Learn How to Prevent or Reverse Heart Disease

The Heart of the Matter

Date: Wednesday, February 17, 2009
Time: 6:30-7:30 p.m.
Location: Everett Chiropractic Clinic
8625 Evergreen Way, Suite 210
Everett, WA 98208

Cost: Free of Charge
Space is limited

This is an opportunity you will not want to miss!

Are you aware that according to 2007 data from the American Heart Association, an estimated 1.2 million Americans will suffer either a first-time or recurring heart attack each year; and that of those, 452,000 are expected to die?

No one wants to be part of those statistics – but how can we avoid it?

Be sure to join us on Wednesday, February 17, 6:30 p.m. at the Everett Chiropractic Center, 8625 Evergreen Way, Suite 210 for an enlightening and informative evening in which Carolyn Carmen, Wellness Consultant, will lead a timely discussion on the risk factors and issues associated with heart disease and how to deal with them.

As part of this discussion, we will view an educational video featuring the brilliant heart health expert, Dr. Tamara Sachs.

A true pioneer in the field of integrative health care and functional medicine, Dr. Sachs is a well-known, energetic champion in the arena of nutritional therapy and heart health, and has served many years on the advisory board for Women Heart, the National Coalition for Women with Heart Disease (http://womenheart.org).

Space is limited for this event, so please call or e-mail Dr. Dennis Dilday today to reserve your spot.

For more information, or to reserve your spot at this event please contact:

Dennis Dilday, D.C.
425.328.4850 ph.
DDilday239@aol.com

Bally Total Fitness Event Day is Tomorrow!

Low Flying Oblique

Our local Bally’s is having a special event day full of discounted products and membership offerings tomorrow, January 21st. Here are some of the offers:

Membership Special
* No Enrollments Fees
* Month-to-Month/ $24.99 a month
* 1 Personal Training Session

And….

35% OFF Selected Supplements and Accessories!!

Bally Total Fitness located at 7621 Evergreen Way in Everett at the Cascade Plaza

And don’t forget Friday’s Jack Medina event on Everett Mall Way in south Everett. “Honcho” helped Cathy Rigby become the first American to win at the World Gymnastics Championships, he may just be able to give you a tip or two. Contact our office for a FREE ticket! (425) 348-5207.

A little goes a long way!

Buttermilk Creek, Methow Valley

This came in today’s email (The emphasis is mine.):

STORY LEAD:
ARS Food and Nutrition Research Briefs Issued
___________________________________________

ARS News Service
Agricultural Research Service, USDA
Kim Kaplan, (301) 504-1637, kim.kaplan@ars.usda.gov
January 12, 2010
–View this report online, plus photos and related stories, at www.ars.usda.gov/is/pr
–Follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/ARSInformation
___________________________________________

Mild dehydration appears to affect people’s mood as well as their motor skills. That’s one of the latest nutrition and health findings in the newest issue of the Agricultural Research Service’s Food and Nutrition Research Briefs (FNRB) and its Spanish-language edition (Informe de investigaciones de alimentos y nutrición).

View the English edition at

http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/np/fnrb/fnrb0110.htm

There is a library of books on water, and why you need more, and why you should be careful where you get it, etc.

We stopped drinking municipal water in 1980. I know, it won’t kill you and we have some of the best there is in this part of the country, no doubt. But…

In those days we distilled the water into stainless steel container. There was a lot of work involved – cleaning mostly.

These days it is much easier to get really good water very efficiently. The simpliest is the one we use in our office. The system is from Gaiam and it simply requires that you pour tap water into the top, and dispense clean water out the bottom. Period. It cost some but not much. And it aint gunna get any easier.

Energy Follows Thought

Or as we say in tai chi, energy follows intention.

A friend has this on her blog. I like the music. What do you think?

Trainer of Champions Coming To Everett January 22nd!!

The Acropolis, 1970's

Jack Medina will be in Everett January 22nd!!!

Where: Northwest Staffing Solutions, 111 SE Everett Mall Way, Bldg. C

When: Doors open at 7 p.m., presentation starts at 7:30.

