Low Back Pain Compression & How to Ease it

Low back pain is the most common mechanical type pain in all of North America. Low back pain symptoms usually cause stiffness, aches and generalized fatigue, but there are many different reasons why you can get these symptoms.

One of the main causes of this discomfort is repetitive strain for a rounded low back. This rounding of your low back makes it susceptible to injury and you guessed it, low back pain.

If you are suffering from low back pain with acute onset then it’s important to know what type of injury it is and what you exercises and stretches you can do and which ones you should avoid.

In the video below I discuss how you can identify if the low back pain you are experiencing is getting irritated with compression, as well as three exercises which you can start today to help get relief.

Cardio... You Are Doing It Wrong!

You get to the gym, hop on a treadmill, turn on your headphones, turn off your brain, and just go.  

It’s just that easy right?

(insert buzzer sound here)

You know exercise is good for you and that you should train with cardio to improve the health of your heart.  But when done incorrectly it can be detrimental.

Over the last few years a new type of training called H.I.I.T. (high intensity interval training) has become popular as a replacement for traditional cardio. With short high intensity bursts and rest periods in between, H.I.I.T. taxes components of your cardiovascular system and shed calories fast.

HIIT is great but there is still a place for traditional cardiovascular exercise.

With that being said let’s address some concerns with traditional cardio exercise.

Long term exercise with sustained elevated heart rate may lead to, changes in the heart and irregular beats.

Chronic cardio puts your body into a stressed state called fight or flight.  When this happens normal regulatory systems like your immune system, digestive system etc. are down regulated.  Cortisol (the stress hormone) increases as well.

Finally most people train within the black hole.  This is when the body is taxed hard enough to deplete energy stores but not enough to elicit a significant training response. This is the same exercise we do over and over because we feel comfortable doing it.

Anyone who has ever trained for a race or for health is guilty of this.

The main thing that you need to change and monitor with your cardio is your intensity. The way you monitor it is not done by speed, or incline but with heart rate.

The below principles should be used as a guideline whether you are on a stationary bike, treadmill, elliptical or training outside.

80-90% of cardio exercise should be done long and slow.  A great book on this topic is called Primal Endurance. Their method is simple, and it builds your aerobic capacity but it won’t be at the expense of chronically depleting your energy and causing burn out.

To do this simply use this formula; 180 - your age = Heart rate threshold.  This heart rate threshold is what you want to keep your heart rate under while you train.

The last 10-20% of your training should be done more intense than you would normally train ie. black hole training.  This means sprints, HIIT training, hill work. Basically you will be doing short bursts with long breaks trying to spike your heart rate higher than your normal training.  *Always check with your primary physician to make sure you are cleared to do this first.

Another way to monitor the toll your exercise is taking on your body with with Heart Rate Variability (HRV).  If you are planning to train for any type of endurance race this year, you should consider measuring this consistently. I will be happy to give you more insight on HRV the next time I see you in person.  

Sprout Into Better Health!

If I told you that you could grow your own superfood right in your kitchen and it took very little effort, would you do it?

The good news is you can.

Sprouting is easy, it’s low cost and can be completely organic.  Not to mention it would be a great mini science experiment for your kids to be involved with.

When you sprout your are accessing nutrients that are otherwise hard to get.

Most seeds and other plant resources are nutrient powerhouses however they contain anti-nutrients. Anti-nutrients are the plants natural defense mechanism that make it hard to digest (think beans the “magical fruit, the more you eat the more you…”).  Naturally animals will not eat foods that upset their system.

It’s kind of like having a safe full of money but there is no way into the safe to get it! Not really harnessing the true potential!

To access the nutrients we have to find a way in, to open safe and break out the goods inside.

The way this can be done is by treating food before we eat it. The way we most commonly treat food is cooking with heat.  But heat can also break down other compounds that would benefit us.

Although heat helps to access nutrients, there are better, easier options.  These include but are not limited to soaking, sprouting and fermenting.

Sprouting involves soaking the seed and rinsing it with water for 2-5 days (depending on what your are sprouting) and let nature do the rest.

You will be left with a nutrient powerhouse that is highly bioavailable since this process decreases the anti-nutrients and other guy irritating compounds.

If you eat certain seeds, peas, beans that irritate your gut, sprouting them may be the answer to enjoy the benefits while not getting the irritations.

