Compass Chiropractic

What if you couldn’t take a normal first step when you get out of bed in the morning? Instead, you have to resort to the “Stingray shuffle” until the agonizing pain in the bottom of your foot subsides. Better yet, imagine if you are currently having the athletic-performance of a lifetime, until you were unable to finish solid because of the sharp, stabbing pain throughout the entire length of your foot, and up into your heel… Devastating, I know.  There is a high chance that you may be suffering from a painful but treatable condition known as Plantar Fasciitis.

Plantar Fasciitis (PLAN-tur fas-e-I-tis) involves pain and inflammation of a thick band of tissue, called the plantar fascia, which runs across the bottom of your foot and connects your heel bone to your toes. Its function is to provide static support of the longitudinal arch and shock absorption.

There is not a single-direct cause of plantar fasciitis, but there are multiple known factors that play a major role in acquiring this condition. Some of the most common factors include: poorly fitting shoes,  tight Gastroc. and Soleus (calf muscles), flat feet/poor arch strength, overuse, and excess stress from weight bearing exercise.

If ignored, or not treated properly, plantar fasciitis will continue to occur and wreak havoc on you and your feet until further, more serious measures are taken, such as: Laser Therapy, Shock Wave Therapy, Plantar Fascia/Heel Injection, or a Plantar fasciotomy.

Coming from personal experience, I highly recommend taking control of the situation before it gets worse, we only have one pair of feet, treat them kindly! Attached below is a plantar fasciitis protocol that explains in further detail what this condition is, recommended treatment options, and alternative suggestions  for prevention and care of plantar fasciitis.

To download our Plantar Fasciitis treatment protocol Click Here.

 Video 1 – Manipulation for Plantar Fasciitis

Video 2 – Soft Tissue Therapies for Plantar Fasciitis

Video 3 – At-Home Therapies and Stretches

Workouts have become so much more intense in recent years and not only for the ultra-fit.  In the past you could consider yourself a runner if you threw on your shoes a few times a week and slogged around the block, now you need at least a couple mini marathons under your belt for this distinction.  I remember a time when a senior citizen was content with getting exercise by taking long walks or short bike rides, but that doesn’t seem to be cutting it these days.  This became apparent to me when my mom asked to borrow my set of P90X videos to work out with her friends.   For clarification, my mom is in her sixties and she has always been active, just not what I would call “extremely active”, (sorry mom.)

I tried to talk her out of this and refused to be a part of helping them obtain something that would inevitably lead to someone getting injured.   So, they ended up ordering the video set themselves and made it through one video before they decided they would never do another P90X workout because it was too extreme.  Good news is that they knew their limits and sold the videos to a personal trainer they knew.

To set the record straight: I have nothing against P90X.  My comments are in regards to the general level of extreme-ness that I see in these new workouts. Personally I found P90X very challenging and had a hard time with a lot of the videos.  This is why I cringe when someone who has not been active since high school tells me that they’re starting P90X.  Unfortunately, more often than not this intense level of exercise leads to injuries that derail the person’s health goals.

Remember, exercise is not a temporary activity.  Exercise is something that needs to be a part of your daily routine, like brushing your teeth or combing your hair (for some of usJ).  Start slow, you have your entire life to exercise.  You may not get ripped in 90 days but you will be healthier and you will prevent injuries.

With spring upon us and summer quickly approaching, it’s time to dust off your bike and get ready for some good rides. What better time to get on the bike than during National Bike to Work Week!  

To keep you out of pain, we wanted to bring light some key points you can check to make sure you fit your bike well.

First, the seat height. When sitting on your bike with the pedals in top/ bottom position, a good rule of thumb is to have the knee of your extended leg near but not exceeding a straight 180? angle.  Because there are a few inches of clearance between the pedal, in the down, and the ground, you should not be able to plant your foot onto the ground when coming to a stop. You may be able to prop yourself up on a pointed toe, but if you are able to stand without coming forward out of the seat, either your seat is too low or your bike is all around too small for you. Also, if your hips bounce from left to right as you ride, your seat is too high.

Second, the distance between the seat and the handlebars. When sitting on the bike with the line between your pedals horizontal (one foot forward one back), your front shin should be perpendicular to the ground. If your seat is too far forward or backward, you may experience pain, discomfort, and unnecessary exhaustion.

Third, the angle of the seat. As with a chair, if you sit on a surface that is tilted forward, you will continually feel pushed forward and potentially slide. And vice versa, if your seat is tilted back, you won’t have the ability to get the power you need to propel yourself.  Try to set the seat as close to level/ parallel to the ground as possible.

And forth, the seat’s size and material. When I started riding bikes in my adult life, I was using a pretty narrow and firm seat. It was so uncomfortable, I wondered if I would ever be able to walk normal after that. The pain decreased with use, but then my (now) husband got me a padded covering for my seat. It seriously made all the difference for me. My advice to you, simply choose the size and firmness according to your own liking.

For a more detailed description on bike fitting, check out the Bike Fitting page from Bicycle Garage Indy.

I can tell you that I’ve heard this phrase “I’m moving like an old woman” uttered on my adjusting tables more than once, but this 86 year old German gymnast challenges the idea that we have to move slower as we age.

I have thought of health in many different ways throughout my life. Now that I have kids and have more seriously started to plan for my future I have a renewed perspective regarding my health. I realize that my health not only affects the way that I feel, but the quality of life for my family and those who depend on me.

