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Billings Chiropractor

Meet Your Body’s Needs

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Meet Your Body’s Needs

woman-with-luggage, meet your body's need

Traveling is one of life’s most exciting experiences. Seeing another culture, country, or even just a neighboring town gives us memories that last a lifetime. In all that excitement, it might be easy to forget to prioritize your health.

We have some simple ways to make sure you don’t lose sight of addressing your body’s needs.

Stretching. If you’re traveling by plane, get up and walk the aisles. You may even find a small area that you’re able to stretch out in. If you’re in the car, remember to stop every couple of hours to get out and stretch. This will also give you the opportunity to enjoy the scenery and take pictures!

Hydration. Drinking water regularly is one of the easiest ways to make sure your body gets the hydration it needs to work properly.

Lifting heavy suitcases. When you’re loading up the car or bringing your bag to the airport, be sure to lift with the strength of your legs, not your back.

Support your neck. There are countless options for supportive travel pillows. Find one that works for you to make sure your neck is in its optimal position.

Support your back. A small towel or article of clothing can be rolled up and placed behind you at your lower back to give it the support your seat may not have.

Sleeping. Remember to sleep on your side, not your stomach. A good stretch after you sleep can also make a difference in the way you feel.

Exercises. You might find that rolling your shoulders or ankles makes your blood circulate to areas that feel cramped from traveling.

Your body was meant to move so meet its needs while you’re away and at home!

Remember, a chiropractic check-up with us will be just what you need when you return. We’ll make sure your body keeps feeling great.

Billings Chiropractor, Chiropractic Care for Athletes Billings MT

5 Ways to Use Chiropractic Care

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5 Ways to Use Chiropractic Care

5 Ways to Use Chiropractic Care

You may have heard the old saying, “once you go to the chiropractor…” However, how long you choose to benefit from chiropractic care is always up to you. Because there are five ways to benefit:

    1. Relief Care Many people begin here. Pain prompts them to begin chiropractic care. If you stop care as soon as you feel better, you’ll invite a relapse. Muscles and soft tissues do most of their healing after symptoms disappear.

 

    1. Corrective Care With the most obvious symptoms reduced, many of our patients opt to continue their care. This helps stabilize and strengthen their spine. Doing so helps promote lasting changes and helps avoid a relapse.

 

    1. Maintenance Care Like brushing or flossing your teeth, regular chiropractic care helps maintain your progress and avoid a relapse. Visit frequency is based on your age, condition and the stresses in your life.

 

    1. Preventative Care Periodic chiropractic checkups can help catch new problems early, as well as prevent new problems from occurring. This can minimize inconvenient flare-ups. Those who value their health often take this proactive approach.

 

  1. Wellness Care We experience life through our nervous system. That’s why optimizing our nervous system is the key to becoming all that we can be and living life to the fullest.

How far will you choose to take your chiropractic care?

Billings Chiropractor, Chiropractic Care for Athletes Billings MT

Move It or Lose It

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Move It or Lose It!

stretching, Move It or Lose It

How often has chronic joint pain and tightness kept you from doing the things you love? Mobility is key to being healthy and happy. So, let’s make sure we improve your range of motion so you can live life to the fullest.

Understanding Range of Motion

Range of motion is the mobility of the joints in your body, measured in degrees of a circle. If you’re healthy, joints maintain a normal range of motion that enables you to move freely, carry on day-to-day activities and simply enjoy life. Injury, obesity, incorrect posture, lack of movement, aging and spinal issues may impair your range of motion and flexibility.

Stay Active, Live Life!

Many people visit us with common problems like back pain, neck pain and joint pain. It is the purpose of regular chiropractic care to help maintain and retain your health, regardless of your age. Besides, normal range of motion is a must for any athletic performance!

Maintain Your Range

How can we maintain our ability to turn and bend as we were designed?

Stretching exercises. These movements can improve your range of motion and reduce pain. There are both active and passive range of motion exercises that work on strengthening your joints and muscles. We’ll show you, which is best for you.

Regular chiropractic care. Chiropractic care helps keep your neck, joints, and limbs mobile and flexible. We’ll work with you to restore your normal range of motion. Often, chronic ailments are healed while addressing pain issues because the normal range of motion is restored.

We’d love to help you and show you more ways you can live a longer, better life! Give us a call and let’s get started! (406) 969-2468

Billings Chiropractor, Health and Wellness Billings MT

Relax – You Deserve It

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Relax – You Deserve It

Relax – You Deserve It

We know how exciting, yet exhausting life can be. Jam-packed with family activities, sporting and social events, holidays and more, we often forget to set aside time for ourselves.

Take Time to Reconnect with You

Taking time for yourself is necessary to maintain a healthy balance in life. Making time for your passions and doing the things that make you, you, are refreshingly healthy. Being a better, balanced you, helps you be a better spouse, parent, sibling and friend!

