Weekly Wellness Tip

If I had a penny for every time I heard this!  Well, I’d probably be adjusting on a beach somewhere in the Caribbean just for the fun of it and to serve people of course!  Some of you are probably thinking, “That’s me…I don’t need Chiropractic…I don’t have any back problems!”  For those of you who think that, let me ask you a couple of questions:

1)  Do you brush your teeth?  (Yes)

2)  If so (I hope), how long have you been doing that for?  (Since I’ve had teeth basically)

3)  Why do you brush your teeth?  (To prevent any decay or break-down)

4)  What would eventually happen if you stopped brushing your teeth?  (My teeth would start to rot, decay, turn colors, break down)

5)  Do you brush your teeth only when they hurt?  (Of course not!)

AHA!!!

You see, your spine is just like your teeth, if you ignore it and don’t maintain it, it will break down and lead to a weakened nervous system which will lead to dis-ease!

(Believe me, I’ve seen spines that look just as bad!  If your spine was on your face I bet you would take care of it!)

“But my back is fine!”

Listen, it’s not about your back, or your neck!  The only reason why Chiropractors work on your neck and back is that is where your lifeline is!  If it was on your ear or big toe….guess where we’d be adjusting!

It all comes down to what you want for your life.  Where do you want to be in 20, 30, 40 years?  In a wheelchair, in a nursing home having somebody change your diapers and feed you?  OR  Would you like to be on a cruise ship, golfing, traveling, doing the things you love to do with the people you love to do them with? 

I know you all picked the latter.  So make it happen.  Ignore your spine and your health, and they will go away!  You can live without your teeth, you can’t live without your lifeline!  Guard it well!

Love and Health,

Dr. Chaz

Where To Find The Secret of Health!

Carbohydrates: The Truth!

I’m sure you’ve heard a lot about “carbs” recently.  It seems that everywhere you turn, there is a low-carb diet here and a low-carb diet there.  I want you to know the truth about carbs.

The simple fact is, there are 2 types of carbs: simple (AKA refined) and complex.  They are NOT created equal!

Simple carbohydrates are about as nutritionally beneficial as cardboard.  They are mostly made up of sugar causing “sugar highs” and then “crashes.”  I’m sure you have experienced these feelings before.  Simple carbohydrates include: white flour, white pasta, white rice, and white sugar.  Don’t be fooled by labels stating “enriched” or “fortified.”  The nutritional integrity of these foods has been compromised.  Unfortunately, most cereals, pastas, bagels, bread, cookies, muffins, cakes, and pastries have been modified in this manner.  Your bodies just can’t absorb these products the way it should, leading to stored fat and decreased cardiovascular health.

The good news is…Mother Nature has supplied us with a plethora of complex carbohydrates.  They can mainly be found in vegetables and fruits that also supply the body with vitamins, minerals, and fiber.  These complex carbohydrates release gradually, providing a steady source of energy.  They also make us feel full and satisfied and are easily broken down to release their energy. 

Oh yeah…do you think it is a coincidence that our bodies are about 70% water, and fruits and vegetables are about 70% water?  I think not!  This is what we were intended to eat!  Fruits and vegetables hydrate the body and aids in cleansing, detoxifying, and eliminating!  It’s a WIN-WIN……WIN!

In conclusion, try your best to substitute vegetables and fruit in place of breads and pastas.  Your body will thank you!  Remember, nothing tastes as good as feeling good feels!  Or something like that!

Love and Health,

Dr. Chaz

The Sickest Species On Earth!!!

Alright gang, I have to get you thinking again this week!  Think about this situation:

Let’s say that all of a sudden thousands of dead fish start washing up to shore of the one of the Great Lakes.  A few days later, thousands of birds start falling out of the sky around the lake.  So dozens of the best scientists in the world come to the area to find out what’s going on.  What do you think their approach would be?  Would it be something like this:

“Gee, there seems to be an extremely high number of fish and birds getting sick and dying in this area.  I think what we need to do is somehow round-up all the fish and birds and diagnose what disease they are all getting causing the deaths.  Then, we need to give them a drug in the form of a shot, pill, potion, or lotion to treat the disease.  If that doesn’t work, we’ll round them back up and cut out the organs that aren’t functioning properly and then release them back into the same environment.”

Is that what they would do?  ABSOLUTELY NOT!!!  (By the way, does that approach sound familiar…it should!)

I almost guarantee it would look something like this:

“Well, there are a lot of fish and birds getting sick and dying in this area.  But, it’s not happening everywhere.  So, what specifically is wrong with this certain environment that is causing these deaths.  Why are both fish and birds getting sick?  Oh yeah, because the birds are feeding on the fish.  So if the fish are sick, the birds will get sick.  So what is causing the fish to get sick?  What is in their environment leading to disease and death?  Is there something in the water?  Was there an oil spill?  Was gasoline dumped in the water?  Was there any kind of toxic waste spilled in the lake?  What toxins are they being exposed to?  WHAT IS WRONG WITH THE LAKE?  HOW DO WE CLEAN UP THE LAKE AND CREATE A HEALTHY ENVIRONMENT FOR THE FISH?”

Makes more sense, right?  You got it!

Now, the question is, if we know enough to do that with animals, why the heck don’t we take the same approach with humans?  After all, we’re just another type of species running around on this thing we call Earth.  However, we have become the sickest species on the planet because we do not take the proper approach to health!