Personally speaking raw chickpeas can cause a lot of bloating and gut irritation for me but once sprouted they don’t.

Sprouting is so easy to do and something we should all be doing to improve our diets.  Many other dietary improvements can have high barriers such as cost or accessibility. With sprouting these same barriers are very low as they are cheap, organic and easy to order online!

Is Chiropractic for Everyone?

The quick answer is no.  It’s not.

But can most people benefit from seeing a chiropractor?  Absolutely.

First off you have to understand what chiropractic is and what you as the patient want out of it.

The confusing part for the public is one chiropractor may practice completely different than the chiropractor down the road.   As the patient if you understand that the style of practice from chiropractor to chiropractor can vary, it’s up to you to know what your goal is before making an appointment.  This will help you have a better fit when you do make a choice.

On the other hand it is up to the chiropractor to explain exactly what they specialize in day to day so you know what type of treatment and techniques will be used.

My goal for patients is to improve their help condition with whatever complaint that brought them in the first place, through chiropractic care, education and empowerment.  Secondary to that is how can we can prevent that same complaint from getting worse and recurring in the future, by giving recommendations and tips to improve their health, with things like nutrition and exercise.

Not all my patient’s goals match my personal goals, which is completely fine.  My main objective is to be as transparent as possible and support the patient for whatever their health goal is.  Whether that is just getting out of pain or something that extends further like improving their health in all aspects of their life.  

I am very honest with what my limitations are.   So if your goal or your current condition would be better served by being referred to a physiotherapist, or massage therapist, or to your family doctor for further testing, I will let you know.  

At the end of the day, everyone can benefit from seeing a chiropractor, but I might not be the best chiropractor for you.  

Is Your Problem Mobility or Flexibility?

Have you ever watched a baby roll around and grab their feet and put their toes in their mouth.  

Their flexibility is incredible. I would love to have flexibility like that, and no, not to put my toes in my mouth :)

Flexibility VS Mobility.

Flexibility is the passive range of motion through a joint. For example if you were to bend your wrist back with the opposite hand, forcing it as far as it can go.

Mobility on the other hand is our ability to move actively with control through different ranges of motion.  

Mobility is more important as it stabilizes your movement so you don’t injure a joint structure.

When you get adjusted by your chiropractor the initial goal in most cases is to get the stuck joints moving properly again.  Once you have slightly better motion the next step should be learning to engage the muscles that support that joint. This is done through mobility exercises specific to that area.  A good example for the low back can be found here “3 simple low back exercises”.

The problem with mobility is that we lose it over time due to lack of movement through specific ranges.  For example, our constant day to day activities consisting of constant sitting at work, in the car and at home will tighten your hip flexors, hamstrings and low back.

The bottom line is good mobility is yours to lose since you can see when observing a baby, we were all born with it.  

The cool thing is that if you do mobility movements regularly you can see amazing changes.  First how quickly the mobility comes back as well as how good you feel once you continue improve.

This is why so many people seek out yoga or pilates as it requires active muscle control through different ranges of motion.

Squatting deep and creating movement while squatting is one of the best ways to help combat the chronic tightness from sitting.

Doing this regularly will help to create good movement patterns and increase mobility.

I will post a video of a morning mobility routine that you can do to add movement to your mornings.

Orthotics - Are they necessary?

Orthotics are a custom made insert to help moderate the structure and function of your foot.  Whether they are necessary or not is something we will get into in a minute.

First off, all orthotics are not created equal.  They come in many different shapes and sizes, and can be made from different materials.  In some cases such as for diabetic patients, orthotics should be made with soft cushioning, and in other situations they may be as hard as a rock.

The big underlying difference in orthotic characteristics, seems to be what type of health professional dispensed them.  These include Chiropodists, Podiatrists, Chiropractors and more.

Another key variable in their differences is what is going on with your foot/ankle in the first place.  There are many different accommodations that can be built into your orthotic depending on the condition.  Things like plantar fasciitis, heel spurs and flat feet are some of the more common conditions that may be helped with orthotics.  

But some research shows that orthotics may also help with knee conditions and mechanical low back pain.  

This is because your foot is the foundation to the rest of your body.  It is the first part of the body in contact with the ground. If the foundation is out of position it could potentially have an effect further up your body in places like your knee, hip or low back.

