Outdoor Summer Activities

Summer is a great time to combine the outdoors and exercise. Here are a handful of suggestions for summer time activities that can also improve your overall health.

Stand-up paddleboarding is becoming an increasingly popular activity. A paddleboard is essentially a larger surfboard that you balance on while using a paddle to steer across water. This activity gives you a complete body workout while helping with core stability.

Swimming is an enjoyable workout that increases health. It is a gentle activity that is great for those who have joint or muscle pain. Swimming helps develop strong muscles while increasing core and low back strength, which can help improve posture and protect your spine. To increase the health benefits of swimming, try speeding up your pace and decrease your rest time after each lap.   

Sailing or rowing classes are a fun way to incorporate exercise and the outdoors. Sailing gives participants an overall workout while increasing coordination, endurance and can even burn up to 200 calories. Rowing outdoors is a low-impact summer activity that emphasizes legs and core. 

Kayaking is a fantastic workout for your upper body and core. It can be helpful when beginning kayaking to take courses in a pool or still water before trying in rapids. Kayaking is a fun way to explore new areas of water. 

Going for a bike ride is a wonderful way to increase cardiovascular health while being outside. Biking outdoors has been found to be more beneficial than using a stationary bike because you must steer, balance and adapt to varying terrain. It is critical to remember to wear a helmet and make sure that your bike is custom fitted to your body to avoid causing back or knee stress. 

Gardening is a hobby that has health benefits. Digging holes, raking, pulling weeds and tilling can give you an overall body workout that burns an average of 250 calories an hour. For every hour that you are gardening it is important to take breaks from a hunched over position to maintain good posture.

For more information visit our website at 

www.oxborochiro.com

Sources:

http://www.shape.com/fitness/workouts/10-new-outdoor-workout-ideas

http://www.webmd.com/fitness-exercise/6-great-ways-to-get-fit-outdoors?page=3

http://www.today.com/health/skip-gym-summer-7-outdoor-workouts-burn-major-calories-1D79833570

Healthy Drinks for Summer

It's getting warmer again and the sun is getting hotter.  We all know that when the temperatures go up we have to stay hydrate and drink more liquids.  Yet not all drinks are created equal and some actually do you more harm than good.  So to stay cool and hydrated this summer, we've created a list of some of the most popular drinks, their risks, and their benefits.

Water

Our bodies are 60% water, so it's important to replenish our water by drinking water.  While this may seem like a simple fact, it's harder than most people think.  We lose water with every breathe we take, every time we sweat, and each time we use the bathroom.  All health professionals agree that drinking plenty of water is essential to health, but the recommend amount varies between sources.  Currently, the most clinically supported recommendation is about 9-13 cups daily (2.2-3L). 

So when you're out and about this spring and summer, make sure you pack a water bottle or two to keep hydrated and healthy.

Juice

Natural fruit juices are a great alternative to water when they are in their purest form.  Things like watermelon (which is 90% water), oranges, grapefruit, and other melons can all help to keep us hydrated.  The negative of drinking juice is the added sugar to make them sweet.  Sugar is linked to obesity and other health risks when consumed in large quantities.  If you were to consume 9-13 cups of juice in replacement of water, you would be consuming 207-299g of sugar based on an average of 23 g of sugar per cup of juice.  The recommended daily sugar intake is roughly 25g, making this a very unhealthy way to stay hydrated.

We recommend that if juice is the way you want to keep cool, try to limit your consumption to 100% pure fruit juice without added sugar.  This will help to replenish your body without a huge sugar rush.

Soda

A study performed by Harvard School of Public Health has reported that consuming pop not only has little nutritional value, but can increase your risk of type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and chronic health conditions.  They found that diabetes and heart attack risk increased by 20-26% in people who drank 1 to 2 cans of pop a day.  Another study found that men and women who regularly drink a can of pop a day increased their risk of autoimmune conditions like gout by 75%.  Other health concerns with drinking soda pop is the high levels of phosphates, which can have a negative effect on bones both in adults and in growing children.

Overall, knowing the health risks that come with these sugary drinks and that it does little to keep you hydrated compared to water and natural fruit juices, it is not a recommended regular beverage to keep you cool during the long summer days.