Easy Ways to Refresh and Relax:

  • Pray or meditate with a grateful heart.
  • Read something inspirational.
  • Revisit your favorite hobby (photography, wood carving, sewing, gardening, cooking).
  • Get some fresh air and enjoy your favorite outdoor activity.
  • Embrace the arts by seeing a show, concert, museum or historical monument.
  • Visit a spa, salon or treat yourself to an adjustment to feel revitalized!

We always want you to be the healthiest, best you possible. So take some time for yourself and you’ll be more than glad you did. Cheers to a revitalized you!

Good Nutrition, Health and Wellness Billings MT

What’s in Your Kitchen?

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What’s in Your Kitchen?

jar-seasonings, What’s in Your Kitchen?

Did you know that your kitchen cupboards are chock-full of good stuff that works as natural remedies for many common ailments?

What we eat has a huge impact on our health, and this has never been more apparent than in today’s world. We know that some foods are good and that others don’t nourish our bodies as well.

Chinese medicine experts, Yuan Wang and Warren Sheir and writer Mika Ono co-author the book Ancient Wisdom, Modern Kitchen: Recipes from the East for Health, Healing, and Long Life.  They share research about some items that you probably have lying around your kitchen that might help keep you healthy.

    • Fresh ginger. Ginger can be used to aid digestion and help when your stomach is upset. It may also help fight off some types of the common cold.

 

    • Garlic. Research shows garlic has antibacterial and immunity-enhancing properties, not to mention being a tasty addition to cooking.

 

    • Mushrooms. The long history of this vegetable includes a reputation for enhancing immunity and is being investigated for potential anti-cancer and anti-viral properties.

 

    • Green tea. Laboratory studies suggest green tea may help slow certain cancers. Tea may also aid in weight loss, lower blood cholesterol, inhibit the absorption of fatty foods and protect your skin from the damaging sun though data hasn’t been conclusive on the subject.

 

    • Walnuts. Not only do they provide you with valuable Omega-3s, but also walnuts are being studied for their role in reducing the damage caused by unhealthy fats and ability to counteract Alzheimer’s disease.

 

    • Peppermint. This refreshing herb may address indigestion, gas and bloating. Its cooling properties suggest it relaxes the involuntary muscles in your digestive tract.

 

  • Cinnamon. It’s not just used in sweet desserts! Some studies have shown that cinnamon can help control blood sugar and may have antibacterial properties.

Foods can be used to proactively protect our bodies and minds. When you combine a healthy diet with chiropractic care that checks your nervous system function, you’ll be equipping your body to work as it was designed to. Let us help you start your journey toward living a full, rich life.

Back Adjustment Billings MT, Chiropractic Care for Athletes Billings MT, Chiropractic Care For Heart Health Billings MT

Are You Proactive or Reactive?

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Are You Proactive or Reactive?

Are You Proactive or Reactive?

When it comes to your health, ask yourself this question:

“Am I proactive or reactive?”

Being reactive means taking action only when you’re in pain.

Being proactive means doing what it takes to maintain good health.

Being reactive means getting up off the couch because your family member or friend told you so.

Being proactive means getting up off the couch and being active because you want to and you know it is good for you!

Being reactive means grabbing the quickest source of sugary sweets to combat a stressful moment.

Being proactive means eating healthy food (including healthy fats) when you’re hungry and when you need it most to properly maintain healthy stress levels.

Reactive = Symptoms

Being reactive can often be tied to symptoms. When you experience pain, this symptom tells you that something’s wrong and needs to be corrected. Correcting the cause of the symptom takes a level of commitment and sacrifice.

It takes being proactive.

No matter where you are on the reactive/proactive spectrum, we are committed to helping you maintain a healthy lifestyle.

Billings Chiropractor, Chiropractic Care for Athletes Billings MT

Chiropractic For Better Golf?

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Chiropractic For Better Golf?

Chiropractic For Better Golf?

It’s been called the “gentleman’s game,” but more and more women are joining in as well. Many schools and colleges have teams and it’s considered the perfect game for networking or negotiating important business deals.

We’re talking about golf, and golf courses are big business, from building them to maintaining them, as more and more players are getting into the game!

Can Chiropractic Improve Your Game?

    • Many golfers suffer from chronic low back pain. Back pain responds exceptionally well to chiropractic adjustments, increasing mobility and range of motion.

 

    • Chiropractic care aims to help improve posture and flexibility, two components of longer and more powerful drives.

 

    • We become less flexible with age and immobility (working at a desk job, sitting in a car driving everyday) contributes to that as well. Swinging a golf club requires collaboration on the part of many joints from the feet up to the hands, including ankles, knees, hips, spine, elbows and wrists. Lack of flexibility contributes to many repetitive motion injuries in the joints. Chiropractic care attempts to address, correct and prevent joint injuries.

