Here are the tips I give my patients on staying healthy, preventing disease, and recovering from existing health conditions.  1: Exercise: 

Chinese medicine recommends a moderate amount of exercise:  30 minutes, 3 times per week.  The rest is negotiable and varies, as does everything else, according to individual constitution.  It is also important to note that excessive exercise consumes lung and heart Qi, so moderation is the key.

2.     Relaxation:·      A fundamental practice in maintaining health and balance is a good but simple meditative technique.  Breathing.  The goal is to get into one’s breath – don’t try to alter it, or change it, just visualize and feel it going in and out of the lungs – for 20 minutes per day.  This takes us out of our heads and into our bodies, turning off the harmful effects of stress.  ·      In TCM, a healthy body relies on a relaxed Liver, which regulates the flow of Qi, Blood and Emotions in the body.  Stress impacts the Liver’s ability to maintain good flow of Qi, leading to imbalances in all organs’ energetic systems.·      Start out by setting aside 5 minutes every day.  If the mind wanders away from the breath after only 10 seconds, notice it and bring it back.  Remember, it’s called a ‘practice’ for a reason.  Do this for 5 minutes, then 10 minutes, working your way to 20 minutes.  ·      20 minutes may seem like a long time that you can’t afford.  Consider that you can’t afford not to practice it.  ·      Get to 20 minutes a day for a month and you won’t recognize yourself.

3.     Diet:

·      Chinese medicine speaks of a ‘Clear Bland Diet’, the description of which is closely resembles our common anti-Candida diets.  To keep it simple:   i.     Consume all types of food in moderation when in a state of good health.

1.     Generally, avoid the excessive consumption of greasy, deep-fried, sweet, and raw foods.  These tend to hamper the Spleen’s ability to extract the pure energies and excrete the impure energies from our diet, leading to Dampness, the symptoms of which often closely resemble the effects of excessive Candida albicans.2.     Avoid excessive consumption of spicy foods and alcohol as these lead to an imbalance of the Liver energy system.3.     Avoid excessive consumption of salty foods as these lead to imbalances in the Kidney energy system.                                           

ii.     It may be necessary to adopt a more rigorous and exclusive diet when managing existing health imbalances.  It is often difficult to reverse such imbalances with diet changes alone; a TCM herbal protocol is recommended.   

Consult with your TCM doctor for more information.Content written by Dr. Peter Wood

Three keys to keeping you on the green

By Dr. Robin Armstrong, Chiropractor & Active Release Technique provider at Qi

 

THE LURE OF THE GOLF COURSE IS STRONG.  On a sunny day, who can resist the call of freshly mowed greens?  By the year 2020, the World Golf Foundation expects there to be 55 million participants in the game of golf.  Unfortunately, low back pain is one of the most common golf related symptoms, comprising up to 50% of all complaints.  So how can you prevent yourself from becoming another statistic?

We can prevent golf related low back pain in three key ways:

 

1. Consult the experts.  In professional golfers, low back pain develops due to repetitive strain - long hours on the course cause problems.  But in most amateurs, low back pain results due to the wide variation in the golf swing.  Inconsistency leads to back pain as a result of poor swing mechanics.  It is worth it to spend some time with a golf pro to analyze your swing and give you tips to stay more consistent.  A few extra yards wouldn’t hurt either.

2. Warm up.  You’ve probably heard this before, but it cannot be emphasized enough.  A scientific study found that injuries were reduced by about 60% in golfers who stretched and warmed up for at least 10 minutes before playing.  Unfortunately, another study of over 1,000 amateur golfers found that only about half performed some sort of warm up.  Your warm up should start with some dynamic movements to increase your body temperature first, then stretching, then some practice swings.  Some experts even suggest hitting balls at the driving range first before heading to the course.

3. Prepare your body.  Because golf is a game of all ages, and accessible to so many people, we may forget that it is a physically demanding sport.  To specifically avoid low back injuries it is important to have a strong core, which means developing our abdominal muscles and our supporting low back musculature.  It is also important to have full rotational range of motion in our lower spine.  Be sure to include stretches that involve a rotational component, such as lying twists.  Finally, the muscles around the hips must be flexible to full rotate through the hip joint, and allow extension of the hip. 

