When it comes to the pains we feel with overuse or bad technique one of the best at home therapies is turning out to be heat as opposed to ice.  Now if heat makes it feel worse switch over to ice instead.  When heating the affected area, we recommend focusing the heat on the muscles more than the joints, typically heating for 20-30 minutes at a time.  The big rule to follow while heating is don’t burn yourself.  Other options instead of sitting with a heating pad can include topical heating products as well as the various patches that are on the market.  When using topicals avoid using the products shortly after taking a shower as the skin pores are open and the intensity of the creams can be amplified.  If needing to use ice instead of heat typically use the ice for 10-15 minutes or until the area numb.  You can often do this 3-4 times a day if needed.
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With the rise in popularity of Pickleball we are also seeing an increase in Pickleball related injuries.  The most common injuries we are seeing are ankle injuries and shoulder injuries.  With this we wanted to talk about ways to rehab after your Pickleball injury and we also want to address ways to try and prevent injuries (hint: often the exercises and stretches we do for rehab are good at helping to prevent injury as well).

In this post we will be focusing on the ankle injury of which the most common is the inversion ankle sprain.  This is the classic “I twisted/rolled my ankle”.  Most people will experience a certain amount of swelling with the injury, and we often find it feels better when we ice it and elevate it to try and reduce the swelling.  From a chiropractic standpoint we often find that there are some misalignments/fixations that take place and by adjusting these points we can often speed up the recovery time.  The main fixations we find are of the fibula (the small bone on the outside of the lower leg) as well as some of the ankle bones (calcaneus, talus, and navicular in particular).  On top of this there also can be injuries to the tendons (attach muscle to bone) and/or the ligaments (attach bone to bone).  The injuries that occur to the tendons and ligaments often do well with bracing/taping in the short term to help increase stability and reduce the likelihood of re-spraining the ankle while the injury is still fresh.

Part 2 in a series of articles featuring recommended stretches by our Chiropractors. 

Low back pain can arise from multiple causes including prolonged sitting, standing, incorrect lifting mechanics, and many more! Whether you are suffering from chronic low back pain or a new acute flare up, these stretches could be beneficial. Multiple muscle groups cross the region of the low back, so we have shown a variety of stretches to get relief depending on which muscle group is tight. We have also included some stretches for the glutes/hips since these muscles also tend to tighten up while sitting or performing certain movements. Releasing the tension in the glutes can improve mobility in the hips and reduce tightness in the low back. In order to get some relief during your day please see the options that can be performed seated or standing.

​Please contact our Chiropractors if you have any questions about the best stretches for you.

Part 1 in a series of articles featuring recommended stretches by our Chiropractors. 

For our folks suffering from chronic muscle tension in the neck and shoulders or are trying to improve their posture, these are the stretches for you! Whether we are sitting behind a screen all day, driving, or studying, we find ourselves constantly rounded forward creating a lot of tension in the upper body. This poor posture can lead to muscle tightness and even headaches. It is also very common for us to carry our stress in our shoulders, causing them to rise up towards our ears. Below you will find some great options to help bring the head back over the shoulders and relieve muscle tension throughout the day. 

Please contact our Chiropractors if you have any questions about the best stretches for you.

The “perfect” deadlift does not exist, if it did the person executing it would lift a weight so heavy that setting it back down would punch a hole in the earth and cause a major earthquake. This is no different than the perfect swim stroke not existing. Michael Phelps does a pretty damn good job of executing a swim stroke, but it was still never perfect. It doesn’t mean that he never stopped chasing it or never stopped getting coached on how to do it better.

That being said…the deadlift is so amazing for the posterior chain of muscles and for strengthening the back and preventing low back pain when it is DONE PROPERLY. When it is done improperly, people make their way into my office to fix them because of their poor deadlift technique. My goal with righting this article is to give you the latest information on how to do a proper deadlift, as close to perfect as possible, to reduce injury and enhance your performance.

For a while I was down on the deadlift. I may have even told you face to face that I was because it caused so many patients to make appointments to come see me. Luckily for me I have some amazing colleagues that put me on to some great information that allowed me to expand my knowledge that I can share with all of you.

​At Vallejo Chiropractic, we are now offering Kinesiology Taping or “K-Taping” to our clients. Some of you may have seen this colorful taping at the Olympics where athletes of almost every sport are wearing it. It is also very popular at the CrossFit games, where the participants are looking for extra support as they are lifting. 

Dr. Kunsman, Dr. Zack, Beau and Shanon took a seminar to see how we could apply this method to our patients at Vallejo Chiropractic. It turns out that taping has a huge value for rehabilitating our patients and can help relieve pain as they progress through care. 

We believe that movement is a key factor to getting you better. K-Taping allows us to have another tool to help you get back in action.

When you have an injury to an area, the body’s tissues get compressed down and almost glued together. This compression is a reaction to prevent more immediate damage, but it slows the healing process. K-Taping takes skin and muscle tissue that has been adheased together and lifts it; allowing for more circulation. You can place the tape over a bruise and it will heal faster than without it. 
K-Taping also brings more neurological attention to the area of your injury. Having the tape on your skin causes the brain to send more signals to where the tape is. Touch is very powerful, and if you have something like Kinesiology Tape constantly in contact with the skin and moving with it, more feedback will be provided to the brain than without it.

According to the World Health Organization, ergonomics are important for safety management which falls under the category of health promotion and wellness. As health care providers, ergonomics goes hand in hand with the work we do at Vallejo Chiropractic to help patients achieve wellness.

A study done by the national safety council looked at the causes of workplace injuries and found:

•  88% of injuries were due to unsafe acts or behaviors (poor posture, repetitive motion, etc.)
• 10% of injuries were due to unsafe conditions (poor workstation design, slippery floors, etc.)
• 2% were due to unknown causes

Wellness is an interactive process of becoming aware of and practicing healthy choices to create a more successful and balanced lifestyle. Since wellness is an interactive process it is something we should continually work at to maintain the lifestyles we strive for. For this month's newsletter we wanted to give our patients information they can use to improve wellness at home and in the workplace. Enjoy! 

Posture
Poor posture is a factor in all cumulative trauma injuries (including but not limited to carpal tunnel, tennis elbow, and sciatica) and is the major accelerator of almost any injury.