The Building Blocks of Chiro-Physio Care
As with any long-term project, it is important to begin your chiro-physio fitness journey by laying down strong foundations.
The Spinalive philosophy is based on a pyramid of core fitness points, each playing their own part in ensuring optimal health, mobility, flexibility, strength, and beyond.
The very base of the pyramid is the foundation upon which your core strength is built: Posture. Strengthening your posture not only improves your physical appearance; it is also vastly important for the symmetry of your body, as well as your muscular strength once a balanced body carriage has been established.
Once the posture has been corrected, the next step in the pyramid entails improving your stability and mobility. Under the former, the practitioner will work with you to increase the endurance of your stabilisers, achieved through exercises that target your stabilisers, and proprioceptively-enriched activities that challenge your balance. Additionally, your practitioner will also work on your coordination and balance. In improving your mobility, the practitioner will help you to work on your joint flexibility, strength, and control.
Next, your practitioner will work with you to improve your strength. Strength training entails hypertrophy - an increase in muscular size which is achieved through exercise. Additionally, your practitioner will help you with your maximal strength, which is the maximum force your muscle can produce in a single voluntary effort regardless of the rate of force production - how much weight you can lift. Lastly, strength training will also focus on enhancing your endurance.
Power sits at the very top; in this particular instance, it can be described as a measure of explosive strength, or how quickly you can develop force - your power output. Through rigorous exercises and training, a practitioner can help you to up your game by improving every block in the pyramid.
In the case of chronic pain sustained from an injury or accumulated from a sustained posture, the body goes through these cycles illustrated in the chart above. It is then up to your practitioner to monitor how your condition changes as you progress with the treatment plan, and make the necessary adjustments to align your recovery and improvement. Issues that may be addressed include:
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Pain and inflammation
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Muscle imbalance and tightness
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Impaired movement
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Faulty motor program
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Altered joint forces and altered proprioception
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Joint degeneration and postural changes