Friday, January 28, 2011

Chiropractor knows best

We all now how important it is to take care of our bodies- especially athletes and runners. So then why have I been so stubborn for years and refused to go to a chiropractor even though my best friend is one and tells me the benefits?
I could use time and money as an excuse, but thats what they are, excuses. I've come to the realization that its hard to do anything if you don't find the value in it. I'll throw down large amounts of money for items / trips / races that I really want, but if it's something I don't see benefit from- bring on the excuses. 
I finally decided chiro care was beginning to be crucial for me after my Mississippi blues 1/2 mary. I'm sick of dealing with migraines any time I run farther than 10 miles, I hate how my hips are killing me and I end up walking like I just gone done riding a horse all day long- I need to get better. 
I had my first consultation this morning, along with xrays. On a positive note they were able to pin point the cause of my migraines- HOORAY!! And on the negative side (which can be turned positive through adjustments): my spine, hips, neck are all out of alignment and there is muscle spasm tissue on my left side of my lower back (basically its really tight) and its due to me favoring my right side when running?? something like that. I'm not all hip on the medical jargon but basically this is what a normal spine looks like
now see those holes in the middle of the spine? That is where your erector spinae runs through. Now I dont' have my xrays to show you, but about 1/4 of the way up on this picture from the hips, there is no little holes in my xray- my spine has twisted that it just shows up as an opaque line. This is a bad thing, doctors were impressed I didn't feel pain- go me???
Now this is a normal curvature on your cervical spine
Mine goes straight up and down, no curve at all- awesome. No idea how long all this will take to fix, but I do have my first adjustment next week before my half mary, then another one after to see exactly how much each race is changing my alignment. 
Although its never fun to hear you body is not where it should be, I'm glad I finally got checked out so I can slowly start to correct my alignment, get rid of these stupid migraines, and make running that much more enjoyable.

anyone else get adjusted regularly?

Do you notice benefits?


4 comments:

  1. I see a chiropractor about once a month and it makes a huge difference for me!

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  2. I started seeing a chiropractor after my first marathon due to some hip issues. I'm still going and I'm glad I do. It's helpful to go there and tell him how I feel and he immediately corrects it. I would have never gone to a doc for all those minor things, but at the end they add up and it's better he takes care of it in the beginning. Good luck and I hope you feel better soon :)

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  3. i go regularly as well. I am thinking about looking into someone new though because i feel like mine has gotten into the habit of just “popping and cracking” me and not giving me a long term solution. it will be a few months though (when i move to another part of atl). glad you found some answers though!
    we need to plan a blogger meet up in NOLA. i will be with a pretty large group but maybe we can meet at the expo or something. :)

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  4. I have a really bad back. When I was really heavy into gymnastics I used to go see a chiropractor once a week. It was a LIFESAVER. My back never would have survived without it. I definitely recommend it. Just make sure you find a chiropractor that comes highly recommended. Good luck!!

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