Importance of Exercise and Injury Prevention through Chiropractic
Friday, May 11th, 2012
Along with maintaining a healthy diet, exercise is a fundamental part of staying healthy. Keeping active at any age can provide a wide range of proven benefits which can support good health throughout life. By taking a common sense approach to exercise and incorporating chiropractic care into your overall wellness plan, you can also help to prevent injuries from occurring. Of course, maintaining a consistent exercise regime and not overdoing it are also both essential.
The following are just a few of the many benefits of exercise.
Improved Heart Health
Cardiovascular exercise gets the heart to pump at a faster rate. Performed on a regular basis, running, brisk walking, swimming, cycling, and all forms of cardio-focused exercise can help improve the function of the heart muscle and make it pump more efficiently. With a heart working optimally, you’ll find yourself to be less winded while tackling everyday tasks such as walking up stairs, lifting heavy objects, or doing household chores. For those who have hypertension, regular exercise can help lower blood pressure to healthier levels naturally without the use of medications.
Increased Metabolism
Along with improving the function of your heart, exercise also increases your metabolism. This can make it easier to maintain your weight or lose weight if necessary. The more intensely you exercise, the larger the increase in your metabolic rate.
Better Hormonal Balance
One of the most beneficial effects of exercise is the release of endorphins, often called ‘feel good’ hormones, and a decrease in the production of cortisol. High levels of cortisol in the bloodstream have been linked to chronic stress and depression.
Management of Diabetes
Exercise helps the body’s muscles utilize glucose more efficiently. Thus, individuals who regularly exercise tend to have better management of their blood sugar levels and have fewer blood sugar swings. For diabetics, exercise can be an essential component to managing symptoms and disease progression.
Flexibility
As we age, muscles, joints and ligaments are more prone to injury. Exercise can help maintain their function. And by adding chiropractic care to regular exercise, many of the often-times painful effects of aging such as muscle pulls and torn ligaments can be prevented.
Both exercise and chiropractic care help circulation and muscle function which can promote healing of body tissues. Combined, they can also prevent back pain by keeping spinal muscles toned and flexible, improve restorative sleep, and reduce overall pain and stress.
If you want to learn more about the benefits of exercise and chiropractic care, contact our office today for a consultation. We’ll be happy to recommend a treatment plan that combines chiropractic therapy and exercise to help improve your overall health.
Dr. Judd Lowrey, D.C. | Lowrey Chiropractic | El Dorado Hills & Folsom Chiropractor | (916) 941-7508
