As many folks continue to push their limits out there when it comes to “getting after it,” Barton Chiropractic Clinic sees more and more patients who might have taken their bodies a little too far.

Lately, you might see people out (either early in the morning or in the afternoons after work) running — it’s a simple, affordable, cost-effective way to get in shape.

Benefits of Using a Weight Vest

As people go along and start to build muscle and endurance, many might be looking to shave some seconds (or even minutes) off of their mile times. A weight vest is a popular option that people utilize for running and training — it’s an effective way to build strength. That way, when a person isn’t wearing the vest, they feel lighter on their feet, since they’re used to carrying the extra weight around.

Weight vests aim to help make people faster, jump higher, perform at a higher level — all good things.

However, there are a few drawbacks to training with a weight vest we’d like you to be aware of.

Weight Vest Drawbacks

While that same weight vest might be increasing your fitness and strength, it might also be increasing your potential for injury. Since a weight vest rests on your shoulders and is strapped to your waist, it puts a ton of pressure on your spine. Compression of your intervertebral discs can occur, which can lead to back pain and back/spine injury. If your weights are not evenly distributed throughout the vest, this can put undue stress on certain areas and muscles of the body.

Avoiding Injury with Weight Vests

Try to minimize your risk of injury if you do decide to train with a weight vest. Make sure that yours fits snugly, so that the weights are as close to the body as possible. Try to avoid high impact activities with your weight vest, but, if you must engage, again, make sure the vest fits snugly and that the weights aren’t bouncing around or moving left to right.

If you experience back pain due to using a weight vest or from engaging in strenuous activity (or even pushing yourself a little too hard), contact Barton Chiropractic Clinic today. We have a long, proven track record of getting patients back to active.

When it comes to Chiropractic Care, you can never really start too early. And, unlike with many women and their vocations, a comprehensive chiropractic care plan does not have to stop during pregnancy. Chiropractic care has to do with the health maintenance of the spinal column. At Barton Chiropractic Clinic, we stress the many health benefits of adjusting misaligned joints.

One aspect of chiropractic care that is especially pregnancy-friendly is the fact that It doesn’t involve drugs or surgery of any kind. It’s a completely holistic approach to health and wellness. Instead of something to only consider post-injury, think of chiropractic care as a form of physical therapy and preventive medicine that can reduce spinal nerve stress (which accentuates during pregnancy) and promote health — throughout the entire body!

Chiropractic Care by the Numbers

It just so happens that more than 1 million chiropractic adjustments are given each day — all over the world. It is extremely rare that any complications arise during chiropractic care in general, as well as with patients who are expecting. During pregnancy, chiropractic care has been shown to be safe over several million cases.

Approximately 50% of pregnant women experience some form of back pain at some stage during pregnancy, all the up to delivery. In such cases chiropractic care is a healthy, safe option to explore.

Consult with a Chiropractic Care Specialist in Homewood, IL

Of course there are certain circumstances when chiropractic care might not be suitable in some patients, which is why it’s important to schedule a consultation with a chiropractic care specialist in Homewood, IL. At Barton Chiropractic Clinic we carefully consult with each patient to ensure most effective possible treatment. Contact us today to schedule your consultation.

We all know how much good chiropractic care can do for your back and neck, but there are other less-spoken-of benefits that we all get from making chiropractic care a part of are overall wellness plan — instead of just reserving it for therapy or recover from injury.

Chiropractic Care and Your Immune System

We’ll be you didn’t know that chiropractic care can also help boost your immune system. Your nervous system controls the functions of your organs, tissues, even your cells, and a misalignment can certainly reduce your body’s ability to ward off any potential invader or infection. Taking steps to realign the spine can often free up the immune system to take care of its job. Many studies also support that patients who engage in chiropractic care generally have fewer colds than those who do not.

Improve Your Digestion

Over 60% of our energy goes toward food digestion. Since food and drink intake are such big parts of our lives, chiropractic care is also here to aid digestion. You happen to have nerves Which run through your spine t hat have control over your stomach functionality. Improper alignment can lead to dysfunction like increased acid production, which results in gas, heartburn — you get the idea. We might suggest a chiropractic adjustment that targets and corrects the thoracic spine, which can help eliminate your stomach problems.

Experienced Chiropractor in Homewood, IL

If you’d like to unlock the hidden health benefits that consistent chiropractic care brings, contact Barton Chiropractic Clinic today. We’ll schedule your consultation and set you back on the footpath to wellness.

There is a definite philosophy behind what we do at Barton Chiropractic Clinic. Our practice blends an effective combination of critical, practical thinking, a certain open-mindedness, and an appreciation of nature as well as natural order. It’s a holistic solution to our prescription-heavy culture.

