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It pays to be confident in your body’s range of motion; you can perform to your standard of movement knowing that injury is not waiting to strike at any moment.  know all Age alone takes a toll on the body, before considering other factors like diet, exercise and overall health. Most adults are at peace with the realization that they may never again see the flexibility they had as a child, but there are steps you can take to preserve your range of motion and thus, the longevity of your body, if we can only be bothered. 

What does a more flexible body look like?

• Lengthier muscles and connective tissue
• Enables these same muscles to work more effectively
• Increase of blood flow to the muscles
• Injury prevention 
• Confidence in motion
• Better posture

At Holmes Chiropractic, we help people find their optimal range of motion, depending on the unique circumstances of their life. We seek to help everyone perform the motions they need to without pain and focus on rehabilitating injuries that may be limiting them. An important element of a fully flexible body is a properly balanced and aligned spine, and we help you to maintain this balance with chiropractic adjustment. Once we loosen the tight grip of pain from your life, we can focus on a wellness plan that supports strong, mobile joints and pliable muscles.

Dr. Randall Holmes, D.C. 

What is your breakfast style? From protein hounds to yogurt fiends to the functioning coffee and croissant addict, there are a variety of ways you can choose to start off your day. The important part is that you feed your brain to help break the fast of the night and transition into a day full of productivity or activity. This means that for optimal nutrition, food must be consumed within 2 hours of waking, and the more balanced the better. Eating little to no breakfast is linked to serious health concerns including depression, diabetes and heart disease. Besides this, our well-being is affected when we forego the morning meal. At Holmes Chiropractic, we believe the verdict is clear: we need to start taking breakfast seriously. Breakfast affects us in the following ways: 

• Weight management: when did people start thinking that foregoing breakfast was a legitimate way to lose weight. The more likely outcome is that your body craves calories later in the day to make up for the deficit that you created, leading you to eat more during the least active part of the day, creating actual weight gain. 
• Energy needs: you need fuel to get your butt out the door in the morning. While coffee is great for meeting immediate cognitive energy needs, it neglects all other parts of the body. 
• Cognitive function: your brain is a muscle on its own. If you starve it of key nutrients in the morning, how can you reasonably expect it to function with high productivity and low stress? 
• Longevity: simply put, eating breakfast regularly is linked to a longer life. As with everything in life, our eating habits should be fluid: rather than depleting it of nutrients then making up for it later, we should hold nutrient levels steady throughout the day. 

We would like to see people rekindle their relationship with breakfast time. Carving out a few extra minutes to enjoy a balanced breakfast can make all the difference in your daily state of mind. At our office in Houston, we support you through every health goal, whether it be losing or maintaining weight, rehabilitating and injury or maintaining your daily well-being, give our office a call and start making changes today. 

Dr. Randall Holmes, D.C. 

Resistance stretching is relatively new to the spotlight, having come into prominence as an integral part of US Olympic training programs. Perhaps this occurrence was given rise because modern lifestyles have led us to value efficiency and in this respect, resistance stretching is a king. At Holmes Chiropractic we believe that both flexibility and strength are integral to well-being and longevity of the body. With resistance stretching, you can build both simultaneously while doing more mundane activities such as watching television. We call that healthy multi-tasking. 

The benefits of resistance stretching: 

• Contributes to spinal balance
• Increases muscle power production
• Improves flexibility and thus, preserves range of motion
• Improves joint mechanics
• Reduces joint stress and pain
• Increases core stability

Resistance stretching is counter-intuitive: it relies on the idea that a muscle can be simultaneously shortened and lengthened. However, it can be done with the right attention to detail: exercises such as resisted neck twists, core development stretching, partner-resisted upper back and hamstring stretches are easy to learn and have a lasting benefit. Furthermore, the importance of both stretching and exercise is not found in the intensity but the regularity. We want to help you learn to truly appreciate the value of stretching so that you will keep yourself accountable as you progress with your health plan. 

Dr. Randall Holmes, D.C. 

Exercise should be an integral part of your herniated disc treatment plan. Physical activity preserves the strength and integrity of the supportive muscles and structures around the injury, as well as opening up the injurious region to an influx of oxygen and healing nutrients resulting from increased circulation. While an initial period rest may be recommended or observed, getting moving again is a critical piece of your recovery. 