Sports Drinks

Sports drinks are great at replenishing our electrolytes and keeping us hydrated, especially when exercising or being active.  It is often the drink of choice when doing work out in the sun, playing sports, or being otherwise active.  Still, for those of us that enjoy the outdoors via a lawn chair or floating in the pool these drinks and their added perks aren't any more beneficial than water.  Still, they are great for hydration after a hard sweat.

Energy Drinks

Caffeine has had a bad rep as a dehydrator in popular culture.  The belief was that because caffeine acts as a diuretic, which increases urination, it dehydrates you more than it hydrates.  That is long since been found to be clinically false, making energy drinks okay to drink on a long, hot day.  Like juice, due to the size of most energy drinks, their caffeine content, and added sugars it is not recommended solely drink energy drinks to stay hydrated this summer.  It is best to have one or two of these a day, drinking water to replenish your body the rest of the way.

Alcohol

Alcohol dehydrates.  It's as simple as that.  While there are plenty of fun summer drinks that contain alcohol, it is best to limit your consumption.  If you are going to be out in the sun and drinking, it is recommended to have one cup of water for every alcoholic drink you consume to replace the water you are losing.

For more information on this and other health and wellness tips visit our website at:

www.oxborochiro.com

Sources:
http://www.webmd.com/parenting/features/healthy-beverages
http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/in-depth/water/art-20044256
http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/healthy-drinks/soft-drinks-and-disease/

National Correct Posture Month!

Did you know that May is national correct posture month?  One of the most powerful tools for you and your family in maintaining correct posture and proper spine biomechanics is regular chiropractic treatment and massage therapy.  Chiropractic can help keep your spine mobile and pain free, making  sitting at your desk, typing on the computer, playing sports, and doing your day to day easier.  Massage therapy helps to loosen chronically tight muscles, rehabilitating your posture muscles so that they can keep you standing and sitting straight and tall.

Beyond chiropractic and massage therapy, there are a variety of daily exercises and stretches that promote good posture.  These utilize basic range of motion movements and are easy to do at your work station, at the gym, or at home.  Contact us today for more information on your spine, to schedule a posture check, and help you find health and wellness.

Contact us for more information on stretches and your spinal health at: 

www.oxborochiro.com

or

952-948-9225

 

Gardening Health Tips

Now that it's getting warmer and the flowers are starting to bloom, many of us are starting our summer gardens or doing yard work.  While this is a fun, healthy way to get some exercise and spend time outdoors, there are some health risks involved.  Here are just a few tips from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to keep you safe and healthy while creating a beautiful garden.

1. Dress with protection in mind
   
   • Everything from the sun to bugs to common garden and lawn chemicals can be irritating to the skin or eyes.  Use safety goggles or sunglasses when necessary.  Also make sure that you have sturdy, closed-toe shoes on to protect your feet.  If you are using loud tools, use ear protection.  And always keep watchful for harmful insects like bees and ticks.  Long-sleeved shirts, rubber boots, and long pants can help protect you from insect bites.
2. Understand you tools
   
   • Both powered and non-powered tools have risks if not used properly.  Make sure you understand how to use your tools, that they are working properly, and that you know how to safely handle any chemicals you might be using.
3. Know your body's limits in the heat
   
   • When you're working out in the sun your body needs more water than you might normally drink.  Make sure that you are hydrate and have easy access to water whenever tending the garden.  Also take breaks in shaded areas often to cool your body down.  If you start to feel nauseous, get a headache, or feel dizzy you likely are having symptoms of heat-related illnesses and should get into a shaded, cool space immediately.  If symptoms persist, call 911.
4. Know the environmental risks
   
   • Small cuts and nicks are common when working with plants and gardening tools, but this puts you at risk for general infections.  It also increases your risk for tetanus, which is a bacteria that is commonly found in soil.  If you have any open cuts or sores, be sure to cover them properly and clean any fresh cuts properly.  Also be sure that you are up to date on your tetanus vaccination if you spend a lot of time working in the dirt.

Source: http://www.cdc.gov/family/gardening/

For more information on health, wellness, and alternative treatment options visit:

www.oxborochiro.com