Chiropractic care, when practiced effectively, focuses on the establishing a wellness practice and making chiropractic care a part of that protocol. It’s a great way for those who take advantage to get in touch with their body as well as their environment — creating a full-functional sense of well-being.

Chiropractic Philosophy

Chiropractic care specialists put an de-emphasize surgical procedures and focus instead on a patient’s recuperative abilities, setting forth a balance between lifestyle, health, and the surrounding environment. Chiropractic care is about treating underlying problems and underlying causes, not simply relieving symptoms.

The Center of Things

Chiropractic care puts an emphasis on the central nervous system, treating the neck, spine, and more, investigating their intimate relationships and the capacities they unlock in the rest of the human body. Balance is another central theme here — especially when considering the benefits along with the risks of more clinical or surgical interventions.

Barton Chiropractic Clinic also focuses on early intervention and preventive medicine that keeps patients active and free of injury. We have a long track record of getting patients back to active and a lot of it is due to keeping true to these ideals. Contact Barton Chiropractic Clinic to learn more about our process and treatments today.

As we continue through the dog days of summer, it’s important that we remind ourselves to stay hydrated. It’s easy to forget for long periods of time to drink water — and please don’t consider your morning coffee as your first glass of water. 

Instead, drink half your body weight in ounces — which is the requisite amount of water to consume in a day. You want your urine (sorry) to be mostly clear. If it’s intensely yellow or even brownish in color, you’re already dehydrated.

Below are a few reasons why it’s a good idea to stay hydrated — for your health!

1.) It’s Good for Your Joints

If there’s ever been such a thing as a magical elixir, it’s H2O. Making sure you’re properly hydrated ensure toxins get flushed out of your body. Water helps your joints stay well-lubricated — it even helps prevent bouts with gout! 

2.) Staying Hydrated Fight Inflammation

Because staying hydrated helps flush toxins out of your body, this reduces the body’s inflammation. Inflammation can lead to all sorts of health problems, 

including (but not limited to) certain types of cancers as well as rheumatoid arthritis.

3.) Dehydration is Hard on Your Heart

When you’re dehydrated, your blood volume gets lower, so that means your heart has to work harder in order to pump this reduced amount of blood to supply your cells with oxygen. Everyday activities become harder when you’re dehydrated — simple tasks like walking up stairs, not to mention exercise.

So stay hydrated out there as a part of your overall wellness plan. Another part of your overall wellness plan is regular visits to your chiropractic treatment specialist in Homewood, IL. Contact Barton Chiropractic Clinic to schedule your consultation today.

In the spirit of the summer season (which is still very much in full swing), we’d like to talk about one possible outdoor activity that is great for your back and core — both of which are instrumental in your spine health.

Today’s blog goes over a few reasons why paddle-boarding is worth your consideration. Read on and maybe we’ll make a believer out of you.

1.) It’s a total body workout

All of your main muscle groups become activated as you paddle and stabilize yourself on the board. Your mid back muscles (latissimus Dorsi), abs, arms (biceps and triceps), and shoulders (deltoids) are all incorporated, not to mention your thighs and calves. Paddle-boarding really is a workout that incorporates your entire body — all you’re doing is reaping physical rewards from engaging your core.

2.) It’s soothing

Usually, paddle-boarding will have you out on a scenic lake, taking in the visuals, breathing fresh air, and becoming one with mother nature. Stress is a key contributor to subluxation (spine misalignment), so it’s important to take some time out from the daily grind to do something good for yourself.

3.) It’s a well-balanced activity

Getting outdoors and in nature will help your mind and your spirit. The rigorous activity will help your body. It’s a great activity to strengthen your back and your core, which will help you enjoy lasting wellness and spine health.

If you’re feeling anything less than 100% when it comes to your back, neck, or even your legs, contact Barton Chiropractic Clinic today. We’ll schedule your consultation and get you back to active!

Barton Chiropractic Clinic is a big proponent of preventive medicine, which involves strength training and conditioning as a way to avoid pain and costly injuries down the road. Though we are happy and capable of providing comprehensive, drug-free chiropractic care to get our patients up and running again, we also like to provide education as a means of prevention.

Below are a few exercises to avoid, especially if you’ve been experiencing lower back pain — which might come as a result of sitting at work too much, carrying something or lifting something in an improper way, automobile accidents, and a number of other possibilities.

Toe Touch? No Thanks!