 

  • When combined with stretching and corrective exercises, chiropractic care is a cost effective, all-natural way to improve mobility… which translates to consistency during the four – five hours it takes to play 18 holes.

Fancy new high-tech clubs, shoes with the right spikes and the latest golf attire do nothing to improve your game. However, increased flexibility and mobility can certainly improve your golf score. Just ask the pros – nearly 75% of them receive regular chiropractic care while on tour each year.

Jeffry H. Blanchard, golf professional and author of The Geometry of Golf stated, “The chiropractor is the perfect choice to evaluate, educate, treat, condition and train those who choose to play golf.”

Chiropractic Care for Athletes Billings MT

Exercise: A Mood Changer

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Exercise: A Mood Changer

woman-running, Exercise: A Mood Changer

Ask a daily runner why she runs and you’re likely to hear, “It makes me feel good.” Those of us who aren’t fond of exercise of any type might find this really hard to understand. How can something that makes you sweat and pant actually make you feel good?

Can Exercise Affect Your Mood?

Simple answer – absolutely.

Let’s go back to our running example – some might say they run when they feel stressed out. Others might say they run after an argument with a spouse. Why do they say this? Because they feel different after a run. They may feel stronger, calmer or happier; many runners report that they experience a “runner’s high” that helps them to push past physical pain and limitations.

It’s a known fact that exercise releases certain chemicals in the brain, including endorphins and dopamine, which affect mood. Endorphins are the body’s natural pain killers – in fact endorphins are more powerful than morphine. They help an athlete to stay in the game and push past their pain after an injury.

The Benefits of Frequent Exercise

Some scientists claim that endorphins improve immune system function and lower blood pressure. They also have anti-aging effects because they attack superoxides, molecules that threaten living tissue and are responsible for illness and aging. They can also reduce anxiety and feelings of depression and raise self-esteem. Frequent exercise has a direct effect on endorphin release – the more you exercise, the more endorphins you produce each time you exercise!

Exercise also raises dopamine levels in the brain. Low dopamine levels cause you to feel mentally foggy and sluggish. Dopamine levels increase in response to a low or moderate amount of exercise. Dopamine can also help you to get a good night’s sleep unless you engage in too strenuous a workout, then it has the opposite effect of causing sleeplessness.

Add Chiropractic Care for Optimal Wellness

So aside from the major health benefits of exercise, including weight control and cardiovascular health, exercise also helps to boost your mood, increase pleasure and minimize pain. And when you add regular chiropractic care, adequate sleep and a healthy diet – you have all the makings of a lifestyle that supports optimal wellness and wellbeing!

Good Nutrition, Health and Wellness Billings MT

Are There Health Benefits to Fasting?

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Are There Health Benefits to Fasting?

Are There Health Benefits to Fasting?

Some chiropractors and other natural healing disciplines suggest fasting from time to time as a means to cleanse the body and rid it of toxins, so it functions better.

Critics of fasting say that it starves the body and that regular sleeping and periods in between eating are enough to give the digestive system the rest it needs.

So…whom do we believe?

Fasting has been practiced for centuries, for both religious and therapeutic reasons and is well documented in biblical accounts. It involves the voluntary abstinence from all substances, except pure water, for a certain period. While most healthy individuals can tolerate a one to three day fast on their own, fasts of a longer duration should take place with the supervision of a trained health care professional to coach you through the process.

What Are the Benefits?

Benefits associated with fasting may include

  • Provides the digestive system with a rest from its daily activities, just as we need to take a vacation from our jobs.
  • Cleanses the body by eliminating harmful toxins.
  • Allows the body a period of rest for meditation and spiritual development.
  • Introduces a period of transition (i.e., weight loss, overcoming addictions, shift from meat eating to a vegetarian diet, etc.) to the body to gear up for it.

Of course, fasting is not advised for pregnant or nursing women, those with a life-threatening illness (cancer, AIDS), and those with diabetes or liver disease. Individuals on prescription medications should check with their doctors prior to initiating a fast.

What About Research?

Studies conducted by Mark P. Mattson at the National Institute on Aging on mice concluded that fasting has beneficial effects on the aging process as well. Mattson said an earlier study found that mice that fasted every other day had extended life spans. A new experiment found the mice also did better in factors involved in diabetes and nerve damage in the brain similar to Alzheimer’s disease.

Researchers presented information at the 2014 American Diabetes Association Scientific Sessions that fasting reduced cholesterol levels in prediabetic people over extended periods of time. Although more in-depth study is needed, these findings lay the groundwork for future study.

Fasting may not be for everyone, but if you’re interested in discussing this or other options for cleansing your body, give us a call.