As a Pilates teacher, I often hear people say, “I feel so much better for doing the class.” It is  difficult to keep the momentum going at the moment but having a routine helps and you are more likely to stick to it. I know I am better moving more in the morning, it wakes me up, fees up joints and sets me up for the day mentally! 

Those who come to my classes often hear me talk about Fascia ( see my Blog) and its effect on your body’s immune system.  The fascial system is throughout the body and is bathed in fluid, this includes Lymph. Lymph fluid contains infection-fighting white blood cells throughout the body. It is an important part of the immune system because it is responsible for removing potentially harmful toxins and bacteria from the body.

Unlike the circulatory or respiratory systems, the lymphatic and fascial systems do not have  “pumps.” Instead, they rely on your movement to circulate fluid around the body. We are a little like a river inside and so each time you move large muscles of the body, you help pump fluid through your body, keeping your systems circulating and your internal river clean and free flowing. Don’t sit still and let your internal river become stagnant!
Moving and stretching not only helps to move lymph fluid, but also helps to keep you joints flexible and lubricated. Stretch while watching TV, listening to music, or talking on the phone.I could go on and on but you get the idea…Just Move!  Your body will thank you for it. Motion is lotion! 

By Charlotte Farrant

They report that acupuncture reduces headache frequency, more people respond, and fewer people experience adverse events when compared to standard drug treatment (metoprolol, flunarizine, valproic acid or beta‐blockers)

The Cochrane Library is a collection of databases that contain different types of high-quality, independent evidence to inform healthcare decision-making. An extremely well-regarded assessor of clinical research trials.

You can see the short ‘Clinical Answer’ right here at the Cochrane Library.

Migraine is thought to begin as an electrical phenomenon in the cerebrum that then affects blood vessels, biochemistry, and causes neurogenic inflammation.

Acupuncture can help in the treatment of migraine by:

• Providing pain relief – by stimulating nerves located in muscles and other tissues
• Reducing inflammation – by promoting release of vascular and immunomodulatory factors
• Reducing the degree of cortical spreading depression (an electrical wave in the brain associated with migraine)
• Modulating extracranial and intracranial blood flow
• Affecting serotonin (5-hydroxytriptamine) levels in the brain

Eleanor Henderson, the acupuncturist at The Body Junction, is available for treatments on Mondays, Tuesdays, Fridays & alternate Wednesdays. Please call 07779006821 or email acupuncturesoutheast@gmail.com for more information.

1. Lie on your back with your knees up.
2. Practice tilting your pelvis so that your pubic bone tilts up and your waist flattens in to the floor, and then tilt the other way so that you arch slightly. (Avoid this is you feel any pain or have a back injury).
3. Now find a position somewhere between the two with your hipbone and pubic bone level, so that you can imagine balancing a cup of tea on your tummy without spilling it. There should be a small gap under your back. This is your neutral, and is the most stress free position for your back!

The lumbar spine, or lower back, can be stressed if not held in this neutral posture.

This position is also normally adopted when standing and walking. When the back is bent for sustained periods, the loading of the spine is increased, and the stabilising muscles are held on a stretch and are therefore weakened. Larger muscles are then forced to take over and the wrong muscles start doing the wrong job. This leads to a faulty muscle recruitment pattern.

Sustained postures out of the neutral position can lead to stress and fatigue and sometimes failure to the structures in the lower back.  For example; sitting on a soft settee causes the lower back to flex, sitting with your feet up can accentuate this even further.  Lying in bed watching television, or sitting in bed using a laptop or reading, also takes the lower back out of neutral position. If this position is adopted on a regular basis, and for long periods of time, damage to local tissues ligaments, nerves and muscles can occur.

Good posture in sitting, standing and lying is therefore of great importance.

The ability to use the correct muscles and joint control to enable you to return back to a neutral position when rising (from sitting or from lying) is paramount. This ensures that when standing or walking you are able to return to a stress free posture.

Physiotherapy can improve both the mobility and function, and together with exercise can improve joint mobility and restore function.

Pilates teaches you to use your core stabilising muscle recruitment. Stabilising muscles should ideally be works at less than 25% of their full effort because they are deep postural muscles which need endurance. The importance of using these deep stabilising muscles is becoming increasingly clear in medical research.

Pilates was developed by Joseph Pilates in the early 20^th Century – originally from Germany he suffered many debilitating conditions notably asthma, rickets and rheumatic fever. He was reportedly told early in his life that he would die prematurely – he lived until 83!  So the Pilates method has been about for more 100 years.

