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Tips for a Healthier Heart

Tips for a Healthier Heart

by | Nov 17, 2022 | Advice, exercise, Informational, Nutrition, Wellness

Did you know that heart-healthy activities like exercise can cause you to live longer? Use this guide to learn tips to maintain a healthier heart.

Exercise

Tip one for a healthier heart, exercising, particularly cardio, can be a great way to get the blood pumping and exercise your heart.

There are tons of great ways to get out there and keep your heart happy, like running, biking, or swimming. Try going for a hike on the weekends to keep your heart working hard and your mind clear and relaxed.

Avoid Unhealthy Habits

Did you know that smoking can be a massive risk factor for conditions like heart disease?

Don’t let caring for your heart come second to a harmful habit. Cut down today to reap the benefits for your long-term health.

Eat Healthier Fats

There are foods you can eat that will do the heavy lifting of maintaining your heart health.

Some fats are healthy, some not so much. Unsaturated fats, and specifically omega-3, are the way to go when it comes to including heart-healthy fats in your diet.

Use this section to learn about the types of fats that can help your heart health. 

Nuts and Seeds

Fight cardiovascular disease with healthy fats found in foods like nuts. Some of the most common nuts that include that heart-healthy dose of fat include:

  • Almonds
  • Pecans
  • Walnuts
  • Pistachios
  • Cashews
  • Other tree nuts

Seeds also contain this healthy fat, including sunflower seeds.

Avocados

Try adding a slice of this delightful food to your sandwiches, salads, and more to improve heart health.

Fish

Did you know that fish can be a massive source of omega-3 fatty acids? Use fish in your recipes as your meat source so that you can tailor meals to your heart health.

Avoid Saturated Fats

This type of fat can be found in foods like butter, milk, yogurt, and meats. Be sure to limit your intake of saturated fats as you turn your focus to increasing healthier omega-3 fatty acids.

If you’re wondering how to improve heart health, swapping saturated fats for unsaturated is a great start.

Address and Minimize Stress

Stressing out can be your ticket to the hospital if you can’t find ways to manage it. Being overwhelmed with stress can lead to heart problems if you aren’t careful about managing it.

Activities that help to reduce stress in the body, like physical activity and chiropractor services, can help.

Activities that help you clear your mind and focus on the good things, like yoga or meditation, can also be great to help maintain heart health.

Jumpstart Your Heart Health Today

Holistic, full-body health is the best way to take care of the heart. Maintaining a strategic diet, exercise, and healthy habits are the perfect stepping-off points to taking your heart health seriously.

Schedule an appointment today to get started as a new patient for chiropractor services and more. You are only a few steps away from a healthier heart.

Take a Rest Day: The Dangers of Overtraining

Take a Rest Day: The Dangers of Overtraining

by | Nov 10, 2022 | Advice, exercise, Informational, Injury, Wellness

The benefits of a good training regimen are undeniable but there is something called “overtraining.”  Read on to learn more about the dangers of overtraining.

Daily exercise is proven to improve your overall physical health, as well as boost your mood and decrease feelings of depression. If you put in the right amount of work, you’ll feel and look great for a long time.

That said, it is possible to overdo things. In this post, we’re going to discuss the dangers of overtraining. As important as training is, it’s also important to take a rest day every now and then to let your body rejuvenate. 

Keep reading and you’ll have a better understanding of the problems that come from overtraining, as well as the benefits of a well-balanced training routine.

What Is Overtraining?

In short, overtraining accumulates stress on the body due to hard training and other factors, like your diet or stress levels. When you start training, it’s common to strive to push your body as far as it will go.

This may feel great for the first little while, but without the proper amount of rest, your body will start showing signs of wear. The symptoms of overtraining include increased heart rate (10-15 BPM), soreness lasting longer than 3 days, a drop in sleep quality, and a drop in your overall performance level. The biggest risk with overtraining is the potential for serious injury.

If you’re constantly dealing with little injuries as a result of your training, there’s a good chance you’re overtraining. Eventually, as you push through these smaller injuries, you’ll end up having a big one. Continuing to work out when you’ve got small tears or strains is only going to make you weaker.

