Let’s Celebrate National Fitness Day 2019

National fitness day is a UK day with the aim of celebrating fitness and getting as many people involved in fitness as possible. At Reflex Spinal Health we are huge supporters of this and nearly always recommend exercise to our guests.  Being sedentary causes so many dangers to our health, and this is something that our clinic director, Andy Green, writes about in his book One Body One Life: Don’t Screw it Up! So, I’ve compiled some of the fantastic reasons for doing more exercise and getting involved, writes Reading Chiropractor Beccy Norman.

What are the benefits  of exercise?

• Improved mental health
  • Exercise increases the brains sensitivity to the hormone serotonin and noradrenaline. This in turn reduces feelings of depression. On top of this, exercise also causes the body to release endorphins. Endorphins are well known as the happy hormones. On top of the actual chemical changes that go on inside the body, by getting out and getting involved with exercise not only does it provide a distraction it can be a great way to socialise and meet new, like-minded people.

• Helps to aid weight loss
  • Its not fresh news that exercise helps us lose weight. By increasing our heart rate and burning calories we can create a calorie deficit. As long as this isn’t overcompensated with more eating then we can begin to lose weight. Regular exercise also raises our basal metabolic rate. This is how much fuel your body burns just when carrying out your normal day. Clearly if this can be raised then we’re on to a winner!
  • When you’re on a calorie restricted diet, the idea is that your body has to find fuel elsewhere and will started burning fat. However, quite often the body will start to use muscle. Therefore, exercise is essential to keep the correct balance. Cardiovascular work is great for burning tummy fat whereas lifting weights is what will raise your BMR. This fights against the natural response your body has to drop your metabolism when it realises you are running low on fuel.

• Builds bone density
  • We often recommend exercise to those of our guests who are osteoporotic. Particularly we look at weight-bearing exercise. This is due to the fact that impact exercise such as weights , running etc. helps to improve bone mass. The good news is even if you’ve been sedentary most of your life you can still improve bone density. Supplementing with calcium and vitamin D is also a great extra.

• Can help to reduce chronic pain
  • Chronic pain refers to any pain that lasts past the expected healing time. Astonishingly 1 in 5 adults are affected by chronic pain. Research has been done in to how exercise can help with chronic pain. A literature review of studies found that regular exercise can both reduce pain severity and improve physical function. The key is education and choosing the right exercise for your chronic pain. This is something your practitioner can help you with. Another key point is to try and make the exercise something you enjoy!

• Reduce risk of chronic health issues
  • Exercise strengthens the heart muscle and improves circulation. This means the whole vascular system begins to work more efficiently. This is also raises oxygen levels in the body. This also helps to lower your blood pressure. This fantastic combination of effects significantly lowers the risk of developing the following health issues:
    • High cholesterol
    • Heart disease
    • Metabolic syndrome
    • Type 2 diabetes
  • Exercise is also an excellent way to improve your sleep quality, especially if you exercise outside. Just be careful not to exercise too late in the day as you may be too energized.

Where do Reflex Spinal Health help with Fitness Day and you?

• Chiropractic and Osteopathy
  • Your practitioner will be able to help improve the biomechanical function of your body and therefore enable you to exercise In a way that won’t increase your risk of injury. We can also help with a number of sporting injuries including shoulder impingement, runner’s knee and many more.
• Sports massage
  • This is an excellent way to help the body recover from all the hard work you’ve been putting your body through and prevent injuries. It is excellent at reducing what is known as DOMS (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness).On top of all this, massage therapy releases endorphins so makes you feel great!
• Rehab assessment and programs
  • As part of your care with us in the centre, if appropriate, we offer individual rehab assessments. This is an extensive appointment where we find out exactly which muscles are weak, which are overworked, which are tight , which are lax. Combining all of this information with your ability, we create and exercise program specifically for you to improve all aspects. This will then enable you to improve function and exercise the way you want to.
• Gait assessment and orthotics
  • Started running and suddenly feeling a pain in your, knee, shins , hip or low back? Orthotics may be what you need! We offer completely bespoke orthotics for those people with a biomechanical imbalance in their feet. If you think of your feet as the foundation of your house. If this is imbalanced then you will soon begin to see the cracks showing further up a.k.a in your body. Current research suggests that up to 85% of the adult population would benefit from orthotics in their shoes. This is especially important once you become active as otherwise you can quickly sustain injuries that will hold you back.

If you have any questions about National Fitness Day, or any of the content of this article please contact the Reflex Spinal Health team on 0118 946 2100 and we would be happy to help.