• Focus on the core: conditioning the trunk muscles to act as stabilizers helps remove some of the burden of upper body weight from the spine, especially in the lumbar region. 
• Losing weight: every ounce counts. The best way to prevent injury is to maintain a healthy body weight so that the spine is not carrying around excess pounds. The odds are already stacked against our spines; keeping weight down is one of the few things we can do to preserve our spines into old age. 
• Refocus and redefine normal activity: don’t think, “intense,” but rather, “simple:” Low-impact aerobic exercise like walking and swimming should have priority rather than heavy weight lifting sessions and long runs. 

A good target is 30 minutes a day, 5 days a week. Whether this means walking, swimming, yoga or pilates, is dependent upon the individual and their injury. At Holmes Chiropractic, we can help you devise a master plan for healing your herniated disc. 

Dr. Randall Holmes, D.C. 

A herniated disc will most likely heal itself naturally, but the time frame is hard to determine. Depending on the position of the disc and the way it is herniated, healing times can be as low as 6 weeks or drag on for longer than a year. More serious cases involve repetitive irritation of the injury: some people are predisposed to re-aggravation of the injury and lifestyle choices have a lot to do with it.

Don’t let the pain hold you back: While “resuming normal activity,” may be impossible, don’t avoid activity altogether. Resting with the injury is counterproductive: it may actually delay recovery because supportive muscles will stiffen and atrophy, and soft tissues will become more vulnerable to injury. Furthermore, the intervertebral discs can become brittle without any movement. The solution is to keep moving, even with the pain. We can show you how low-impact aerobic activities such as swimming, combined with range-of-motion preserving stretching and exercise can help a herniated disc heal quicker. 

No activity should be undertaken that aggravates the standing symptoms. Finding your perfect level of activity may be difficult alone; it helps to get a professional opinion on the degree of the injury so that you can create a proactive plan to heal it successfully. At Holmes Chiropractic, we can help you implement a plan that involves chiropractic adjustment, therapeutic massage, corrective exercise and stretching that will get you back to a normal level of activity as quickly and naturally as possible.

Dr. Randall Holmes, D.C. 

While the severity, frequency and duration of herniated disc symptoms vary by the individual, there is one thing that all sufferers of the condition can do: use the power of nutrition. The diet for a herniated disc relates to the anatomy of the injury. Spinal discs are made of 2 layers: 

• The outer layer, called the annulus fibrosus, is designed for durability and is made up of layers of strong collagen fibers. 
  
• The inner layer, called the nucleus pulposus, is responsible for the shock absorption. This layer is composed of loose fibers that allow the spine its range of motion. 

A herniated disc essentially means that the annulus fibrosus is cracked, allowing the nucleus pulposus to leak out and push against the compromised area. If this bulge is significant, it will put pressure on the nearby nerve roots, creating the discomfort, stiffness and pain that is associated with the condition. 

A diet to ease these symptoms and encourage more rapid healing therefore begins with the cracking of the annulus fibrosus, a structure composed of cartilaginous material. There are nutrients that you can consume to support the regrowth and maintenance of healthy cartilage. Foods that are good for herniated disc sufferers are those rich in:

• Glucosamine-sulfate: helps the body produce chemicals that catalyze the repair of cartilage.
• Vitamin C: helps the body form the protein collagen, an essential element in the production of cartilage.
• Omega-3 fatty acids: to help with the pain and stiffness, consuming anti-inflammatory ingredients is a good place to start. 
• Sulfur-rich foods: to help maintain the integrity of connective tissue. 

At Holmes Chiropractic, we support a multi-dimensional and natural approach to healing herniated discs. Combining chiropractic adjustment with the potency of nutrition and the vitality restored with corrective exercise and stretching, you can ease the severity of your symptoms. 

Dr. Randall Holmes, D.C. 

In extreme cases, a herniated disc can be so advanced, causing so much pain that surgery is advisable. More often however, a herniated disc will heal itself in a matter of months if the right steps are taken toward treatment and management: it can either be the tip of the iceberg for a life altering condition or a wake up signal that says you need to start taking care of your back. A herniated disc is a common spinal problem that involves the intervertebral discs that accentuate the vertebrae in the spine. Made up of cartilaginous material, these discs provide shock absorption and prevent bones from grinding upon eachother. What happens when these discs, as with any piece of fine-tuned machinery, degrade over time? 