Toe touches are sort of an outdated exercise. It puts a lot of pressure on your back and often has you in a poor posture position. And what does this exercise or stretch benefit? Mostly just your hamstrings. However, a standing toe touch stretch can be beneficial in a yoga setting when you slightly bend the knees — as long as you’ve warmed up over the course of an intelligently designed routine. Otherwise, standing toe touches tend to put a greater amount of stress on your discs and ligaments. You can also end up overstretching your lower back muscles as well as those hamstrings you were trying to give some TLC. 

Say “No” to Sit-Ups

Talk about an outdated exercise. Sit-ups might still be an exercise you’ll have to do if you join the military, but if you’re trying to devise a rigorous strength training routine, you can leave this one out. Besides, most people tend to utilize their hip muscles when doing this exercise more than their abdominals. Sit-ups also put a great amount of pressure on the discs in your spine. Try partial crunches instead to achieve more optimium benefits!

Experience Chiropractor in Homewood, IL

We could go on, but we’ll save it for another blog. And if you experience any sort of back pain that persists in the face of exercise and stretching, then maybe it’s time to enlist the services of an experienced chiropratci care specialist in Homewood, IL. Contact Barton Chiropractic Clinic today to schedule your consultation.

In our final installments of our blog series dedicated to the 5 sections of the spine we go over the rest of the spine, which includes your lumbar, sacrum, and the coccyx which refers to the lower back — the place where the spine curves inward. It starts about 5 or 6 inches below your shoulder blades, connecting with your thoracic spine at the top, then extending downward to the sacral spine.

The lumbar spine contains 5 or 6 vertebrae (L1 through L5 or L6), while the sacral spine (located in the pelvis) contains 5 fused vertebrae (S1 through S5). Lastly, you have your coccyx (tailbone), which contains 4 fused vertebrae located at the very end of the spinal column (Co1 through Co4). All of these structures are weight-bearing and are integral to your body’s functionality during key activities like walking, standing and sitting.

If you’re having trouble with your spine or your back — any section — Barton Chiropractic Clinic offers a variety of hollistic, drug-free treatments that will get you back to active in no time. We have a long track record of helping patients recover from injury and chronic back pain.

Contact us today to schedule your consultation. We’ll custom tailor a specialized treatment plan that works for you.

Your spine is made up of 5 sections, and today we are covering the Thoracic Spine, which is the second region of the spine. 

The thoracic spine curves inward (kyphotic), which helps your body distribute mechanical stress during movement, helping you move about safely. This part of your spine is located in the chest area, containing 12 vertebrae in total. Your ribs connect to the thoracic spine, which results in vital organ protection.

Thoracic Spine Functionality

Out of the 5 sections of your spine, the thoracic spine is capable of the least amount of movement. It’s still tremendously important for movement — for activities like dance especially.

Extension and flexion are possible but limited. The thoracic spine also handles both lateral movements and twisting movements. 

Taking Care of Your Thoracic Spine

You can increase your strength and work on flexibility by doing yoga. There are specific poses that have you lie on your stomach and press your upper body up from the floor. Press and hold for 60 seconds if you can. Try to repeat a few times for good measure!

Take Care of Your Spine with Barton Chiropractic Clinic!

The best way to take care of all 5 sections of your spine is to practice good posture, stay active, engage in targeted stretching regularly, and having a relationship with your neighborhood chiropractic care specialist. Barton Chiropractic Clinic has an amazing track record of getting people back to active. Contact us today to schedule your consultation.

Got an achy-breaky back? Trust us, you’re not alone. At Barton Chiropractic Clinic we’re no strangers to helping patients get out of a pinch. Patients might be in need of a chiropractic adjustment, heat therapy, ice therapy, or a number of additional services we provide to help keep our patients active.

But we also believe in supplying our diverse client base with at home remedies they can utilize to get rid of unwanted back pain.

Read on for a few easy tips and tricks to get out of a jam when it comes to back pain.

Follow These Steps to Rid Yourself of Back Pain

First, hold your head up high, sitting with your legs slightly apart and knees slightly below hip-level. Turn your legs out just a touch and then rest your weight on your legs/feet while relaxing your abdomen. Then, tilt your pelvis forward while raising your breastbone up. Keep your palms up during the process and turn your arms slightly outward. Now hold the position while you take 10 seconds of deep belly breaths.

Sound a little confusing? That’s okay! Just Google Bruegger’s Posture, because that’s what it’s called?

What to Do About Persistent Back Pain

If you have back pain that persists in the face of doing the Bruegger’s Posture, then maybe it’s time to see an experienced chiropractor with a good track record of getting patients back to active. That’s Barton Chiropractic Clinic. Call today to schedule your consultation.