One of the best investments you can make is in your body and mind. Here are some great ways to make sure you're on the path to being pain free in 2023.
1) Working Out Weekly
Physical activity is one of the beset forms of healthcare. A common phrase is "movement is medicine." This is because movement and helps stimulate the cardiovascular system & lymphatic system, stretch fascia, bring blood to your muscle tissue, and activate underactive muscles. This also has a chance to provide a huge boost of endorphins which is great for you mental and emotional well being.
Frequency & Intensity:
Starting of 2x/week for 30 mins is enough to start receiving some benefits. However, once you develop a routine exercising 4-5x a week would be optimal working different muscle groups. Even a Daily 30min walk is proven to be great for your mental health.
My Personal Experience:
I love rock climbing 2x/week as a way to work on engaging my back muscles, posterior chain, and intrinsic core. This helps me retract my scapula and draw my shoulders down in my daily life. Its also fantastic for increasing mental fortitude, pushing your comfort zone, and giving you a fun and engaging way to work out.
I also sign up for 2-3 workout classes each week as well. This is great because it takes the pressure off of planning a routine and you can show up and expect a great 60minute fitness program. This boost both my cardiovascular system and muscular system which feeds back into my climbing goals making that workout experience even more fun.
2) Schedule Maintenance Work, Not Recovery Work
Investing in preventing injuries is crucial. It takes significantly longer to recover from issues and is much more complicated, this can include things like over-use injuries, tears, spine issues, nerve entrapment and more. Often when the body develops issues like these they the muscles will also need reconditioning which can take quite a while. Great things to look into include: Massage Therapy, Functional Neurology, Physical Therapy, Chiropractic, Acupuncture, Osteopathic, and much more. I'd recommend if you find something that works well for you to try and stick with it every 4-6 weeks.
My Maintenance Clients: I have some clients who have seen me for a long time and came in with specific issues. With the help of P-DTR and Massage Therapy many of these clients are completely pain free and have no reoccurring problems anymore. One thing we do now when they come in for maintenance work is discuss what challenges their body will be facing in the coming months: new workouts & performance goals, lots of car/plan travel, or perhaps just making sure that old chronic issues doesn't return.
Another alternative could be creating a good self-care routine. This includes making sure that before and after working out you are doing the proper stretching (Dynamic vs Static) and using a foam roller. Temperate & Hydrotherapy is also a great recovery tool to helping the muscles be prepared for your next workout.
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