What if an injury does happen?

 

Don’t play through back pain -  it will only get worse.   Put ice on the injury as soon as possible to decrease inflammation and consult a health professional to get a diagnosis and appropriate treatment.

  Golf is a wonderful way to stay active, get outside and be social.   If we use the tools above to prevent injury we will be able stay on the greens for years to come. 

 

The Truth Behind A Healthy Core

By Dr. RobinArmstrong, Vancouver Chiropractor

I was recently reading an article about Madonna’s personal trainer, and it got me thinking about the common misconceptions about abdominal strength.  Although my hopes are that the old fashioned sit up has left our gyms for good, after attending a cardio class at the Kitsilano community centre, I discovered that the public’s desire to do 100 crunches for a good workout is still alive and well.

Here are my tips for a healthy (and perhaps aesthetically pleasing) core:

• Always maintain the curve in the low back.  Our spines were architecturally designed to carry a load.  Remove the architecture (the curve) and we become less structurally sound.
•  Our legs are heavy! It is easier - and safer - to lift and carry a heavy box close to our body.  The same applies to our legs and our spine.  If we do ab exercises with our legs straight, it puts alot of unhealthy load on our spine, if we keep our knees bent, we diminish the load, but reap the returns.
• Quality over quantity.  100 sit ups does not a healthy body make.  Choose safe and effective exercise over repetitive out dated exercise.  Here are two of my favourites
  • Front Plank: Lying on your stomache set up your elbows stacked under your shoulders, forearms on the floor.  Curl your toes under and lift your body so that you are parallel to the floor.  Do not let your hips pop up or sag down.  Hold for 30 secs.  Repeat
  • Side Plank:  Lying on your side, set up your elbow so that it is staked underneath your shoulder, forearm on the floor.  Set up your feet either a) Flexed, one foot stacked on top of the other, or b) Flexed, one foot in front of the other on the floor.  Lift your hips up so that your body is parallel to the floor. Do not tipforward or back, keep yourself perpendicular to the floor.  Hold for 30 secs.  Repeat. Switch sides.

Happy Exercising!

Start the New Year off right with Complimentary Health Lectures & Yoga Classes

Every Thursday in January at the Lululemon store, 2113 W4th Avenue at Arbutus.

Join Dr. Robin Armstrong, chiropractor and Yoga Instructor, for an evening of Health information and a free yoga class.

Jan. 8 - Why Yoga?
Dr. Robin teaches us about the benefits that yoga has on your body as well as tips and tricks to keep your yoga practice safe.
Followed by a yoga class suitable for all levels and abilities.
Jan.15 - Active Living
Dr. Robin teaches us about changing our paradigms and ideas around exercise to make it a regular part of our life.
Followed by a yoga class suitable for all levels and abilities.

Jan. 22 - Healthy Homes
There are many organizations devoted to keeping us safe at work - but what about at home? Dr. Robin teaches us how to arrange our home environment to avoid injuries to our back, muscles and joints.
Followed by a yoga class suitable for all levels and abilities.

Jan. 29 - Stress Free
Dr. Robin teaches us to use our own resources to deal with the stress of our modern lifestyle. Followed by a yoga class suitable for all levels and abilities.

Dr. Robin was initially drawn to yoga because of her love for movement – she soon discovered yoga went much deeper than that. Ironically, at the beginning of her training to become a chiropractor, Dr. Robin developed back pain. Yoga, combined with chiropractic treatments, kept her out of pain, and corrected the postural imbalances created by many hours studying. Robin’s yoga classes are sure to incorporate postures that open our bodies in the areas that become closed from our western lifestyle of hours sitting, driving, and using computers.

Dr. Robin Armstrong, Qi Integrated Health, 2618 West Broadway at Trafalgar. www.stayactive.ca 604-676-0355