BUILDING A STRONG FOUNDATION FOR MOVEMENT HEALTH WITH EXPERT CHIROPRACTIC CARE IN NYC

Your movement routine says a lot about you. Very rarely have I come across folks who force themselves to partake in a particular exercise. In today’s world, there are so many options as well. From different types of yoga to dance based cardio to crossfit. 

My movement of choice? Good old fashioned strength training. 

This has not been my ultimate form of exercise my whole life. In fact, for a very long time, I felt that stretching and intense flexibility was the key to great health. As I learned more, though, I realized that strength is required no matter what other style of exercise you choose to do. In fact, strength is needed to get through the mundane aspects of our day like lifting laundry or picking up groceries. 

A strong foundation is key. A strong foundation is most definitely a non-negotiable when it comes to any sort of exercise, rehab or desire to get through the day pain free. 

So what do you need for a solid foundation? Let’s dig in. 

WHAT ROLE DOES BREATHING PLAY? 

We inhale and exhale without even thinking about it, but perhaps that is the problem. Have you ever stopped to think about where your breath goes? Is it mostly in your chest? Do your shoulders lift up to your ears as you inhale? Are you inhaling enough or simply taking shallow breaths that do not benefit your whole body? 

Proper breathing is the first step to building your healthy foundation. Breathing down into your core is the best way to create strength and stability as well as take the pressure off of your neck and shoulders. Put another way, you need to start using the muscles that were originally intended to help you breathe. 

The inhale should expand your belly but in a 360 degree fashion. Meaning your belly expands, the sides of your belly expand and so do the muscles in your low back. Think about it as if you were breathing into a tube. Furthermore, your breathing should hit 4 points of said tube: the diaphragm, the pelvic floor, deep core muscles and the lower back muscles. 

The only way to make the most of your rehab and training is by understanding what it means to breathe properly. From there, you can continue to build upon your stability and mobility. 

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN STABILITY AND MOBILITY? 

I mentioned before that I believed stretching and flexibility was the only way to survive. When you look at the human body as a whole, however, you can see a pattern. This pattern does not lie as it shows how there needs to be a balance between stable joints in the body and mobile joints in the body to obtain, well, balance!

Overly stretching every joint will lead to hypermobility and lack of strength. Overly strengthening every joint can lead to stiffness and pain. Strike a balance between the two. 

Examples of Mobile Joints: 

• • Shoulder (Glenohumeral Joint)
  • Thoracic Spine
  • Hip Joint
  • Ankle Joint 

Examples of Stable Joints: 

• • Lumbar Spine
  • Elbow Joint 
  • Knee Joint 
  • Foot

Figuring out if your joints fall under the category they belong in can be done with the help of movement assessments. I, myself, dive deep into the way in which your body moves and help unveil the kinks in the kinetic chain that is best able to function with balance. 

HOW DO I STRIKE A BALANCE? 

Breathing mixed with stable and mobile joints is a great place to start when it comes to finding overall balance in your body. You can take this a step further by breaking down what movements you need to do and if these movements should only be done unilaterally (on one side). 

Sounds odd right? Why would I ask you to do an exercise on the right side and leave the left side alone? Because when the body is off balance and is trying to find balance in a new, compensating pattern, it ends up putting extra responsibility on one side of the body. 

The best and quickest way to build a strong foundation is to put mobility into the side that needs mobility and stability into the side that needs stability. By throwing this broad concept to your whole body you would only create more imbalance. 

Knowing what is right to do and for which side can also be figured out through the right movement assessments. Having your gait (the way you walk) examined, for example, is the most telling. Your body will show imbalances in motion far better than while laying on an examination table. 

WHAT’S NEXT?

Now that you know where you need to get started, you can better understand why movement assessments are so important for your care. That is why we need to start there. Throwing the newest and coolest rehab at you will be a disservice and that is not my goal. My goal is to help you get back to the basics and own those basics so well that you will have the freedom to try new movements and be able to do so with confidence. 

Are you ready to get started? Book a 60 minute consultation to not only learn where the imbalances are, but to also learn how to correct them. Questions? Book a FREE 15 minute Discovery Call. It’s not too late to unlearn the bad and build anew! 

Yours In Health, 

Dr. Monisha Mallik, D.C.