Visiting A Chiropractor – What Can You Expect

If you are experiencing severe back pain and don’t know what to do about it, maybe it’s time that you pay a visit to a chiropractor. The visit to a chiropractor’s office is somewhat similar to that of other healthcare professionals, but it has some exceptional elements. You may feel acquainted with the environment and the intake procedures, but the first unique aspect that you are going to notice is the chiropractic treatment table. These tables are tailor according to specific movements and needs of spinal adjustment. A visit to a chiropractor consists of an initial intake, a physical exam, the necessary treatment and a follow-up plan.

Treatment table -image:en.wikipedia.org

What to expect during the initial intake?

The initial consultation with your chiropractor is quite alike a regular intake with any doctor, and lasts about an hour. You will answer questions about your medical history, such as about your past injuries, medical conditions, meds that you might be taking, and general habits like diet, exercise and sleep.

Then, the chiropractor will ask you to show where you are experiencing pain or discomfort. Some chiropractic offices have patient forms available for download on their website. This makes a less stressful and less time-consuming way to answer these questions.

What is the physical exam like?

The physical exam starts with a conventional physical exam, which is followed by a close examination of your spine, specifically the areas where you are experiencing pain. It is a general practice for a chiropractor to fully examine your spine. The reason to this is the fact that injuring one area can result in secondary pane somewhere else in your spine. If you are, for example, experiencing pain in your lower back, your chiropractor will most probably exam your neck as well.

The physical exam consists of a number of evaluations, including testing your reflexes, motion, muscle strength and palpation, as well as orthopaedic and neurological tests that pay the most attention to the main problem.

What does the treatment plan consist of?

After the evaluation, the chiropractor will come up with a treatment plan based on the extent if your injury, the general status of your health, the overall condition of your spine, and your goals related to treatment. You will formulate your goals according to what you have discussed with your chiropractor. Some people look only for a way to relieve pain, while others want to start a whole care regimen with the goal to improve their overall health.

Initially, your chiropractor will tell you what the status of your condition is and recommend the steps that should be taken. Since it is essential that you trust your doctor, and that you both have a mutual understanding, this is the time when you should ask about anything that you want to know.

What does a typical treatment look like?

The main aspect of chiropractic treatment is adjustments, which are therapeutic manipulation that applies controlled force, direction, leverage and momentum on particular joints. The treatment will most commonly focus on your spine, but it may be necessary to apply it to other joints, like the knee, wrist, ankle, shoulder or elbow, in order to improve joint function and recover structural alignment. The right structure is necessary for the joints to properly function.

If you are, for example, being treated for neck or back pain, your treatment will most probably include a series of adjustments, which will require of you to visit your chiropractor more than once, lasting about several weeks, with it becoming less frequent as time goes by. If you have low tolerance for the manual adjustments, they may be replaced with mild techniques that don’t require that much force. 

Next to adjustments, you will probably receive therapies such as electrical stimulation, heat application, rehabilitative exercise, supplements, and counselling about lifestyle factors such as diet and weight loss.

What are the benefits of chiropractic care?

Chiropractic care is a safe and effective treatment for acute problems such as back pain, or a sudden injury from carrying too much weight. Research has proven that chiropractic measures are great for relieving neck pain and headache. Next to that, it can help out with osteoarthritis and fibromyalgia. According to a Perth based chiropractor, the treatment is established with an accurate diagnosis, so there shouldn’t be any undesirable side-effects.

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Guide to Start Your Yoga Class

Do you include those who sit more than eight hours every day? Have you known that the less moving lifestyle can affect badly to your health? One of the latest study held by the University of Florida Health in 2016 published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine mentioned that there is a correlation between low levels of physical activity with higher blood sugar among adults who are at a healthy weight. It means: your weight is normal but if you have inactive lifestyle, don’t think that you are safe.

So, if you feel tired frequently although enough rest and meal, suddenly experience pain on some body parts, face stressful life, lose eating appetite or seldom sleep well at night; watch out – it is most likely your body shows warnings. As said by fitnes experts, those alerts actually inform that you need to move more if you want to get fit again!

Among various types of workout options, lots of persons choose yoga for keeping healthy their body and mind. Combining exercises, stance, poses and breathing techniques, yoga movements able to calm the whole body system. No wonder that there is a high increase of the amount of yoga devotees in the past few years. Yoga could be the right exercise for you if signs below meet your reasons to start practicing yoga.

Signs that you should try yoga:

- Prefer to low impact, beginner-friendly workout.

-Want to improve the health of body and mind altogether.

- Often experience stress and anxiety.

- Lack of concentration, creativity and motivation.

-Having problem with body posture.

-Want to develop fitness, flexibility and balance.

-Hard to sleep well at night.

- Need to increase focus ability and brain function.

-Suffer forgetful memory.

Lots of studies already conducted and each stated the advantages of practicing yoga regularly. Thus, if you desire to enjoy those benefits as well, taking a yoga class is the right step. There are different forms of yoga to pick; a beginner like you would be better to attend a class first and meet a yoga teacher who will help you in making the best choice that most suits your personal ability, preference and needs.

For your confident first yoga class, here are things to prepare.

Choose the right workout wear for yoga. 

 

Each item should be comfy and allowed you to move freely, stretch and make different poses without difficulty. When buying yoga clothes, there are many options of brands, designs and styles provided in the market. If you opt for comfortable, quality, affordable and stylish athletic wear, Fabletics could be your favorite place. 

image source

Tops

Wear only light-weighted, fitted tops made from natural fabrics that absorb your sweat well, support flexibility and cover your body top firmly. Avoid loose tank top, Tee shirt and tops with loose necklines; they can annoy your moves.  Fitted tanks with built-in bra, crop tops, sport bras are best choices.

Rachelle muscle tank and Julie seamless capri tight

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Bottoms

Don’t choose bottoms that limit your movement. Leave at home loose shorts and bottoms that too long and made from see-through fabrics.

Thick, moisture-wicking and fitted leggings or capris –cropped or full-length- are great to wear. Underwear below your bottom should be sweat-absorbent as well.

What to bring and what to eat.

You will perform yoga in barefoot, so make sure that your feet are clean. Ponytail is the most favorite hairstyle while doing yoga, don’t forget to bring a hair tie and other hair accessories that you need. You will sweat a lot so bring enough water to drink, a face towel and a big towel to be placed on the mat. You can rent a mat in the class or buy your own first.

To avoid uncomfortable stomach during yoga session, experts said that the best is no eating two hours before class. You can get energy source for yoga from grain carbohydrates, lean proteins and healthy fats. In case of you feel hungry after the class; bring healthy snacks such as raw almonds, raisins, sliced of fruits, a banana or a whole grain toast.

Hope you enjoy your first yoga class!

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