When patients who have never had orthotics ask to get them, depending on their condition and level of commitment I may recommend exercises, stretches and time barefoot to see if that helps first.  

These are usually in situations where their complaint is functional in nature and re-training may be all they need. However, if their complaint is structural, I will be more inclined to recommend trying them.  

Now whether you need hard orthotics or more forgiving orthotics is another concern.  While there is a need for very hard orthotics in certain scenarios I’m usually in favour of orthotics that are more forgiving in nature.

I lean this way because just having an insert that contacts your foot a certain way will provide your brain with more neurofeedback and could re-establish better gait patterns.

At the end of the day there is no right or wrong.  Each health practitioner will have their own opinion, and you should have your own too.

If you have used orthotics in the past and they have worked well make sure your health care provider sees them so they can make a new pair that are similar in nature.  

The last take away, and what I think is most important is that your health provider who dispenses your orthotics should look at you as a person and not just as a foot or ankle.  

If your foot issue is corrected with orthotics this could cause changes further up your body, such as hip, ankle, knee or low back pain.

Sure the orthotics helped the foot issue but if it leads to a myriad of other problems then what’s the point.

Unfortunately I can’t give you a black and white answer as to whether orthotics are necessary or not.  Obviously in certain situations they are, but I also think in a lot of situations they are over prescribed.

The one thing you should always look for is an orthotic dispenser who has your best interest in mind rather than their bottom line.

Low Back Pain in Dogs?

Determining where the root problem in a dog can be difficult.  They can’t explain to you what they are feeling and they don’t have fingers to point where it specifically hurts.

When I see injured dogs as an animal chiropractor, I am usually presented with a dog that has very common symptoms like limping or change in activity levels, but it usually comes with no diagnosis of what is happening… and I totally get why.

Full diagnostic work ups and imaging such as x-rays can cost a lot of money since your dog isn’t covered through OHIP.  Most owners are hesitant to get these tests done because a lot of the time they come back negative.

You spend your hard earned money and get no answers.

Sometimes those tests are absolutely warranted and I usually tell people right away that they need to go to their vet first and get them done instead of seeing me.

However, most of the time it is a mechanical injury such as a muscle strain, or a joint injury that is causing the pain.  This is the perfect time to have an animal chiropractor check your pet.

The bottom line is you don’t know until it is examined.  But in the meantime here are some clues that might help you determine if you should take your dog to the chiropractor for a low back issue.

Lameness - If you aren’t from the horse world, this just means that your pet is not moving normally, ie.  something is disrupting their normal gait. This could be caused by soreness therefore they would limp.  Or this could be caused by weakness, sometimes associated with nerve irritation from the lower spine.

Change in normal activity - You might start to notice your dog, avoiding normal tasks such as going up and down stairs or avoiding getting up from their bed as often as they would before.  Dogs are really resilient but if they are in discomfort they are going to avoid the normal daily activities to lessen the aggravation.

Point tenderness - If you suspect something may be going on with your dog’s low back, don’t be afraid to poke around.  Slowly run a finger down either side of your dogs low back from the ribs down and apply appropriate pressure depending on the dog’s size.  If your dog has a sore spot they will turn their head quickly, they may try to move away or their muscles in their low back will twitch. These are all an attempt to remove the pressure from the sore area.

If you find any of the above in your dog it might now be a bad idea to have them checked by a dog chiropractor.

Symptoms - the tip of the iceberg

Thank goodness for symptoms!

If you didn’t have symptoms you wouldn’t know if you were sick or injured.

Symptoms are like essentially your body’s fire alarm, they go off when something is wrong.

If the fire alarm goes off in your home it is because it detects smoke, alerting you to take action.

Symptoms such as headaches, low back pain and shoulder tightness are your body’s alarm signal when it detects change, like injured tissue, inflammation and more.

If you listen to the symptoms usually you can put the fire out pretty quickly.

All too often however, you don’t get to the root cause of your symptoms, and we take minor actions to suppress the symptoms so you can make it through your day easier.

This is the equivalent of the fire alarm going off in your house and to solve the problem you take the batteries out so the alarm stops.

CRAZY RIGHT?!!

You would never do this to your home without looking for the cause of the smoke, yet people do it to themselves all the time.