Health is an investment, much life retirement savings. Many people put off saving for retirement because “now is not a good time” and find themselves unable to retire due to poor planning. I see this with health all the time. We know what we need to do, but we keep waiting for a good time. Unfortunately time doesn’t wait for us and before long we realize that we have a lot of catching up to do.

I remember an interview that I heard with Adrian Fenty, who at the time was the Mayor of Washington D.C and known as the countries fittest Mayor. The interviewer asked Adrian how a busy man like himself could time time for exercise and he responded by saying that he views exercise like any other essential part of his day. To Adrian exercising is no different than eating and breathing, activities that are a daily necessity.

I encourage you to take those small steps now toward good health as they will pay dividends in the years to come. This video is inspiring to me and I hope that it will inspire you also.

http://youtu.be/65TkSFDBw4k

In this video, Stuart McGill, researcher from the University of Waterloo and one of the foremost experts on back pain discusses how doing crunches can damage the back and lead to back injuries. He also gives alternatives to the typical crunch.

Personally I have seen a number of people who have hurt themselves while doing crunches and instruct my patients to modify their workouts.

Here is Katie’s 100 pushup video that she took on Christmas day in Florida. She started with 10 pushups and ended up with, well you’ll have to watch the video.

Here is my 100 pushup initial test…wish that I would’ve done all my talking prior to maxing out on pushups.  For you info to you can check our post on the 100 pushups or check out www.hundredpushups.com.

Now we’ve seen the importance of connecting with our friends and family, we also need to nurture our time with our closest person….our self! When we take time for to invest in our own health we can better pour ourselves out in the various roles we have in life. Yes, it can seem selfish or unproductive to even try to find time for just you, but when we are running on a tank that is less than full, we can become resentful of the responsibilities we have and discouraged. By investing time  into hobbies or other interests is a great way to nurture our points of view and creative parts of our brain.  Activities are as simple as reading, sewing, yoga, crafts, gardening, sports, and dance.  True many of these things can be shared with friends or family but it’s so important that we as individuals have something that is for ourselves.  Give yourself a chance to unwind and think through the day.  It may seem like a luxury to carve time out, but that small investment pays off in dividends in having a more balanced wheel!

In my previous article (found here), I began to explain a resource that has been helpful to me. It is a wheel that allows you to visually see the different of areas of your life charted out according to how much of your time and energy you put toward developing those areas. After creating your own wheel (with areas of your life that are significant and important) you can analyze and discovering which areas need improvement or more attention. In this article and my 2 more articles to come, I want to share outside-the-box ways to tend to a few different areas…at the same time! This hopefully will benefit you as many of your wheel’s shorter ‘spokes’ have direct impact on other spokes. Now, I would love to share a creative way to develop the areas of Health, Relationships, and Money together.

A typical way we tend to connect with each other is hitting up a restaurant/club and attending some sort of entertainment. We all need a night out on the town.  But an alternative to that regular Saturday night with friends could be simple and very rewarding. Here’s a way to focus on having a healthier, richer, and more conscious evening. Instead of going out for the meal, make a delicious meal at home (Money) with our friend, significant other, childen etc. Spend time investigating and trying new recipes (Health), and choose to engage in intentional and meaningful conversation as opposed to being simply consuming the evening with the use of technology (Health).  Many studies show that even though we may be connecting via text or emails, our entire health gets a big boost from actual human contact.  I can’t begin to tell you that some of my favorite times with friends and family has been in the kitchen.  Bonding over mishaps and culinary mistakes are priceless.  Taking away the expensive tab, noisy restaurant and even the wait could be an easy exchange for a fun evening at home followed by a leisurely walk (whether the weather cooperates or not).

With a simple evening in, we have effectively boosted our relationships, saved some money AND helped out our mental and general well being.  What are some fun combo ideas you have for these three wheel areas?

by Katie Culver

For a lot of you, you come in for your adjustment, and afterwards, I ask you to do a few minutes of balance work. Whether its performing exercises while balancing on the exercise ball, Bosu, balance disk, or even just standing on one of the balance boards, I’m sure you’ve wondered why. Rest assured… there is method to our madness.

Because life is lived, at times, in unstable positions (such as walking on icy surfaces in the winter, running on uneven ground, or dodging toys and other obstacles as you chase your kiddos around the house),working on balance boards helps you safely and quickly keep up with the demands of life. Working on balance boards improves the strength of the small  muscles of the foot and lower leg, improves reaction time, reduce the incidence of injury, increases your body’s awareness of where it is at in space, improves movement mechanics, and helps the body to work together as a whole!

One of the main reasons that we want to do balance work with our patients is to increase your proprioception (your body’s awareness of where it is at in space… ie knowing where your foot or arm is at without having to look down at it). After a spinal adjustment, when the body is in its corrected alignment, working on a balance board creates continuous neural stimulus that is perceived as information in the brain. It reinforces that correct alignment and encourages the body to remain in that position (which in turn would lead to more spread out adjustments).

Conclusive research has also been done with balance boards. In one study, it was found that simple balance exercises, as part of early treatment for injuries such as ankle sprains, increases the strength and stability of the joint and therefore decreases the chance for residual symptoms and sprains. Additional research has shown that exercising on these unstable surfaces significantly strengthens muscles when tested against stable equipment. For instance, in one particular study, untrained men approximately doubled abdominal muscle activity when a crunch was executed on an exercise ball versus a static bench.

So if you want a stronger and quicker body whose muscles all work together in unison, try doing exercises on unstable surfaces. Remember, though, to be safe and begin easy, with no weight, and progressively get more difficult, as exercises on these surfaces can be deceivingly difficult!