Herniation is a logical outcome: the outer layer of the intervertebral disc bulges or breaks, allowing the softer core to leak out, putting pressure on nearby nerves that are exiting the spinal column. This nerve impingement is responsible for the pain that is being signaled to your brain. The main causes of herniation involve, among others:

• Wear and tear 
• Age 
• Acute injury
• Poor posture

Symptoms vary as exemplified by the fact that pain and discomfort involved with a herniated disc can range from non-existent to severe and can cause conditions like sciatica which affect the extremities. Herniated discs usually respond well to the flexion-distraction modality: using a specialized table, we encourage the bulging material to recenter itself and stop pressing on the nerve. Using this and other methods including muscle stimulation, corrective stretching, nutrition and exercise, we help reduce the amount of inflammation in the area, easing your pain.

For people looking to manage their herniated disc the natural way, call our office in Houston at (713) 862-2440.

Dr. Randall Holmes, D.C. 

Eating healthfully can be as convenient as eating conveniently. Understanding vitamins, minerals, fats and sugars is one of the greatest ways to arm yourself against the degeneration that comes with injury or age. Nutrition is of great value to the chiropractor because it only enhances the adjustment and joint treatment aspects of our practice. 

A microcosmic example: eating food that fights inflammation. This is a way that chiropractic and diet synergize to reduce pain and stiffness for the chronic inflammation sufferer. Chiropractic adjustments have been shown to block the body’s production of key inflammatory cytokines. Likewise, omega-3 fatty acids are also known for being rich with anti-inflammatory properties. They are an essential fat that the body cannot produce by itself, and they have been shown to have a collaborative effect with aspirin that is normally prescribed for pain management. 

This was not a story about arthritis, but rather, an example of how nutrition can be used to greatly enhance the efficacy of any health plan. At Holmes Chiropractic, we offer a natural method of dealing with chronic inflammation and we can help you institute small lifestyle changes that will get you the ingredients you need to help your body fight back. We look forward to hearing from and helping you accomplish any health objective that you set. 

Dr. Randall Holmes, D.C. 

Subluxation is a complicated sounding word for a relatively simple concept. We start by imagining the spine as 24 separate vertebrae rather than one long bone. Accentuating each vertebrae, to ensure they don’t grind on eachother outright, are intervertebral discs made up of cartilaginous material. Diverging from the spinal cord, which is the nervous system’s super highway, are nerve roots that supply energy to the organs, tissues and glands of our bodies. Over time, due to repetitive trauma, acute injury, or a host of other factors, the intervertebral disc can be compromised, allowing for compression of the nerve roots. Up to this point, you may have been unaware that any deterioration was occurring, but now you can distinctly feel the pain and swelling that restricts movement.

At Holmes Chiropractic, we are more than familiar with this story. We correct subluxation with chiropractic adjustment, restoring balance to the back and removing compression from the nerves. By focusing our attention on massaging injured tissues, we speed the healing process and reduce inflammation. Before you know it, your are back on your feet feeling freer than ever: chiropractic is particularly good at restoring lost range of motion and flexibility. 

Our goal is to determine the true cause of your health problems and, if possible, correct it so that you can live your greatest life possible. Call our office in Houston and find out what we can do for you today. 

Dr. Randall Holmes, D.C.

How can we define healthy sleep? A period of rest, recovery and reprieve. The stresses of the day melt away into a dreamscape that brings serenity and rejuvenation to minds that are often caught up in the fast pace of the daytime. For too many people, this is not their reality: sleep is a struggle, to fall and to stay asleep, to switch the mind off and forget about the day gone by and the one to come, is an impossibility. There are myriad factors, some physical, some mental, some emotional and some completely intangible, that contribute to a good night’s sleep. What is known is that a healthy sleep life means a happy waking life. 

Benefits of regular, restful sleep:

• Better cognitive function 
• Less stress
• Longer life
• Improved immunity
• Improved memory
• Better athletic performance
• Healthier weight with less fluctuation

As rates of sleeplessness soar, so to does the rate of prescription and over-the-counter remedies which propound themselves as a cure all that delivers the above benefits, while the side-effects are kept in small print and rarely discussed. At Holmes Chiropractic, we want to offer you a natural, alternative path: to focus on fixing pre-existing physical limitations and changing your lifestyle to create a more healthy sleep program. 

Chiropractic works to help you by regulating blood circulation and correcting misaligned vertebrae. Essentially, we ensure that your body is in conducive shape for sleeping by regulating the nervous system, the network for communication between brain and body. From here, we help you evaluate your lifestyle and find things that may be holding you back from a good night’s sleep such as too much of the wrong food before bed or too much electronic exposure in the pre-sleep hours.

Everyone deserves a good night’s sleep; let’s start changing your sleep health for the better today. Call our office in Houston at (713) 862-2440. 

Dr. Randall Holmes, D.C.