Next time you have new symptoms, dig a bit deeper to find out what the root of the problem is rather than “removing the batteries” just to feel better.

What is the difference between adjusting a dog and a human?

First off the principle of chiropractic care is the same for both.  A human and a dog both have a spine and nervous system. The function of their spine directly affects the function of their nervous system.  The nervous system is in control of muscles, organs and sensory function. In everyday life problems with this can show up in performance, mobility, or daily routine.

The major difference between a human chiropractor and an animal chiropractor is understanding the different anatomy of each species and the related stress caused by this different anatomy.

Let me give you a few examples…

The number of vertebra a dog has in certain sections is different that a human.

Both have 7 in the neck (cervical)

In the midback (thoracic) human’s have 12 while dog’s have 13.

Finally the low back (lumbar) human’s have 5 while dog’s have 7.

This is basic spinal anatomy that if you were a human chiropractor only you would not know this difference.

Another important factor an animal chiropractor must take into account is the different types of stress the spine will take in a four legged animal compared to a two legged human.

The spine of a human is vertical and is affected mostly by compression, while a dog or horse have horizontal spines which are affected greatly by shear force.  

Understanding these differences allows an animal chiropractor to use correct techniques and forces to certain areas that may be weak points due to the differences in anatomy between species.

Hip Pain in Dogs - Can an Animal Chiropractor Help?

If you have a large breed dog you probably know that their hips can cause trouble.  Whether it is severe hip dysplasia or osteoarthritis the hips can affect the health of the dog, their quality of life and the pocket book of the owner.

Whether it is a human or a dog the same principles of wear, tear and degeneration apply.  The difference is when humans have a bad hip they don’t run, jump and play. Dogs on the other hand do.

I don’t know how many owners try to limit the dog’s exercise, but when the dog finds a squirrel in the backyard they get up and go, and make a youthful leap off the back deck causing impact to those bad joints.  They come back limping and it stays this way for the following 3 days.

Week after week this pattern continues.

If you can’t correct the behaviour, how do we make the joints adapt to handle those repetitive stresses that are placed on it.

Motion is lotion.

Your dog needs movement. Or should I say your dog’s hips need movement.  No just any movement, proper movement.

Dogs with hip issues, will get atrophy of the muscle from disuse and from a phenomenon called arthrogenic muscular inhibitiion.

Regular check ups from your animal chiropractor can be a game changer in the function of your dogs hip health.  I have literally seen old dogs get a bounce back into their step.

When owners tell me their dog is now walking them and that hasn’t happened in years, I know the visit to the animal chiropractor was well worth it.

The bottom line is dogs don’t lie.  The proof is in the pudding!

The 60 Pound Head

“Sit up straight”

You’ve been told this when you were young and you have probably said it to your kids.  

Your ear, shoulder and hip should be one vertical line, perpendicular to the floor. While inside your neck your vertebrae should have a nice smooth “C” curve to it.

When we lose that curve there is more strain on your neck. But the question is how much?

A spinal surgeon out of New York did a study to figure this out.

The average human head weighs in at 13.2lbs.  10-12lbs of force is placed on your neck while you are in the perfect position mentioned above.

So what happens when perfect changes?

15 degrees forward = 27lbs of strain

30 degrees forward = 40lbs of strain

45 degrees forward = 49lbs of strain

60 degrees forward = 60lbs of strain

This increased strains lead to faster degeneration in the neck and eventually disability.

Corrective chiropractic care aims to restore this changes back to normal as close as possible, and the changes we see in curve correction can be truly amazing even to us.

But it's more amazing when our patients feel and move much better as a result.  It's very simple actually.  Reduce 50lbs of strain off of your neck and it's going to work better. You don't need to be a rocket scientist to understand that. 

The crazy part is that these bad postures and neck curve changes are now seen commonly in kids with increasing time spent on technology.

In a one year period the average person spends 700 to 1,400 hours a year on smart devices. The average high school student may spend up to another 5,000 hours on their smart devices.

That’s Insane!!!

The bottom line is you don't know what you don't know.  Get your kids checked by a corrective care chiropractor and see if there are in fact any structural changes that have already started and correct it now,  as it is much easier to do while they are young.  

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

Check your child's posture with this easy checklist.

Are You Shifted?

Imagine you are standing in front of me and I told you to close your eyes.  Then while your eyes are still closed I moved your arm in front of your body.