Cost: $15 at the door (For more information or for complementary tickets, please contact Dennis Dilday, D.C., (425) 348-5207 or DDilday239@aol.com.

Jack Medina has inspired thousands of people, just like you, to take charge of their health.

Known as “Coach” to many top ranked gymnasts in the world, including America’s own Cathy Rigby, Jack has had a long and successful career developing athletes from high school on up, both physically and nutritionally. He has also served as a strength and conditioning consultant to numerous professional sports teams such as the Oakland Raiders, the Los Angeles Rams, and the Golden State Warriors, as well as the Seattle Seahawks.

Jack is an active member of the American College of Sports Medicine, and the National Strength & Conditioning Association. Additionally, he holds the title of Certified Fitness Specialist through the prestigious Cooper Center in Dallas Texas.

Jack has authored numerous articles on health-related issues, and has recently written a book entitled The Winning Edge: Fueling & Training the Body for Peak Performance. He has been a well-known and inspiring lecturer throughout the world for more than 25 years.

Come join us for an unforgettable evening with nutrition and fitness expert, Jack Medina at 7:30 P.M. on Friday, January 22nd , 2010 at the office of Northwest Staffing Solutions, 111 SE Everett Mall Way, Bldg. C, in Everett, WA.

You can learn about our favorite nutritional products or place your orders by going here.

If you would like information on how to get FREE Garden and Orchard Blend for children between ages 4 and 18 years of age contact our office at (425) 348-5207.

There are also opportunities to get FREE Vineyard Blend or Complete. Call for additional information.

“I propose to do nothing less than redefine what we think of as good nutrition. You need to know the truth about food, and why eating the right way can save your life.” – The China Study

Gluten Free in Everett, WA

This photo is linked to Borealis Landscape in Snohomish, WA

Dr Steven Wangen, author of Healthier without Wheat and co-founder of the IBS treatment center in Seattle, will be speaking at Janell’s Gluten-Free Market, 7024 Evergreen Way, Everett on January 22nd, at 7 pm.

His website is www.ibstreatmentcenter.com. The information about the event is posted there as well as at www.janellsglutenfreemarket.com

For more info contact Janell at janell@janellsglutenfreemarket.com

Neck Injury Rehabilitation and the Tai Chi Spear Form

Tai Chi Spear Form

Huh? You might ask. What does the Tai Chi Spear Form have to do with rehabilitation? (That photo is linked to a YouTube video clip of one of my teacher’s students doing the Form.)

Here is how I found out the relationship: I bought a new Spear (Staff actually, since there is no blade on the end). It was longer, bigger and much heavier than any I had practiced with previously.

It felt heavy, and it was hard to do the Form with. I knew I needed to start out slow. The Spear Form is ideally the fastest and most dynamic of the forms – high velocity in other words. It takes less than 30 seconds when done at speed.

Think Range of Motion and Resistance

So what does this have to do with neck rehabilitation?

I’m getting there. The point so far is that you might not have even thought doing a Spear Form would affect the neck in any way. Wrong!

It took me completely by surprise one day that in the middle of the Spear Form I suddenly experienced moderately severe neck pain as the scar tissue surrounding an old injury was torn. If you have ever been to where you can’t lift your head off the pillow because it’s too painful, it was one of those events, for a couple nights. (So, obviously I also had to use ice, I got adjusted, I had massage, I upped my supplements (especially the Purples and the Greens) etc. as part of my recovery – but this is about the exercise component.

I then recalled that earlier, when first doing the tai chi internal strength exercises, I had experienced a lot of stress to the neck while doing what essentially amounted to waving my arms and hands around.

So here is the point: The neck muscles, as largely postural muscles, often act to stabilize the body and hold it in place and upright while we do what we do – in this case with our arms and hands. So in the case of doing a Spear Form the neck muscles are highly active. And I had crossed the line that separated the demand I was placing on them from their functional capacity.

So the lesson is – as it always is – to honor progression. I will get to that in great detail in a near-future article because I think it is the least understand and most often violated principle in all of exercise.

Linked to another clip from our Lineage...

The good news is that the Tai Chi Spear Form is a good way to rehabilitate the neck.