He studied Yoga, Martial Arts, Boxing and Weightlifting to find a way to try and strengthen his body and improve his health and prognosis.  In the UK he taught his fitness techniques and his developing principles. It was during World War 1 that he was interned on the Isle of Man. He used springs from hospital beds to create equipment to help patients and fellow internees improve their muscular strength, endurance and flexibility. After the war he was asked to train the German Army but he took the boat to New York meeting his wife Clara on the way. He further developed the discipline working mostly with dancers in a New York studio helping them overcome dance related injuries.

His methods aim to develop the complete co-ordination of mind, body and spirit to promote suppleness, muscular power, endurance and posture.

The discipline has evolved – and will continue to do so – to accommodate new elements of daily life – technology and other developments.

At The Body Junction, we have close to 30 Pilates classes running each week. Take a look at our schedule to find the right one for you. If you’re new to Pilates, keep an eye out for our next induction class.

Understanding Pain

I have been asked to write a brief summary of those areas in which I have a clinical interest.

I qualified as a Chartered Physiotherapist in 1987 and emerged from training with a determined desire to understand those factors which influence pain in everyday musculo-skeletal injuries and conditions and therefore would hopefully be more effective in their management.

From conditions such as acute sporting injury, repetitive strains and overuse injuries through to the debilitating effects of chronic low back pain and many osteoarthritic conditions; there is much that can be explored and changed to bring significant support to self-care management strategies and in many cases pain relief even after years of suffering.

For example one area of clinical interest in my practice is the management, treatment and prevention of headaches and migraines, most of which arise from stiffness and/or mal-loading of the upper three joints of the neck.  Many sufferers are completely unaware that a dominant aggravant or even in some cases the main cause of these symptoms are provoked by poor postural forces adopted every 24 hour cycle such as using the wrong number of pillows, sleeping on your front or simply unfavorable ergonomics at work.  Once understood, corrected and therefore avoided, many patients go on to enjoy a dramatic relief from prior debilitating symptoms and make more spontaneous improvements to ‘hands-on’ therapy and specific exercises which help support long-term body harmonization.

This approach is valuable to all severe and chronic pain condition and therefore I would advise any reader never to accept such symptoms as an inevitable consequence of the aging process or because they have already suffered from a protracted period of symptoms, 

It just a matter of unpicking the puzzle…

Tracey Butcher Grad, Dip, Phys, MCSP, HCPC res

To book in for a physiotherapy appointment here at The Body Junction, please call 01424 224164

As an ageing population continues to pile pressure on Britain’s health and care system, it’s increasingly important to get older people more active to enable them to lead happier, healthier and more independent lives in their later years – with strength training able to play an important role in this.

We feel it is important for older people to get moving more and fight the effects of ageing which cause our muscles to deteriorate over time.

With this in mind, current NHS guidelines state that adults over the age of 65 should aim to do strength exercises on two or more days a week that work all the major muscles (legs, hips, back, abdomen, chest, shoulders and arms) which – when combined with anaerobic activity – is seen as the best way to help older people stay strong, fit and healthy for as long as possible.

There are numerous benefits to strength training regardless of an individual’s age, from improving neuromuscular efficiency, which basically improves all skill-related components of fitness such as balance, coordination and agility, to improving the ease of everyday tasks, including walking, running and jumping.

Interestingly, strength training can also improve bone density.  Like muscle, bone is living tissue, so it responds to exercise by becoming stronger.  For older adults , improved bone strength helps with all aspects of everyday activity and reduces the risk of falls, while also helping those with osteoporosis (of which there are over three million in the UK according to NHS figures) to reduce the risk of fractures.

In fact, research published this year identified that an in-home exercise programme consisting of balance and resistance training exercises (for example, using free weights) may reduce the risk of older adults falling by up to 36 per cent.

Join Maryann on Tuesdays at 3pm for a Fitness Circuits Class. Here you will incorporate free weights, resistance and body weight exercises. £8 drop in.

Bones stop growing in length between the ages of 16 and 18, but bone density continues to increase slowly until a person’s late 20s. After the age of around 35, bone loss increases very gradually as part of the natural ageing process. This can lead to osteoporosis and an increased risk of broken bones, especially in later life.

Consequences of Osteoporosis

Osteoporosis is Only Painful if Fractures Have Occurred

Having osteoporosis does not automatically mean that your bones will break, it just means it is more likely and that you have a ‘greater risk of fracture’. Thin, fragile bones in themselves are not painful but the broken bones that can result can cause pain and other problems. Bones that break because of osteoporosis will still heal in the same way as they do in people who do not have osteoporosis.

Hip Fractures Hips broken as a result of osteoporosis occur most commonly in our late 70s or 80s, usually as a result of a fall and can affect all aspects of life. Full recovery is always possible but will often depend on how well someone is before the broken hip occurs. Getting back to being fully mobile and independent can be difficult and physiotherapy and social care services are often essential.

Breaking a hip when you are older can have a major impact on your independence. It can also create a real fear of falling among older people and can make them cautious of everyday activities.

