Get Your Energy Flowing

How can you get your energy flowing? One great way is to get outdoors and join other fitness-minded fellows and gals for the 1st Kiwanis Spring K Classic on Saturday, March 26th. You can be a walker, a jogger or a competitive runner in the 5K or 10K run. You can bring your little ones to participate in the free 1 mile fun run. Leading Edge Sport and Spine will be manning the Aid Station with exercise mats and stretching devices for you to warm-up, first aid, if you get hurt, and a Thumper Foot Massager to ease your feet at the end of the run. The run meets at Roswell High School. Your registration of $20 pre-race or $25 race-day supports Kiwanis charitable projects for youth, seniors and the environment. Stop by our office for a registration form or download one on the website http://www.springkclassic.com/. Be the 10th person to bring your registration form to our office on or before Saturday, March 19th at Noon (we will be open) and you will receive a Limited Edition Leading Edge Sport and Spine Sports Cap.

Protecting Patients and their Chiropractors in Georgia

There is a saying, "All it takes to let Evil triumph is enough good people doing nothing." There are those in Georgia who would like to see chiropractic patients and their chiropractors lose access to care, lose reimbursement for care and further limit the scope of practice. Insurance companies, medical associations and those who disparage governmental regulation are among those forces who would like to see chiropractic wither on the vine. I am not one to sit by idly and let my patients face discrimination because they have chosen to use chiropractic instead of drugs and surgery.

Last week I spent Thursday morning, along with other Doctors of Chiropractic, lobbying our legislators to support a pro-chiropractic bill in the Georgia Senate. The bill would limit chiropractic adjustments, chiropractic manipulation and chiropractic services to only a licensed Doctor of Chiropractic. This would prevent HMO's from tricking citizens into signing up for health plans that stated that "chiropractic" was included in the plan, and then having the "chiropractic" services being supplied by someone who was not a licensed Doctor of Chiropractic. I meet with Senator John Albers and stopped off at the office of Senator Judson Hill to urge them to support this bill, and protect chiropractic patients and their chiropractic doctors. I believe it takes more than good intentions, it takes action on those intentions to make Good triumph over Evil.

Top Athletes Benefit from Chiropractic Care

ACA Today News- Recent news stories about Washington Redskins wide receiver Santana Moss and professional golfer Michelle Wie have mentioned chiropractic care as an important part of helping both athletes stay competitive. Moss told The Washington Post that he sees a DC (Doctor of Chiropractic) twice a week to help his aging body cope with the rigors of playing professional football. NBC Sports recently ran a story on its Website stating that Wie is seeing a DC to recover from back problems in time for next season.

Here we have two athletes, two different genders, two different age groups, playing two very different sports- yet both are using chiropractic care to help them stay in their game. Are you letting pain, stiffness or lack of stamina prevent you from staying in your game? You don't have to be a professional athlete to receive the benefits of chiropractic care. You may be a softball player on the company team, an ALTA player for your subdivision team or the parent of a varsity lacrosse player. Chiropractic care is a safe and effective approach to enhancing sports performance, avoid injury and treating pain, strains and sprains.

Dr. Schantz is a Certified Golf Conditioning Specialist and a member of the American Chiropractic Association Council on Fitness and Sport Injuries.

Get Outside & Keep Yourself Happy!

Do not feel guilty if you do not belong to a gym or fitness center. I do not belong to a gym, and I spend a good amount of time (I could do more) staying fit. Last weekend was a welcome break in the South Freezer temperatures. My daughter Lexi and her friend joined us on a hike along Lookout Mountain near Chattanooga, TN. The trail leads to Sunset Rocks, a popular climbing area and historic site.

We have plenty of natural resources available within a 1-3 hr. drive from Atlanta that many people in Florida would love to have. Take advantage of the great outdoors. I having nothing against gyms and fitness centers. My God! If it weren't for the Roanoke Athletic Club, I would have never met my wife Dixie back in 1980. I LOVE AEROBICS!

No Miracles-Just Results!