Overtraining Syndrome

Overtraining syndrome (OTS) occurs when you have chronically elevated cortisol levels. Cortisol is your body’s primary stress hormone, which regulates blood pressure, controls inflammation, and manages the way your body uses carbs, fats, and proteins.

While short bursts of increased cortisol are good, overtraining can lead to chronically elevated cortisol, which will have numerous negative effects. You may notice feelings of lethargy and moodiness, and your body may start losing muscle while storing more fat, even as you continue training. You’ll feel sick, tired, and slow until you correct your OTS.

How to Avoid Overtraining Muscles

By taking stock of how you’re feeling after each workout and planning regular rest days, you can stop the symptoms of overtraining. Buy yourself a heart rate monitor, get the right amount of sleep, and make sure you’re eating a balanced diet. Combined with rest, you’ll be in recovery mode in no time.

The best way to create the perfect fitness routine is to listen to your body. It’s important to have fitness goals, but you also have to be reasonable and give yourself breaks.

The benefits of proper training are countless. You should feel happier, healthier, and more energetic when you have a good exercise routine. Push it too far and the opposite will happen, so if longevity is what you want, then don’t overtrain.

The Dangers of Overtraining Are Real

Now that you know the dangers of overtraining, you can take the steps to avoid injuries and OTS. If you’ve been injured as a result of overtraining, contact us at Amazing Life Chiropractic in Mill Creek. We offer natural and reliable pain relief to help you recover from your overtraining injuries so you can get back to training responsibly.

The Benefits of Resistance Training

The Benefits of Resistance Training

by | Oct 27, 2022 | exercise, Informational, Weight-Loss, Wellness

Everybody knows that exercise is important, but their minds usually go to aerobic exercise. Yes, a well-rounded program is excellent. However, resistance training (or strength training) and proper nutrition can help improve your physical health dramatically! However, some people don’t know where to start with all of the workout options available. Luckily, we can help with that. Let’s talk about some of the key benefits of resistance training to get you motivated for the gym!

Benefits of Resistance Training

All exercise offers benefits to our long-term health and wellness. However, resistance training is unique. It helps you burn more calories throughout the day, increases lean muscle mass, and makes us stronger.

Increasing our strength and muscular endurance can help us feel more confident and help improve the long-term quality of our lives. The increase in strength, endurance, and mobility that comes with a well-rounded resistance training program will make everyday tasks easier and more comfortable.

Particularly, strengthening our cores can lead to reductions in chronic lower back pain, which affects 80% of US adults. Also, resistance training is simply fun!

There are so many different types of resistance training exercises to try. This way, you will never get bored. Dumbbells, barbells, pull-up bars, resistance bands, gymnastic rings, and even the floor will offer all the options you could ever need for a well-rounded exercise program.

Best Types of Resistance Training

The only “bad workout” is the one that never happened or the one that was done unsafely. As long as you use proper form and take necessary precautions, do whatever feels right for you!

Resistance bands, free weights, and machines are all excellent forms of resistance training. We recommend using compound movements with free weights as your primary mode of resistance training, as excessive training on machines can lead to injury.

For anybody under age 16, we recommend sticking to bodyweight exercises like calisthenics. Weight training at a young age may stunt growth or place too much pressure on developing bone structures. However, push-ups, pull-ups, bodyweight squats, lunges, and gymnastic movements are very safe and effective for building strength at all ages!

Even swimming offers plenty of resistance perfect for muscular and cardiovascular endurance! It’s great for all ages.

If you want to combine the best of both worlds (cardio and strength), try high-intensity interval training. HIIT has shown remarkable benefits to people of all ages and fitness levels.

However, the best type of resistance training is the one you enjoy and the one that you perform safely. Doing calisthenics is better than bodybuilding and powerlifting, but only if you think so!

Stay Strong

Now that you know some of the key benefits of resistance training, hit the gym and find a program you enjoy. Remember to keep changing up the exercises and follow it up with the right nutrition!

Stay up to date with our latest healthy lifestyle tips and feel free to contact us with any questions!

Ignore Fad Diets: Change Your Lifestyle Instead

Ignore Fad Diets: Change Your Lifestyle Instead

by | Oct 20, 2022 | Advice, exercise, Informational, Nutrition

Did you know that the United States ranks 12th in the world regarding obesity? Read on to learn why you should ignore fad diets and how lifestyle matters more.

