I am an Athlete. How ’bout you?

Monterey Chiropractor – One of the things that prompted my return to health and fitness in my own personal life was realization that I was getting older. I began to notice that the typical backyard BBQ volleyball game or pickup basketball game would make me sore for days and often weeks later. I really did not like that feeling. I also began feeling very worn out during the day and totally spent by the end of the day. My practice was growing, but wasn’t near to where we wanted it yet and I hadn’t even had kids yet!! I began to think to myself, “this is not good”. I had been outside the athletic and competitive environment for some time and I began to realize how quickly my body and mind were becoming incapable of even modest demands of physical activity. Plus, to speak plainly, I was also just getting fat! I began to have this desire in me to simply be “fit” for the demands of life that would come my way. Whether that meant playing that pickup basketball game or simply being able to crawl on the floor to play with my kids someday, I wanted to be prepared. It brought me back to the concept of being an “Athlete” again. I’d lost that purpose of preparing my body and mind for an event or competition. Why? Isn’t life more important than winning a game? Isn’t being healthy and happy more important? Approximately 6 years ago and at the chubby/flabby weight of 225 lbs I began the process of becoming an athlete again. I tried many different approaches. Some were better than others and I had some slip ups and periods of plateaus throughout, but I have been most excited by CrossFit and how I feel it is the best means to train any person to be an “athlete” and thus be healthy.

Most consider the term “Athlete” to mean someone who competes in a competition of some kind. As I began to become “athletic” again in my personal life I relayed that outlook to my patients as well. I began looking at every one of our patients as “athletes” of their own personal domain. Whether we are working with a top high school football player, motorcycle racer or we are working with a 75 year retiree, the goals are the same. You must prepare yourself to best handle whatever task is set before you. Again whether that task is to establish enough speed to beat your opponent in a sprint or it is developing enough strength to walk to the mailbox each day, looking at yourself as an “athlete” is an important concept for all to hold regardless of whether they compete with others or not.

We are all competing against the aging process, cardiovascular disease, joint arthritis, immune deficiencies, etc. As a Monterey Chiropractor I regularly hear patients focus and define their measure of health or fitness upon a couple of things (typically promulgated by their medical doctor) as blood pressure, cholesterol, body weight. The amount of blood pressure and cholesterol medications we see patients taking is astounding! These measures are “targets” designed to give parameters of what is normal, what is unhealthy, and possibly dangerous. There is nothing wrong with informing those at risk of where they stand so that they may be better able to address those concerns. The problem is that when someone is given a diagnosis of being “at risk” in these domains they are rarely given proper tools to attack the problem (if the person is even motivated to change and address these things).

They are typically told to eat a low fat diet, get 20-30 mins. of low intensity cardiovascular exercise. They are typically warned that if they do not attain enough change in their risk factors then they will be prescribed medications to lower that blood pressure and cholesterol.

I see the following scenario thus played out on a regular basis…

Patient gets given diagnosis of at risk pathology (high blood pressure, cholesterol, and overweight). Patient begins the task of trying to control their diet according to their doctor’s recommendations. Patient reads Cheerios box that says, “drop your cholesterol by 10 points if you eat Cheerios daily” and buys a case of the stuff from Costco, buys low fat cream cheese for their bagels, diet sodas, fat free pretzels, gets a calorie counting app for their iPhone, etc. They think they’ve got the diet thing down. “Doc says low fat, less calories”.

The unhealthy individual then joins the gym…They are on a mission, which is good. The gym is so cool they think, really clean, has lots of really new looking high tech machines that are bound to make them look better, if they sign up for a year it’s only $39.99/month with 6 free sessions with a personal trainer. For a few months on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays they wander around the gym and pick machines at random that don’t seem too intimidating (i.e. treadmill, elliptical trainer, leg extension machine, lat pulldowns, etc.). They get a little sweaty and they feel pretty good about themselves and they should. They have attempted to tackle their problem through fitness. It is a huge accomplishment for many to get to this point. Some exercise is better than none. Unfortunately I see the above played out like this with patients under my care and after a few months of this pattern they head back for the next check up with their doc. Maybe they’ve made some changes, maybe not. Typically small changes are seen if any at all so more meds are prescribed and the cycle is rarely broken. Motivation is typically diminished because their attempt to get healthy wasn’t enough so they resolve to let the meds will do the job now. All is ok in their mind as those risk factors are now “controlled” (as I often hear). “I have high blood pressure, but it’s under control with medication”. I can’t even count how many times I hear this over the span of a few months!!

So, what does this scenario have to do with the term “Athlete”? I would suggest that much of the above problem comes from improper mindset and focus. Again, health is now determined by looks, weight, cholesterol, blood pressure, BMI, etc. Instead, I would suggest an approach that each should look at themselves as an “Athlete”. An athlete is on a mission to improve his or her “Function”. Typically this means they must focus on certain elements of the improvement in such categories as speed, strength, power, cardiovascular endurance, stamina, flexibility, balance, agility, and accuracy. I suggest that we all use this same focus. Be an athlete again! Get faster, stronger, more flexible, quicker, and more agile.

I contend that if you are daily focusing on these things rather blood pressure, cholesterol, BMI, weight, etc. you will in turn have more success becoming more healthy. Your medical doctor will be impressed by your new found statistics, but more importantly you will look at life as an “athletic event” because you are now and SHOULD always consider yourself an “Athlete”. The 75 year old retiree will find new found freedoms of more walking and independence that will be allowed with an increase in function by focusing on strength, endurance, flexibility, etc. The 50 year old heart attack waiting to happen will get healthy and stay healthy because he’s now focusing on progress in things that will naturally lead to a decrease in those risk factors rather than focusing on the risk factors themselves. As you have seen with previous posts, this Monterey Chiropractor has found nothing else that incorporates this mindset/philosophy and puts it in action better than CrossFit. If you are a patient, talk to me about this. Let’s set some goals. Let’s get “your head” right. If you are a blog follower, I encourage you to do the same with your physician and then check out your local CrossFit gym. If you’re local to the Monterey area, check out www.crossfitmonterey.com to get started.

Your Monterey Chiropractor – Watching Your Back,

Dr. Aaron Gaily, D.C.
www.chiropractorsmonterey.com

Disclaimer: Please consult with your physician before altering any medications or beginning a new exercise program. This piece is merely discussion and should not be interpreted as medical advice as each condition presents different challenges. Be smart.

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