How? By getting back to a small enough staff. By doing the Form very very slowly at first and building up speed very very gradually. By starting out doing only small movements and gradually making the shapes larger and larger. By maybe doing the Form only a couple or a few days per week for a period of time and then four, and then five days per week. In other words by following a progression that does not cause you to cross the line.

Why would you choose to use the Spear Form to rehab a neck? Because like all other aspects of Tai Chi you have many many other inherent benefits being trained simultaneously. The Cat Stance, the line – tail bone to crown of head, the relaxation, the breathing, the mental focus, etc., etc. It’s all functional upright exercise that closely mimic the actions and motions of an active life – less so the Figure 8 or Gooseneck exercises that I also diligently did (and do) and recommend every day all day to patients. Stay at the highest level of function you possibly can while still falling back far enough to effect the repair, rehab and recovery necessary.

Incidently, this business of us holding our neck with the chin down a bit and elongated, in line with the rest of our spine, and keeping it there while we do Tai Chi is a primary reason that Tai Chi is so useful as a rehabilitation tool. It trains “core” stability… including all of the amazingly complex neurological aspects that make it so functional.

One of the most powerful aspects of Tai Chi training that makes it ideal for rehab purposes is that it’s a “daily practice” or ideally can be. By doing something three days a week until it is easy, then four days a week until it is easy, then five days a week until it is easy you are following a progression that allows for the flucuations in life – you stay with three, or four, or five until it’s easy.

Once doing something five days per week becomes easy you can then change another variable, and if you want to, go back to three days per week and work back up to five days per week (I think of five days per week as “daily” practice because almost no matter how hard you try to do daily, life ends up making it closer to five days per week). In this case, I had to go back to one of the small staffs for a few weeks. Only when I could do the Spear Form at Speed five days per week for a couple of weeks did I feel that I could move up the heavy spear again.

You can bet that when I got back to the heavier spear, I went slow, very slow. And getting faster and faster was a very slow process. It is critical that you give the body time to catch up and adapt. It will if you do not cross the line from rehab to re-injury. Time, like everything else is relative, but eventually the heavy spear at speed as part of daily practice that includes both the left and right forms, as well as the left and right Sabre and left and right Hand Forms became comfortable and sustainably doable. My neck feels great now, and so would yours.

By the way, this is a great opportunity to reflect on what is actually be trained if the only thing that changes in the routine is the rest period – from three days per week to daily practice. That’s right, what’s being trained is recovery – think immune system function. Big deal. Really big deal.

Where ever you are in the cycle of injury (re-injury), repair, rehab or recovery, you can find a way to continue and progress in your tai chi training – another amazingly versatile feature of the art. It’s not a pleasant thought but it is easy to imagine a person being at each of those stages, all at the same time, with injuries to different body parts and still modifying and continuing to train… staying on the path.

If you understand what’s been said so far, then you can appreciate why I tell patients with new injuries (re-injuries) that they now have a great opportunity to create a recovery that can make them better than they were before they hurt themselves. Think about that. It’s not just theoretical: I’ve done it and so have many of my patients.

A Path to Health & Wellness that Almost Anyone Can Choose

Tai Chi Class, Everett Community College 12/09

Many folks attend a tai chi class a couple of times, find out there is thinking involved and that it requires a little work, then decide they would rather do the elliptical machine. They are happy to be able to say, “Oh yeah, I used to do tai chi.”

The class you see here is made of folks who might have done the same thing – if they had a choice. The fact that a quarter lasts ten weeks pretty much ensures that students will attend most classes. Ensured even more by Gordy telling them that attendance is all that is required for an A. (Actually, a large number of these folks are regulars and have been for many quarters – even years.)

So they show up. They aren’t necessarily having fun at first, but they realize the demands are going to increase: thinking as well physical requirements. They do the best they can. Struggling a little leads to small incremental changes. (We let them know that even though they may feel that they are not picking it up well, while they sleep their brains are hard at work.) And low and behold, it gets easier and easier. They develop new strength, increased balance, better coordination and flexibility. They are able to relax more easily and at will. They can focus better through out the day. They sleep better.