Many people attempt to lose weight quickly by following a fad diet. The diets can sometimes work long enough for you to lose weight for a special event. Other times they don’t work at all, and you gain ten more pounds by the time you give up.

It shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone that fad diets fail. They promise to lose 30 pounds within two weeks, which is unrealistic.

Rather than trying to become vegan or follow the keto diet, ignore these fad diets and change your lifestyle. Don’t know how to do it? Below, we’ll tell you why you should avoid fad diets and how you can lead a healthy lifestyle.

Why Should You Be Avoiding Fad Diets?

Crash diets are so popular because they promise you the body of your dreams within a short time. Unfortunately, while it is tempting to change your diet for two weeks to eat only certain foods, you will only do further harm to your health. 

The struggle of following a fad diet damages your body physically and mentally. Below are some of the ways crash dieting harms your body:

  • It puts your body at risk of nutritional deficiency
  • The diet can make your metabolism slower
  • You start having an unhealthy food group balance
  • Fad diets make it harder for you to socialize with friends and family

The biggest risk you put on yourself is developing an eating disorder. This is because the yo-yo dieting and worrying about calories make you obsessed with food. 

These actions can lead you to develop an unhealthy relationship with food. You can start overeating or undereating when this happens, eventually damaging your health.

Instead, decide to make permanent lifestyle changes that will create healthy habits you’ll follow for life instead of following the latest diet.

What Lifestyle Changes Should You Make?

The road to making healthy lifestyle changes depends on what you want to accomplish. For example, do you want to lose weight by making small changes to your diet or becoming more active?

Of course, you should do both, but sometimes it’s better to tackle one healthy habit instead of five at the same time. For example, let’s say you want to make small changes to your diet by cutting out soda and fast food. 

You start taking the time to fix more healthy meals at home and drinking water. Then you can include walking around the neighborhood for fifteen minutes three times a week for exercise. 

In this example, you’re putting more emphasis on your diet than exercising. You can also switch this around by going to the gym three times a week to focus your weight loss more on becoming active. 

Changing your lifestyle isn’t just about these two things. To cope with the stress of the weight loss journey, you can also try to meditate or read more to help you build a better mindset.

Fad Diets versus Lifestyle Change

You hear all the benefits of fad diets, which are usually lying. That’s why you should ignore fad diets and focus on the benefits of lifestyle changes. Below are some of the benefits of lifestyle changes:

  • Lowers your risk of obesity diseases such as diabetes and high blood pressure
  • You gain more energy
  • It helps you handle stress better
  • Self-confidence increase 

Choice and action go hand in hand with a healthy lifestyle. Healthy living is dependent on the choices you make every day and how you act on those choices.

Making positive choices in fitness, stress, and nutrition promotes happiness and overall well-being.

A Chiropractor in Mill Creek, WA Can Help Change Your Lifestyle

Instant gratification is the norm in our world, and discomfort is frowned upon. A magic pill that promotes weight loss sounds easy and convenient, but it isn’t healthy.

So instead of following a diet, decide to make healthy decisions to change your lifestyle. If you need any help changing your lifestyle, schedule an appointment with us today.

5 Natural Ways To Improve Mental Health

5 Natural Ways To Improve Mental Health

by | Oct 6, 2022 | exercise, Informational, Relax, Stress, Wellness

Mental health concerns are plaguing the country, especially stress-related conditions. As we speak, more than 65% of Americans report feeling high levels of stress.

Fortunately, developing the right habits can help us improve our mental wellness. Let’s talk about some natural ways to improve mental health so you can live a healthier lifestyle!

Develop a Healthy Morning Routine

Starting the day right is critical to improving your overall mental health. If you’re the type that hates mornings, then this tip is for you.

The best part is that you can adapt this to mean whatever you want. If you enjoy sitting with a warm drink and reading the news, do that. If you enjoy listening to soft music and practicing some yoga or light exercise, do that!

Whatever you enjoy, start your day off with that. If you feel that you need more time in the morning, prioritize going to sleep earlier and start waking up early in the morning. This will maximize your time in the morning and the amount of daylight you get to enjoy throughout the day, both of which will help improve mental health.