If I asked you where your arm is, do you think you would know?

Of course you would.

But how would you know this?  

Well your muscles and joints are full of these special receptors that tell your brain where your body is positioned in space. They are literally the eyes within your body. They give you feedback on how you move, how fast you are moving and when you overstretch they will cause a reflex to engage muscles to prevent injury (this is what happens when you have your knee reflex tested).

These receptors are located all over the different regions of your body but there is one place they are way more dense than the rest of the body. That’s the spine and in particular the neck.

When your spine is in proper alignment these receptors only report movements and changes to the area (normal input).  

When a joint is damaged, irritated or is out of it’s optimal position, these receptors are firing a barrage of signals to your brain telling it something is not right.  This works in a feedback loop so your brain gets the message and has to come up with a response.  The usual response to this is muscles tighten (spasm), reduced motion, and the end results can be pain. 

This can not only lead to the symptoms above but it can lead to further degeneration due to increased spinal dysfunction.  Even if the symptoms subside for a period of time you will be more at risk for re-aggravation.

We see this time and time again when someone comes in as a new chiropractic patient and they complain of back pain.  They have had this multiple times in the past but “it went away on its own”, but “this time it’s not going away and I think I need to do something about it now”…

The bottom line is these dysfunctions that turn into full blown painful conditions are a result of repetitive strain breaking down the tissue further because there is poor communication between your body and brain.

As a chiropractor my goal is to identify these problem areas and improve the dysfunction and as a result reduce the pain. Dysfunction is corrected by restoring normal motion to joints, returning the normal alignment of the spine and decreasing the strain on degenerative tissues such as the disc.

I will leave you with a tell tale example that spinal dysfunction is present.  

If you have knots around your shoulder blades and you have your partner try to work them out or you go for a massage but the last few times they don’t seem to be “worked out”, then it may not be a muscle problem.  Think why are the muscles tightening up in the first place.  Most likely in this scenario there is dysfunction in spine of the lower neck and as a result muscles attaching there are becoming irritated.

Smoothie Boosters

Chiropractic and Your Immune System

There are numerous studies that show how getting adjusted by a chiropractor can cause an immediate rise immune markers like white blood cells. This is great but if you get adjusted once to boost your immune system that is only going to have a mild impact on your symptoms, no different really than trying to suppress your symptoms with an over the counter remedy. 

What is fascinating about chiropractic is it may help to reduce the stress load on your nervous system.

This stress response in our body is natural and is innately programmed so we could run from the Sabertooth tiger thousands of years ago.  Even though we don't have to worry about these threats today our body reacts the same none the less when the nervous system shifts into the stress response. 

The following are some of the changes that happen during the stress response:

- increased cortisol,  adrenaline,  heart rate,   blood pressure,  blood glucose levels,  blood lipid levels,  blood cholesterol levels,  breakdown of protein,   clotting factors,  feelings of stress fear anxiety and depression,  sensitivity of sensory systems (including pain)

- decreased short term memory,  concentration,  serotonin levels , growth hormone,  sex hormones, bone loss. 

** and you guess it decreased cellular immunity. 

You see in the short term this response is not a disease, it is normal. 

The chronic stressful environment including your internal environment is pathological, not the response your body has to it. 

When we look at your spinal health, the degeneration it may have will create a chronic stressor to your nervous system.  Checking, adjusting, and rehab type exercise is going to help reduce the likelihood of the stress response keeping your immune system working optimally. 

Tabata Leg Burner

This leg burning Tabata workout will leave your legs fatigued. Check it out and let me know what you did!

Be careful about depth of squat, and if the lunge is too difficult try any lunge variation as a substitute. 

DIY Bone Broth

Bone broth not only tastes amazing on cold winter mornings but it has amazing health benefits as well. 

The long low boil extracts so many nutrients from the bone and other goodies that you put in there. 

One effect is the collagen and fat that you will get.  Both really important to keep you healthy. 

The other benefit of this fatty drink is that it will keep you full.   When I have this in the morning I am usually good until lunch where I will have a smoothie. 

- Enjoy! 

What Type of ________ Supplement Do You Take?

I get this question all the time and people   The only supplements I recommend are the ones that supplement our diet.  When it is difficult to get all these different foods and nutrients it’s sometimes easier to take the supplement to fulfill our need for that nutrient.