It is actually really cool to watch because all of these changes usually come as a total surprise to the students; tai chi classes don’t tend to attract the Michael Jordan’s of the college. But, by the end of ten weeks, they know some tai chi which they can practice any time any place without a costume or equipment. They understand themselves and their bodies better. And they have been introduced to an ancient art and discipline that helps them appreciate history, culture, politics and philosophy better. (Interestingly, almost all of the research on the many benefits of doing tai chi was done with similarly tiny exposure to the practice: a couple of months or so, a couple or even one one hour class each week. Imagine what daily practice over a period of months or years would do!)

We share many handouts through out the quarter. One talks about a college-aged female tai chi student of a class just like the one these students are taking which is taught by a tai chi older brother of mine in Colorado. (We talk like that in tai chi. It a Confusianist thing.) This female student was able to successful use her tai chi skills to defend herself against an attack that occurred as she walked to her dorm one night (I love the quote from the Police report: “all the copious amounts of blood found on the wall was from the attacker”).

From this story the students begin to realize that tai chi doesn’t only allow you to defend yourself against viruses, poor drivers, and the verbal abuse of your boss. The tai chi taught in this class offers real transferable self defense skills: not as the primary focus but as one of many many many benefits. (This, by the way, is the only reason I would travel all the way to Europe to learn it!)

In the fourth Tai Chi Classic, “Song of the Thirteen Tactics” there is a line that goes: ” Think and enquire where does the final purpose [for doing tai chi chuan] lie? This question is followed by the answer, “It lies in seeking longevity and keeping a youthful appearance.” In my view learning the self defense aspects of this old school mixed martial art (MMA) are simply a matter of increasing our odds of achieving longevity, no less so now perhaps than in the past – if you watch the news.

I was going to use this photo opportunity as a lead-in to a post on rehabilitation of the neck with the Tai Chi Spear Form. I guess I will do that another time.

Our next class starts Thursday, January 7th at 7 p.m. Here is the How to Register Link. There are also Tuesday evening classes available at Bally Total Fitness in south Everett. Follow this link for more information about what is offered and when.

And… Larry Fleming (the guy in the front in the middle with the YinYang tee shirt) teaches locally as well. Here are the details:

I teach Cheng Man-ching’s 37 Posture Yang Style Short Form at the Rosehill Community Center in Mukilteo. The classes are Wednesdays from 6-7 pm. Folks may contact me for additional information.

Respectfully,

Larry W. Fleming
Tai Chi Works
240-602-8651

Chiropractic Wellness Care includes… Keeping it simple.

Couldn’t have said it better myself.

Click here for more details or to order your products. Or call the office at (425) 348-5207.

Dr. Mitra Ray, one of the “Four Doctors” on the video will be in Everett December 5th speaking on How to Look and Feel Beautiful Inside and Out. For details call the office at (425) 348-5207 or email DDilday239@aol.com.

On the subject of being careful who you listen to I thought I would add this link. These folks seems to be a credible source of good info.

Sitting Postures – Part Two, The Postures

Best to begin, I guess, with the Disclaimers since I avoided and don’t intent to take on the issue of whether it’s “good” for you or “bad” for you to do these postures. If you are an adult, use your best judgment. If you think it will help, see you doctor and get their input.

Here is a guideline we use in our office: if it hurts when you do, it hurts an hour later, and it still hurts the next day, you probably shouldn’t do it.

The trouble with that advice when it comes to sitting postures is that there is going to be some pain. Pain is the signal that there is stress on tissues. How much pain and how long you choose to endure it will be a learned skill. The distortions and structural defects in flexibility and alignment that we are always attempting to correct are a result of abnormal function: motion and alignment. It is always a matter of time and pressure. Remodeling and rehabilitation are going to also be a matter of time and pressure. It’s almost always true that lots of time (daily practice) and a little pressure are preferable.

So the sitting postures are an example of a daily practice (if possible), where you choose which postures and how long you spend in each posture by trial and error. You then build on the time spent in each posture until you are satisfied: a function of priorities, values, etc.

Cycle through each posture spending whatever is a reasonably comfortable/uncomfortable time. Your body will adapt and relax, and you will gradually be able to spend more and more time in each posture.

