How to Improve Stress by Activating your Vagus Nerve

In the previous post, I discussed what the function of the Vagus Nerve is and what some of the common side effects and conditions are when someone has dysfunction of the Vagus Nerve. Click here to read it before proceeding.

In this post we will discuss different ways you can activate your Vagus Nerve, to put you in a better more relaxed state of health.

If you haven’t already, I recommend you test for Heart Rate Variability (HRV) as this will give you objective insight into whether or not you should work on activating your Vagus Nerve. However, another good indicator is asking yourself do you feel stressed?

We will break this down into daily, weekly, and monthly practices, and you can pick the activities that you can easily incorporate into your lifestyle.

Daily:

1. Deep breath work

   1. Breathing work - Click here to see video instructions

   2. Mouth Taping (This may not be for everyone, but you would cover your mouth to force you to breath through your nose)

2. Humming

   1. Deep throat humming “om” sound, activate branches of the vagus nerve that control the vocal cords.

3. Gargling water

   1. Gargle twice a day, and to the point where your eyes water is a good thing!

4. Exposure to sunlight

   1. Sunlight exposure is linked to the quality of sleep and therefore tied to HRV

5. Side sleeping

   1. Back sleeping increases the likelihood of closing your airway and will negatively impact your HRV. A study showed that side sleepers had the best improvement in HRV.

Weekly:

1. Light exercise

   1. Yoga, stretching, walking 3x per week.

2. Social interaction

   1. Laughter improves mood and HRV. Hit two birds with one stone, and do your light exercises with friends.

3. Meditation

   1. Improves Vagus Nerve function. I recommend you use an app like Calm for guided meditation if you are new to it.

4. Music

   1. Significant improvements in parasympathetic nerve activity (rest/digest) when listing and signing.

Monthly:

1. Chiropractic adjustment 2x/month

   1. One study found improvements in neck pain patients included, lower blood pressure, improved Heart rate variability, and Vagus Nerve Activity

   2. Another study looking at patients with lower back pain found similar results, with improvement in breathing and HRV, and overall function.

2. Massage therapy & Reflexology

   1. Both showed short-term improvements in HRV 30 and 60 minutes after treatment.

3. Supplements

   1. In general terms, Probiotics, Omega 3’s, Vitamin D. (always speak to your health professional for specific recommendations)

If you stick to these activities for a while you will notice improvements subjectively, which are most likely related to activating your vagus nerve. If you want to be objective with the outcomes, then I suggest you measure your HRV consistently.

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.  

Animal Chiropractor For Agility Dogs

Agility competitors (both dogs and humans) have to be in great shape to perform well.

But let’s face it, the dog is the high performance athlete in this case.

If you and your pooch are competing in dog agility you know that every second counts.  

Just like in high performance human athletes there is a difference between being injured and being hurt.

Being injured usually requires time off to heal, recoup and rehab back to shape.

Being hurt usually means, playing through discomfort, but not being able to perform at optimum capacity.

The same is true in your performance agility dog.  It’s obvious when they get injured. They may go lame, or pull up and stop at obstacles.  However, when they are hurting signs may be less obvious.

The most common objective measure that a dog may be hurting is that their performance is slipping for no apparent reason. You are training hard, they are responding to you well but yet the time isn’t up to where it should be.

This is a good time to have your agility dog check by an animal chiropractor.

When joints in the spine or extremities are not functioning optimally, your pet’s performance is not going to be optimal either.

Time and time again I see agility dog’s that respond really well to getting a chiropractic check up and adjustment.  

Think of it like a tune up analogous for a high performance sports car.   

After all you would never miss an oil change with your sports car would you?

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.