Food Therapy (aka nutrition)

We like to refer to nutrition as food therapy. When done right it is a game changer. Nutrition  plays a vital role for every 'body'. Whether you are a competitive athlete, weekend athlete, or desk jockey, your nutrition can effect your ability to not only perform, but recover.

At Chiro|Sport we focus on fueling the body and not just filling it.

Try the above recipe for post-exercise recovery

Fueling your body before and after training or an event is the best way to get the most out of your body. The type of event you are doing should guide your decision making when it comes to amount of food as well as timing.

Factors to consider when looking for proper nutrition are things like type of event (endurance, heavy and light resistance training, short-term power sports, etc.), body type, goals for event (are you looking to pack on the pounds, shed the pounds, or somewhere in the middle), and overall health.

It doesn't necessarily need to be as complicated as mentioned above, however. We advocate for people to do their research though. Doing a little more (or sometimes a little less) can do wonders for your program. Don't do a program that is designed for someone else (or a different sport). Those programs were designed with a specific goal in mind and it may not be the one for you.

Don't throw darts at the wall in hopes of hitting something. Dial in your focus and know your goals. 

For more tips and advice feel free to contact us. 

the ability to absorb what you eat can be overlooked

Let's say you are making effort in the New Year to start eating less junk. You are cutting back on soda, alcohol, breads, cheese, or whatever Dr. Oz has told you to do. You are going to start a new exercise program, drink more water, and cut back on any other self-indulgences. These are all great places to start.

Now a month has gone by and most of that can do attitude is gone, your energy and cravings are see-sawing, and still getting no sleep. What happened you may ask?

For most of us, all of the changes mentioned above is a lot to take on. The body will fight back and often with more tenacity than you are willing to take on. It has been studied that the sugar can be up to 8 times more addictive than cocaine. Which makes junk food and soda harder to quit than drugs! 

Not only that, but lets assume you have been consuming those foods for decades. What kind of damage have those foods created? Your gut (the inside not the outside) has a direct correlation to your overall health and more recently, it's been found to have a direct correlation to your brain health. In fact, 6 months after a TBI (traumatic brain injury) there is increased permeability in the intestinal flora. This means just about anything can enter your blood through the foods you eat. This can turn into a downward spiral of issues and sensitivities. 

*You need to be aware that the foods you are now consuming change the chemistry within you. Not only that, but it changes your DNA. To make things worse, if you've had a TBI (nearly regardless of severity) it's likely you aren't getting all of the nutrients from your foods. Leaving your body wanting more and when it wants more, it wants it now. How likely are you to prepare a healthy meal, when your body is craving food NOW!*

CLEANSE/DETOX

The best way to make sure your body is absorbing what you feed it is to first, start to eliminate what is left over inside. The Standard Process cleanse is one of our favorite ways to do this. The use of whole food, organic supplements is among the best out there.

Get more info here.

Inflammation

Chronic inflammation is easily one of the most degrading factors of your quality of life. While inflammation itself is a good thing. Chronic inflammation prevents full recovery from workouts, makes you more susceptible to disorders and disease, and lowers the bodies ability to perform at its highest level.

For foods to add into your diet and more information on this topic, start here. 

Monthly Nutrition Reading 

The following article titled, "Optimum Performance: Chances are, many of this year's Super Bowl players are low in Vitamin D" discusses the importance of Vitamin D and the athlete.

The researchers, from the University of Tulsa and Oklahoma State, concluded that, "this study provides evidence that even in a region where UVB (sun) exposure should meet recommendations, vitamin D insufficiency and deficiency is a concern for as much as 30% of the collegiate athletes. The athletes with lower 25-OH D demonstrated compromised muscular strength and power."

Players who were released during the preseason due to injury or poor performance also had significantly lower D levels than those who made the team, the study found.

Read it here.