There are three proven steps to take in order to avoid an early death. #1- Don't smoke. #2- Wear your seat belt. #3- Have a healthy body weight. Sound simple? Yes, but simple isn't always easy. Gena Kay Shealy, of WorkLife Solutions, explains the principles behind achieving a healthy body weight. Gena Kay is a Certified Health Coach with Take Shape for Life.

Follow the B.E. S.L.I.M. approach.

Breakfast- You must eat within one hour after waking up. Your body needs fuel to kick start your metabolism, otherwise it will slow down, and you will not lose weight.

Exercise- If you are not in the habit of exercise, then just start off walking more each day. Build up the intensity over a 4 week time period, but remember- you cannot simply exercise your way to a healthy body weight- you must eat right too.

Support- Be accountable to someone who is knowledgeable about healthy eating habits and wants you to succeed. It could be your partner, a friend, your chiropractor or a Certified Health Coach like Gena Kay.

Low Fat- Some fat is necessary to sustain our health, but we eat too much of it. We need to feed ourselves frequently with low fat and modest calorie foods. This will keep our blood sugar level and put us into a higher metabolic state for losing weight.

Individualize- Feeding yourself six times a day takes some thinking and planning. Take a look at your life, and figure out what can work for you. Take Shape for Life uses Medifast Meals to help make choices easier.

Moniter- You have to keep track of how you are doing, if you make sure you get there. Helpful monitoring tools are a tape measure, a scale and a pair of jeans that you want to fit back into.
Blood pressure, blood sugar and cholesterol measurements are important, if you have issues with hypertension, diabetes or cardiovascular disease.

Cold Weather Chiropractor

Many of us in Atlanta got slammed by the cold and snowy weather. Did I let it stop me? Maybe a little bit. But soon I was back in action! Last Saturday I brought my portable chiropractic table and my friend, Mr. Bones, to the Float the Boat Bouldering Competition in West Atlanta. For those of you unfamiliar with the sport of bouldering, let me explain. It is like rockclimbing in that you try to scamper up the face of a cliff. Instead of using a rope and safety gear to catch you if you fall, you simply place a padded mat (known as a crash pad) at the base of the rock to cushion your fall. Most people only climb 10-20 feet high when they boulder.

So what, you may think, can a chiropractor do to help climbers in a bouldering competition?

A chiropractor can help stretch tight muscles and joints to make climbers more limber. You have to be able to reach far with your arms and legs when you boulder. A chiropractor can balance body mechanics, so a climber has better leverage when they make awkward moves. A chiropractor can increase muscle strength by adjusting the spine to free up the nerve supply to muscles. It takes muscles strength to hang on to tiny holds and hoist yourself up the rock.

Over 50 people competed in the cold weather, which began in the 20F's and barely creeped into the 40F's. Whether it is hot or cold, you can count on me to get the job done!

Outside Your Comfort Zone: Flying Doctors Mission to Cambodia

"How will you explain to people what your are going to do? We don't speak Cambodian." Dixie asked me. "Just lie down on the table, and I will start working on you. They'll get the idea." I replied. Soon we had people crowding around, eager and curious to be next. Folks on crutches, wheelchairs, there was even a fellow without any legs in a wagon encircling the portable chiropractic table. We had set up an impromptu chiropractic clinic in the courtyard of the Siem Reap Hospital in Cambodia. Dixie and I were part of a 19 person health care mission with Flying Doctors of America in November 2010 providing free medical, dental, surgical and chiropractic care in the impoverished Southeast Asian country of Cambodia.
Chiropractic is a wonderful healing art. It also make great entertainment on mission trips. People love to see and hear the groans, moans, winces, cracks, pops and smiles that emanate from our treatment table.

For five days we travel to villages on the outskirts of Siem Reap. Siem Reap is the primary tourist destination for travellers to Cambodia. It sits just outside the entrance to the UNESCO World Heritage Site- Angkor Wat. Highlights of my trip included adjusting blind villagers, diagnosing Parkinson's disease in a farmer, improvising a splint for a little girl who was run over by a motorbike, performing acupuncture on an ailing monk and exploring the archaeological ruins.

Traveling the world to alleviate human suffering is exciting, exotic and exhausting. Getting back to work helps me recuperate. Where will my next mission take me? Stay tuned!