The only supplements I can stand behind are that I have tried and continue to use for myself and recommend for my family.

The bottom line is you always want to try and get your nutrition from real food, but depending on the area you live in the world sometimes having a fully balanced diet is difficult to achieve.

I decided to post the all the supplements that I currently use and the ones I recommend for my family members, and give you a brief description of why I take them. You can find all of them HERE.

In health,

Dr. Adam Markew

3 Natural Immune Boosting Supplements

This time of year we try our best to avoid germs, but sometimes our efforts fall short.  If you can’t avoid the germs this cold season then boost your immune system so those germs can’t wreak havoc on your body.

3 things to take to boost your immune system this season, and my recommendations.

1. Chlorella - this algea is packed with antioxidants and minerals like Vit.A, B., Magnesium, Zinc, and iron.  This can help aid immune cells and decrease the inflammatory response.

2. Vitamin D - This Vitamin is more than just that, it’s actually a hormone.  Vitamin D3 is what you can take to modulate innate immune defense.  Getting a drop is a lot easier as you can take more concentrated doses if you feel you are getting run down.  Remember that vitamin D is fat soluble so take it with food.

3. Curcumin - the ingredient that makes tumeric so potent.  This anti-inflammatory compound also increases the activity of various immune modulating cells.  It has shown to have a positive effect on allergies, arthritis, asthma, atherosclerosis, heart disease and more most likely due to it’s immune responses.

Here are the supplements I take everyday:

Chlorella - https://goo.gl/n7Nffq

Vitamin D - https://goo.gl/xKF3vm

Curcumin - https://goo.gl/AmmcFi

When To Use Ice and When To Use Heat For Pain and Stiffness

Every week patients ask me if they are doing the right thing by using ice or using heat for their pain, injury or stiffness. 

I can see why it could be confusing, because most people don't understand what they are trying to accomplish by using ice or heat, but more importantly they may not understand where their pain is coming from to properly apply it. 

If you suffer from back pain, neck pain and shoulder pain you are not alone.  Many people suffer from this as well and can get intermittent relief by using ice and heat. 

I've put together a short guide to help you understand how ice and heat work and how to know which to use depending on the type of pain or stiffness you have. 

Please click the button below and press the download button to be able to save this to your computer. 

Stay healthy, stay happy, 

Dr. Adam

Should You Sit On An Exercise Ball?

The trend of swapping your office chair for an exercise ball seems to be fading a bit.  However, many patients still ask me if it is beneficial to sit on an exercise ball rather than a chair.  The exercise ball is an unstable surface that in theory should lead to increased trunk movement which aids in the nutrition of your muscles and vertebral discs and increases the activity of your core musculature.  There are other proposed benefits as well, but let’s find out if they outweigh the negative side effects.

A 2009 study published in the journal Applied Ergonomics, researchers compared an adjustable office chair with armrests to an exercise ball while the participants did a one hour typing task.  The chair and the ball were fit to the subject’s body size so when sitting their knee angle was 90 degrees.  As hypothesized by the authors they found 33% more global trunk motion when sitting on the exercise ball (not found to be significant).  They also found the average rate of change of lumbar EMG and amplitude of lumbar spine muscles to be 66% and 38% higher when on the ball.  Although increased spinal movement and muscle activation are good for spine health, they also increase forces on the spine, which can have detrimental effects on the intervertebral discs.  To test this, the authors looked at the compressive forces on the spine and found that spinal shrinkage was significantly greater when sitting on an exercise ball than the office chair.  Another implication of increased muscle activity is that it can lead to muscle fatigue which can increase your susceptibility of low back injury. 

Another study by McGill published in 2006 in Applied Biomechanics, looked at pressure distribution.  Comparing an exercise ball, an office chair, and a stool they found that the surface contact area was significantly greater with the exercise ball.  The increased contact area actually increases the level of discomfort when sitting on the ball.  This is because the soft tissue is now absorbing the pressure of sitting, when it should be on the boney part of your butt! 

In conclusion, although there seem to be benefits of sitting on an exercise ball, the benefits are outweighed by the significant negative effects to your spine.  For this reason use a traditional office chair at work or utilize an exercise ball for short periods at a time to limit the shrinkage of your spine! 

Stay healthy my friends, 

Dr. Adam