Don’t Neglect Physical Health

Exercise and nutrition are your best defenses against mental illness, and that’s not an exaggeration. Your brain needs proper nutrients and chemical balances to function properly, which are facilitated through appropriate diet and exercise.

Try to reach 150 minutes of aerobic exercise each week and make it something you truly enjoy. This could be biking, hiking, running, playing a sport, or anything you want. Enjoyment is essential for adherence.

Also, try to eat a wide variety of whole foods throughout the day. The greater the variety, the better! You can even try a personally tailored meal plan if you want to be extra thorough!

Practice Breathing Exercises

During your commute, at the end of the day, when you start your morning, or anywhere you find the time, practice some deep breathing exercises. Breathing is essential for proper oxygen intake, proper blood flow, and simply clearing your mind. That’s why it’s so often recommended for improving natural mental health.

Limit Screen Time

Screen time, especially with games or social media, is very harmful for your sleep cycle and overall mental wellness. Studies show time and time again the importance of limiting your screen time. If you have an iPhone, you can set notifications to help you track and limit screen time.

This is especially important before bed. A full night of sleep (8 hours) is essential for mental health, so try reading a book or doing a puzzle before bed.

Take Steps to Improve Mental Health Today

Now that you know some helpful tips to improve mental health, you see that it isn’t so daunting. If you believe you have a serious mental health concern, contact a professional right away. However, if you’re looking to generally improve your well-being, these tips are a great way to start.

Stay up to date with our latest wellness tips and feel free to contact us with any questions!

Fun Ways To Keep the Family Active This Summer

Fun Ways To Keep the Family Active This Summer

by | Aug 4, 2022 | exercise, Fun, Informational, Wellness

A Family That Moves Together, Stays Together

Safe exercise is essential for a child’s healthy development, and not every child hits their targets. Unfortunately, 76% of children in the US don’t receive the recommended amount of daily exercise. Part of the reason is that it simply isn’t fun. Luckily, that doesn’t have to be the case. With the right tips, you and your children can enjoy some fun family activities and stay in shape all summer long. Let’s talk about some fun activities to enjoy this summer to promote a safe and active family lifestyle!

1. Play Sports

Visit Mill Creek Sports Park for active family fun from 7 am to 9 pm throughout the summer months. There are fields for nearly every activity, including softball and soccer, so grab a ball, pack a healthy lunch, and enjoy the day!

2. Mill Creek Skate Park

Of course, you’ll need some elbow and knee pads, along with a helmet, but this is a great place to practice some cool moves on your scooter, bike, or skateboard. This is something your older kids are sure to enjoy, but make sure to go over safety rules ahead of time!

3. SafeSplash Swim School

Another idea for an active family activity is this hidden gem in Mill Creek on Main Street. It’s a great place for children to learn and practice swimming while escaping the burning heat of the summer sun.

If your children are part fish, then take them here or to any community pools or beaches in the area. Swimming is one of the best full-body exercises for developing children with low risk of excessive strain injuries.

Also, swimming combines both aerobic cardiovascular exercise and safe strength training. The CDC recommends children above 6 receive one hour of aerobic exercise each day, so have some fun with it and cool off in the water!

4. Nature Trails

One of the best parts about living in the Pacific Northwest is the easy access to nature trails. Take your kids over to North Creek trail or drive outside of town to any of the hundreds of nearby hiking trails. There are many kid-friendly options to choose from, and a nice walk through nature is excellent for our physical and mental health.

5. Rock Climbing

There are several indoor rock climbing gyms around Mill Creek, including Summit Everest and Vertical World. For children 5 and up, rock climbing can be a great way to build full-body strength and coordination in a safe and controlled environment. It could also help prevent them from developing a fear of heights (or help you conquer yours)!

Enjoy Your Active Family Activities

Now that you have some ideas to help you get started, start enjoying the active family lifestyle this summer and make the most out of every warm, sunny day! Your kids don’t stay kids for too long, so enjoy the family fun while it lasts!

Stay up to date with our latest tips, stay safe out there, and feel free to contact us with any questions!