I do the sitting postures on couple of pillows placed on a Yoga mat. At the same time, I read, drink tea, and watch the squirrels and other wildlife in my backyard do what they do. And I do them pretty much in this order.

Crossed-Legged (Indian Style) Sitting Posture

I am not talking Lotus or even half Lotus, just cross-legged. On a pillow makes it easier; on two pillows makes it even easier, etc. Knee trouble might make this one a posture you “shouldn’t” do. If you have a health professional familiar with your knees issues, get their input. If not, use your best judgement and error on the conservative side. There is plenty of time to add it, do it longer, or sit lower down the road. Sit with your legs crossed first one way and then the other.

Japanese Sitting Posture

This might be a good time to mention that the names for these postures are made up. Lots of people sit the way the Japanese sit. Later I will refer to Thai style and Tibetan style. They are just different postures. Somewhere along the line I became aware that someone in these countries sat this way once. In the case of the Thai style it is common there, but I saw Ben Kingsley sit the same way in the movie about Ghandi, so maybe it is popular in India as well.

The point for our purposes is that each is a distinct posture and each offers different stress on the body and affects different tissues.

Japanese Style sitting involves sitting with your lower legs together and under you so that your butt is on your heels. Your knees and lower leg are on the ground. This stretches (and yes stresses) the knees and quadriceps muscles as well as the muscles along the front of the lower leg (anterior tibialus if you talk like that). It also stretches the ankles and feet. It is usually very comfortable on the lower back because the slight lumbar curve is encouraged.

A little time in this posture can sometimes go a long way. A common occurrence is cramping and “Charlie horse” action. So you will just have to move out of it and come back to it later.

Once a Great Place for Coffee

Tibetan Sitting Posture

Remember, it’s just a name. I read in a book yesterday that this is called the 90/90 squat by some folks: they had to call it something.

For this one I move the blanket and pillow out of the way so it is just me and the Yoga mat. You are sitting on your butt with one knee out in front of you and the other off to the side. The knees are bent so the foot of the front leg is up against the knee of the back leg and the foot of the back leg is tucked back behind you.

(I know, we need pics, and we will get them eventually☺)

This is a great sitting posture for stretching the famous Ilio-tibial Band (IT Band). That runs along the outside of the upper leg. That and the hip muscles that rotate your leg outward (toe out to the side) are stretched very nicely – even more so if you gently lean toward that front knee. You are flexing and drastically stretching your lower lumbar spine when you do this forward lean, BE CAREFUL. If there is any doubt in your mind that it is ok to do it, don’t. Incidently, this posture also stretches the muscles that rotate your leg (at the hip) inward (on the other leg). Few movement and postures do that and many of us need that stretch: another good reason for doing this posture.

Do both sides. In other words, after a few minutes with both legs curled toward the left, switch them around so they go to the right.

If the Tibetan Sitting Posture is tough for you, then you will not be ready for the Thai Sitting Posture at all. Wait until you can do the Tibetan for five or ten minutes at a time before starting to break into the Thai Style.

Thai Sitting Posture

This one may require a picture to be clear but I am going to describe it for now… because I don’t have a picture.

Starting from the Tibetan Sitting Posture you simply take the foot that is by the knee and move it behind you so that the lower leg of the front knee comes under the other lower leg; the top of the foot connected to the front knee is then placed on top of the other ankle.

Once you’ve gotten into this position you may think you have done well. And you have. Now do that while sitting up straight with no assistance from either of your hands! It may be no big deal for you, but it make take a very long time before that becomes comfortable.

Unique to this posture is the strength in the lower spine required to hold yourself upright: it takes a lot of strength. So sitting this way is one way of getting all the stretch to the hips and lateral thigh while developing strength in the lower back.

Again, sit with the legs off to one side for a while, then off to the other side for a while.

In this as well as the Tibetan Sitting Posture, it’s the knees you have to watch out for. They may not take this stress. If it hurts your knees don’t do it. Or do it in tiny doses until things relax and get used to it. Be careful.