 Wrist Fractures Broken wrists can be the first indication that you have osteoporosis. They often occur in middle aged women who have put out their arm to break a fall. Healthy bones should be able to withstand a fall from standing height.

Other Fractures The humerus (upper arm), ribs or the pelvis may break if they are fragile but the wrist, spinal bones and hip are the most common places for fractures to happen. There are a number of less common types of osteoporosis and related conditions you may want to know about. The Osteoporosis Society website is very helpful or you can call them for more information.

Spinal Fractures (Vertabral fractures)

These fractures do not interfere with the spinal cord or result in paralysis or loss of sensation except in very unusual cases.

Although bones heal they do not return to their previous shape which can cause height loss or spinal curvature. If a number of wedge fractures occur together then the spine can tip forward causing an outward curve (kyphosis). If the bones are flattened, the trunk can be shortened in length causing loss of height. A fracture of one or more of the vertebrae can occur as the result of an awkward movement, like reaching up to get something from a kitchen cupboard or lifting heavy shopping bags. If fractures are numerous and severe they can lead to significant height loss and curvature causing shortness of breath, protruding stomach, indigestion problems and stress incontinence. This is because of a reduction in the available space for the internal organs.

These changes in posture can affect .Some people are distressed by changes in their shape and face difficulties with buying suitable clothes. However, not everyone is affected severely.

 Who is at Risk

Gender. Women are at higher risk for osteoporosis than men. They have smaller bones and lose bone more rapidly than men do because of hormone changes that occur after menopause. Therefore, if you are a woman, you are at higher risk for osteoporosis.

Age. Because bones become thinner with age, the older you are, the greater your risk of osteoporosis.

Ethnicity. Caucasian and Asian women are at the highest risk for osteoporosis. This is mainly due to differences in bone mass and density compared with other ethnic groups. African-American and Hispanic women are also at risk, but less so.

Family History. Osteoporosis tends to run in families. If a family member has osteoporosis or breaks a bone, there is a greater chance that you will too.

History of Previous Fracture. People who have had a fracture after the age of 50 are at high risk of having another.

Risk Factors You Can Change

Other risk factors for osteoporosis can be changed. These include

Poor diet. Getting too little calcium over your lifetime can increase your risk for osteoporosis. Not getting enough vitamin D either from your diet, supplements, or sunlight can also increase your risk for osteoporosis. Vitamin D is important because it helps the body absorb Calcium. An overall diet adequate in protein and other vitamins and minerals is also essential for bone health.

Physical inactivity. Not exercising and being inactive or staying in bed for long periods can increase your risk of developing osteoporosis. Like muscles, bones become stronger with exercise. Gender. Women are at higher risk for osteoporosis than men. They have smaller bones and lose bone more rapidly than men do because of hormone changes that occur after menopause. Therefore, if you are a woman, you are at higher risk for osteoporosis.

Smoking. Smokers may absorb less calcium from their diets. In women it reduces the oestrogen levels in their body.

Medications. Some commonly used medicines can cause loss of bone mass. These include a type of steroid called glucocorticoids, which are used to control diseases such as arthritis and asthma; some anti seizure drugs; some medicines that treat endometriosis; and some cancer drugs. Using too much thyroid hormone for an underactive thyroid can also be a problem. Talk to your doctor about the medications you are taking and what you can do to protect your bones.

Low body weight. Women who are thin and small-boned are at greater risk for osteoporosis.

Reflexology may help improve your sleeping patterns by providing a natural way to balance and relax the body.  During a treatment, pressure is applied to specific reflex points on the feet to improve lymph, nerve and blood circulation, aiding the body’s own healing potential.

The best areas to focus on to regulate the sleep cycle are the glands – these include the pituitary, thyroid, and adrenals. The pituitary is the centre for the body’s hormones and regulates the circadian rhythm which is the sleep-wake cycle. The thyroid gland regulates metabolism and the adrenal glands help the nervous system and blood sugar levels.

Other important areas which are focused on include the diaphragm and solar plexus. These have a powerful effect on calming the body, getting it ready for sleep by regulating breathing and heart-rate.
Self-care tips for Sleep Problems

• Stick to a sleep schedule
• Stay active
• Avoid or limit naps
• Avoid the use of electronic devices an hour before going to bed
• Avoid or limit caffeine and alcohol and don’t use nicotine

• Avoid large meals and beverages before bed
• Make your bedroom comfortable for sleeping
• Get out of bed when you’re not sleeping

It’s World Reflexology Week from 23rd – 29th September 2019 and Hayley will be offering 25 minute Reflexology taster treatments for £10 on Wednesday 25^th of September from 4pm to 7pm. Please call Hayley on 07826744151 to book or sign up in Reception.