One main point we cannot stress enough is the importance of taking care of your health, both inside and out. You’ve already taken a great first step by visiting our website and reading our blog posts all about health and wellness. Even better if you have already called our office in Plantation, and scheduled an appointment with Dr. Gena, your favorite family chiropractor. Dr. Gena and her team not only provide chiropractic care, but they truly take care of their patients and have their overall well-being in their best interest. When meeting with patients about their health, Dr. Gena strongly emphasizes the significance of the Five Pillars of Health, a concept focused on giving people the tools to help them achieve optimal health in their own way, on their own time.

The five pillars include good nutrition, regular physical activity, quality sleep, maintaining a positive attitude and management of stress, and having a properly functioning nervous system, which happens through chiropractic care. 

The first four can be achieved outside of the chiropractor’s office, in between your adjustments, and can play a huge role in keeping your health in check. Let’s take a look at each of these a bit more closely.

Regular Exercise

Movement is a crucial part of keeping the body agile and well. It sounds like a simple thing to do, but many people are guilty of spending too much time lounging on the couch watching TV, sitting at their desk all day working, and not giving their body the amount of movement it craves. Do something — anything — to stay active each day, even if it’s just for ten or twenty minutes. 

Movement doesn’t necessarily have to mean lifting weights at the gym or going for a five mile run. It can mean stretching out on the floor at home or going to a yoga class, taking your dog for a walk, playing catch with your kids, or simply getting up from your desk chair and pacing through your house for a few minutes in between emails. It’s one word, and not too much to ask: move.

Eating Well

We all know that eating healthy is important — but it is also important to understand that healthy eating looks different for everyone. We recommend speaking with a licensed nutritionist if you really need help knowing and understanding what is best for your body and health goals. 

There are a few general rules of thumb we can all benefit from, though. Dr. Gena always recommends making sure each of your meals consumed throughout the day are nutrient-dense and filled with plenty of color! Eat the rainbow...it’s good for you!

Rest Deeply

The amount and quality of sleep you get can have a serious effect on how your entire day goes. After a good night’s sleep, you are more likely to feel energized and productive, ready to take on the day. But after a night of tossing and turning, and feelings of restlessness? Not so much. It can take a toll on both your personal and professional life. It can make you feel cranky and sluggish, and sometimes even cause you to do or say things you don’t necessarily mean. 

Sleep is not only necessary to keep our spirits high, but it’s also the time our bodies need in order to repair itself. While we sleep, our body is releasing chemicals and endorphins that help to strengthen our immune system and repair our muscles, organs, and cells.  

According to the Sleep Foundation, adults ages 18-64 need 7-9 hours of sleep each night. Those over 65 need 7-8 hours. School-age children need about 9-11 hours, while preschool kids should get 10-13, toddlers 11-14, and babies 12-17.

Think Positively 

Proactive and positive thinking can do wonders for our mental and physical health. Stress can be a trigger for many people, so it’s important to do everything we can to think positive in order to keep stress at bay. The better job you do at reducing your exposure to chemical, physical and emotional stress, the more likely your body will show positive responses to chiropractic care, and be able to hold onto adjustments longer.

You might be wondering what constitutes a stressor. The common use of the word “stress” often refers to things that cause fear or anxiety in a person. These are emotional stressors, often caused by things like global pandemics, bills and finances, deadlines, and something we are all very much aware of here in South Florida, especially in Miami — people cutting you off when you’re driving on highway 95! 

But stress can go deeper than emotional. Chemical stressors, for example, can come from the foods you eat and the beverages you consume. They can also come from drugs, both prescription and not. Chemical stressors are external, environmental factors that disrupt the body’s natural state. Physical stressors can be macro traumas, such as a fall, accident or injury to the body. They can also include micro traumas, small repetitive things you do on a daily basis, like staring down at your cell phone, working at a desk all day, or something as seemingly silly as sitting on a wallet in your back pocket every day of your life since the age of 14… 

Reducing these stressors can increase the positive vibes in our life, and in turn, increase our health and wellbeing. Dr. Gena and her team are more than happy to discuss these points with you, and provide even more ways you can supplement your chiropractic care at home. To schedule an appointment, give us a call at 954-417-5815.