How many times have you heard parents say, “No, Johnny, don’t give that to the dog, it will make him sick.  That’s for you!”  We take our dogs for walks while we leave our children at home to play video games.  No wonder 64% of children today are overweight!  What drug or surgery will ever solve a problem created by not eating, moving, or thinking well?  NONE!  We MUST think differently about our health!  We have to create a healthy environment that consists of healthy nutrition, optimal movement, and happy thoughts.  What if you lived in a community where everybody was happy, healthy, energetic, smiling, and living out their purpose?  How awesome would that be?  That’s my vision and I hope and pray that you will share that vision with me!

Love and Health,

Dr. Chaz

So You Want 6-Pack Abs???

I truly hope this isn’t the 6-pack you’re hoping for!   The desire for 6-pack abs is immense these days.  Just take a look at any magazine stand, I guarantee at least 90% of the health/fitness magazines have a headline on the front cover stating its guarantee to get you 6-pack abs.  Some of these articles are okay, but the majority of them are missing the boat completely.  You see, when you flip to these articles in the magazines, most of them are showing you dozens of different ab exercises  for you to perform thousands of reps.  This couldn’t be further from the truth.  Now, is direct ab work important in developing a nice flat, toned mid-section…YES!  However, it places a DISTANT 3rd behind proper diet and High Intensity Interval Training. 

That’s right…..if you want a six-pack, DO NOT focus on performing 1000′s of crunches daily (will discuss later).  That’s why people get so frustrated and give up when they don’t see any results after saying, “But I did hundreds and hundreds of crunches everyday, and didn’t see any change!”  They are approaching it completely backwards!  What you need to understand is that EVERYBODY, yes EVERYBODY already has abdominal muscles.  It’s just that people have layers of fat covering up the muscle.  Instead of working on the muscles, you must focus on peeling off the layers of fat so that the muscle definition can be actually seen, leading to the 6-pack abs you desire!

So, how do you obtain those washboard abs?  Simple…follow these 3 steps:

1)  Eat a clean diet!

2)  Perform High Intensity Interval Training

….and a DISTANT 3rd……

3)  Perform direct abdominal work

Let’s break it down.  First and foremost, abs are made in the kitchen!  You can’t outwork a bad diet.  So cut down on the carbs, dairy, sugar, and processed foods and start eating whole foods, mostly plants, and flat-out don’t eat so much! 

Next, research continues to show how much more effective High Intensity Interval Training is than long, slow, boring cardio in burning stomach fat.  Instead of doing 45 minutes of steady-state cardio, perform 2o minutes of interval training.  Pick your exercise (treadmill, spin bike, elliptical, row machine, jumping jacks, kettlebell swings, run in place…whatever you want), go as fast as you can for 45 seconds, then rest for 45 seconds.  Repeat that for as long as you can working up to 20 minutes.  Overall, you save time and burn more fat (even after you’ve completed the workout). 

Third, perform full body abdominal exercises.  Do crunches work the abs…yes, but they put dangerous stress on your spine and promote poor posture.  Instead, perform planks!  In my opinion, they are the best thing you can do to strengthen your core!  When I made this change in my workouts, I saw great results quickly.  Now, I can’t even remember the last time I did a crunch!  How do you perform them? 

Get in this position and hold it for as long as you can.  Keep your body straight, abs tight, and don’t let your hips rise or sink.  Try to work your way up to holding for 60 seconds with no rest.  Once you’ve reached 60 seconds, shoot for 2 minutes.  Or try a stability ball plank like this:

Same concept, just with arms on a stability ball.  You will be amazed at the burn you feel!

Want to work those love handles?  First, eat right.  Second, do your intervals.  Third, perform side planks:

So there you have it….the truth about 6-pack abs.  Hopefully this was helpful!  Summer is just around the corner, now is the perfect time to get started!

Love and Health,

Dr. Chaz

                   - Thomas Edison

“Look well to the spine for the cause of disease.”

           -Hippocrates, the father of modern medicine

I don’t know about you, but in my opinion, these are a couple of pretty smart dudes!  They were well ahead of their time!  We could learn a lot by listening to them!

I remember my mom driving us to school in our sweet station wagon with the wood panels on the outside listening to Neil Diamond, The Beach Boys, The Everly Brothers, and The Beatles on the 8-track player.    Musical preference aside, I also remember thinking how anything could ever get better?  How could there be anything more advanced than an 8-track player?  Fast forward 20 years, and now we have Ipods, MP3 players, and other amazing technology.  Funny thing is, 20 years from now, we’ll be looking back at Ipods and MP3 players and laughing at how “old school” they are, I guarantee it!

What about health and the human body?  It amazes me that some of the smartest people on the planet think we have it all figured out when it comes to how the human body functions.  There is one thing I’m certain of, and that is that we haven’t even scratched the surface of the amazing functioning and healing potential that God put within each and every person.  I also believe that future research will only confirm what Chiropractors have known since 1895 (the year Chiropractic was founded).  That is that the body heals itself through the nervous system from Above, Down, Inside, Out.  Above meaning the brain, Down through the spinal cord, In through the nerves, and Out to every single organ, tissue, and cell in the body!

Blockages in the nervous system will have an effect on how your body is functioning and healing.  Chiropractors work to remove/reduce these blockages and allow your Innate Intelligence to work at its Full Potential to heal and repair the body!

Love and Health,

Dr. Chaz

P.S.  Give someone a big hug today!  Just because!