Advice from a chiropractor on staying fit during the winter in Salt Lake City

With the weather turning colder, many people are spending more and more time indoors to stay out of the frigid air.  Activities that were once done outside are no longer done, or are altered so that you don't have to freeze doing them.  One of the biggest of these is exercise.  During the warm spring and summer months, Utah residents spend a great deal of time out hiking and running and spending time outdoors doing their regular exercise routines.  With these activities shifting indoors, it's important to make sure that you are taking care of your body the same way that you once did outdoors.

When running, jogging, or hiking outdoors, it is easy to stay in a good and upright posture (healthiest for your spine) because the sun is warm on your face and the air is fresh and clean.  When workouts move indoors, it is easier for your posture to go south and you can actually wind up hurting yourself during your workouts.  As a chiropractor, I see this contributing to back pain in my patients all winter long.  Here is something to keep in mind while doing workouts that will help keep your spine healthier.

With ANY exercise – let me repeat: WITH ANY EXERCISE – it is best to keep your spine in a straight and upright posture while doing the exercise.  Yes, I understand that there are some exercises that you cannot do while standing straight up.  The point is that you should be making every effort to keep your spine as straight and upright as possible during your workouts.

Example:  When doing a bicep curl, you are trying to get the most effective workout to the bicep that you can, right?  The part that most people don't understand is that when doing a bicep curl, your entire body is getting a little workout too.  If you are hunched over a bench, trying to max out your weight while doing a bicep curl, you are telling your spine (and hips, shoulders, neck muscles, low back muscles, gluteal muscles, and pretty much every muscle in your body)...THIS IS THE POSTURE THAT I WANT. 

Try doing that bicep curl while standing in an upright posture.  While doing this, you are strengthening ALL the muscles of your body in a correct and normal posture, thus improving your posture and overall health.

Did we forget about the bicep?  NO...  It is true that in an upright posture, you may not be able to curl as much weight as you were when you were hunched over.  But, the bicep is getting just as good of a workout (because you are isolating that muscle in this upright posture) as if you were hunched over and you were recruiting other muscles to help you lift more weight.

As you try to keep your body healthy during the colder months in Utah, just remember to keep your spine in a straight and upright posture as much as possible to strengthen core and stabilizing muscles, as well as limiting the risk of injury.

Stay healthy.

~ Dr. Michael Hill