Mt. Baker from the Mukiteo Ferry Landing

The Full Squat

This isn’t really a sitting posture, but many cultures sit in this posture. They meet, eat, work and carry on many of Activities of Daily Living while squatting all the way down. (And research has shown that they tend to have less arthritic changes in their lower spine than we do. Cause? Effect? Correlation?)

When I first attempted it, I had to hold on to something, and managed about 11 seconds before I had to get up and out of the position. To this day although getting there and staying there for reasonable periods of time is comfortable, getting up results in some pretty significant dizziness – so I don’t do it much.

But, it’s a fabulous way to stretch the ankles, hips, and lower back. Be careful, it flexes and pulls on the lower back and isn’t for everyone.

Sunset over Lookout Mt., Methow Valley

Wellness Presentation, October 28th

From the Skipley Farm - a local CSA

Wednesday, October 28th at 6:30 p.m. in our office, The Whole Truth Revisited, a DVD featuring Dr. Richard DeBois, one of the world’s leading authorities on infectious diseases, will highlight a presentation focusing on boosting your immune system.

We’ll also talk about the latest research showing how you can decrease your risk of getting sick while all around are sniffling and sneezing.

Diet AND exercise, two ways to stimulate your resistance to disease and build health, if you know how. Join us to learn more.

For questions or to RSVP, email DDilday239@aol.com

You can learn about our favorite nutritional products or place your orders by going here.

If you would like information on how to get FREE Garden and Orchard Blend for children between ages 4 and 18 years of age – for up to three years!!! – contact our office at (425) 348-5207.

There are also opportunities to get FREE Vineyard Blend or Complete. Call for additional information.

“I propose to do nothing less than redefine what we think of as good nutrition. You need to know the truth about food, and why eating the right way can save your life.” – The China Study

Needless to say, in the end, we are all going to get sick sometime. Here is the GoodGuide’s 5 Part strategy for avoiding it and dealing with it. In particular they have info warning you about the popular hand sanitizers that are making someone rich. They have plenty of other great info as well.

Chinese Wall Squats (Modified)

I say “Chinese” Wall Squat to differentiate this from a squat where your back is to the wall. I say Modified because it is. Here is a clip demonstrating a pretty good example and good cueing instructions.

Why is this important? Because it is the basic body mechanic for all bent over lifting of any kind. Because it’s so rare to see this done correctly. And because this fault in body mechanics is responsible for an almost infinite number of lower back injuries. Because that means time lost from work, productivity loss, and health care costs. Here is a link to an excellent article showing how to squat down and why it’s critical to do it correctly. If you don’t read it, at least look at the picture: it’s the most important impression and alignment issue in protecting your lower back from injury.

(Actually, if you are only lifting a pencil or a hat, and your lower back is healthy, there is another bend and lift technique that is healthy. It simulates the Good Morning stretch/exercise. What that means is that your hips go backward, your knees stay bent just a little (but otherwise your legs are straight), and you bend forward focusing on keeping a slight curve in the lower back – the curve is critical, the butt back is critical, and the slightly bent knees are critical! If you can not do this manuever and keep a curve in your lower back, then stretch your hamstrings, they are too tight.)

This guy (below) is having quite a bit more trouble and I think if we could see him from behind we would be able see where his flexibility is most limited. But even in this view you can see that his butt tucks in earlier and to a greater extent than it should. (If he is like the vast majority of people we see, he can’t get his knees to go out sideways far enough.)

There is a lot going on in a wall squat and many common actions are enhanced by developing the ability to do wall squats. Basically, anytime you lift anything that requires the knees, hips and/or back, so that includes getting yourself up out of a chair or out of the car as well as any time you lift anything off the ground – even a pencil.

Try it.

And, as usual, the Chinese thought of it first (see my Recommended Reading List) so here is a short commentary on it’s history and use by a representative of the Chinese Qi Gong crowd. [Be careful taking everything this lady says as Gospel, if you pay close attention you will see contradictions in how this exercise is performed and a very serious and careful consideration of the bending of the lower back is in order. In fact the more I read it the more confused I got - not too unusual in the tai chi and qi gong community unfortunately. Until you know precisely what you are doing and why, I would recommend you stick with the form as done by the guy in the first video.]