth is most conditions respond well when you combine the best of both for yourself. See your Western physician and let them know you want to use natural medicine. Only use western drugs for a short time o when you have no other option.

Natural Medicine A Great Bridge Between East and West

Denver Acupuncture Health owner Debra Novotny is also a certified health coach specializing in nutrition and fitness. These are natural medicines and bridge east vs. west medicine. Many people with pain especially migraine or back pain simply give up without looking for options in natural medicine or eastern medicine to have long-term health without pain.acupuncture

Let me also make a case for fertility, women’s health and men’s health too. I see many people with arthritis or other autoimmune diseases who successfully use natural medicine to build a bridge between Eastern and Western medicine improving their success for a happy, healthy life!

Your health care should really be just about you not where or what you use. Whether you work with Debra or someone else, make sure the treatment is centered on you.

 

 

 

images – copyrighted Dreamstime and Bigstock

 

 

 

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