For the Health of It: Bounce!

The Health Benefits of Rebounding

Rebounding is a form of exercise that has been scientifically proven to improve the immune system and flow of the lymphatic system.  Rebounding involves jumping on a mini trampoline; this increases both blood and lymph circulation. The body contains 5-6 quarts of blood, which is circulated by the heart. There is three times more lymph in the body than blood and it does not have a pump like blood does.  We have to depend on our muscles to contract in order to move the lymph.  Yet there is so much of it that if a person’s lymphatic system were to stop functioning loss of fluid volume and swelling tissue would cause death within 24 hours. That is how important circulation of both blood and lymph is for the body.  Blood carries protein, oxygen, nutrients to the organs.  Once inside the organs it exchanges it's nutrients and carries wastes and carbon dioxide away.  Lymph is the leftover blood that leaks from blood capillaries into the tissue that the lymphatic vessels pick up.  Lymph fluid contains water, proteins, salts, lipids, and white blood cells that must return to the blood.  It also filters toxins like pathogens, damaged cells, cellular debris and cancerous cells in lymph nodes on it’s way to the chest where it is connected to a blood vessel and gets dumped back into the blood supply.  

I love how Dr. Samuel West puts it, ’Toxins are carried through the body by blood. These toxins include impurities of what we eat, inhale and ingest.  This causes an increase in blood protein and water to leak out of the capillaries into the interstitial space around the cells causing swelling (edema).  The swelling prevents oxygen from getting into the cells, causing cellular stress which can lead to various forms of diseases.’  Dr. Samuel west was  One of the first doctors in U.S. to talk about the importance of the lymphatic system in the healing process of disease and injuries. He believed that the #1 cause of diseases and pain are a lack of oxygen due to a congested lymphatic system.  Rebounding gets circulation moving.  All  forms of exercise work on the principle of opposing gravity, rebounding utilizes the forces of gravity, as well as the forces of acceleration and deceleration.  When you land on a rebounder, every cell in the body has to adjust to the increased deceleration. When the springs take over and push the body up into the air, then the body has to adjust to a weightless condition for only a moment at a time. But that weightless condition is throughout the entire body regardless of where the cells are.  Having the body adjust to an environment that it is not used to, which is deceleration at the bottom of the bounce promotes the flow of lymph, thereby helping the body flush out toxins and strengthening the immune system and making it more effective.

The way the lymphatic system works is the lymphocytes, the white blood cells, are moved through the body via one-way valves. You’ve got these valves from the bottom of the feet upwards throughout the entire body – and the valves from the legs all point upwards, from your neck they go down, from the arms they go towards the chest. So when you move the body around, the lymph fluid is always moving in one direction, that is towards the collarbones.

It’s here, at the top of the chest, the lymph valves allow the lymph fluid to flow into the bloodstream.  By activating the one-way valves  of the lymphatic system, you cause an increase in lymph circulation by 10-30 times of what the lymphatic system is able to circulate during periods of rest, lymph flow is sluggish and almost zero.  So when you bounce on a rebounder, or jump on the floor, or use a jump rope, the one-way valves open and close about 100 times a minute, circulating the lymph fluid, removing toxins and getting the white blood cells to areas of the body where they need to be.

Without adequate movement the lymph does not move and the lymph vessels can’t even pick up the lymph from the tissue.  This means the cells are left stewing in their own waste products and starving for nutrients and oxygen, a situation that contributes to arthritis, cancer and other degenerative diseases.  

Rebounding is great for the lymph system because the lymph vessels move the lymph in one direction, towards the heart that makes the  vertical up-and-down movement of rebounding more effective than horizontal motion workouts, such as jogging and running.  It’s nice for the joints in general too because the rebounder gets rid of the pressure the joints take when hitting the pavement.  

Poor lymph flow is common in sedentary people; this is one reason why less active individuals are more susceptible to illness. Sedentary people who have poor diets or choose to live on junk food are often unwell because the body sends all the toxins and waste to the lymphatic system. The lymph flow is poor due to a lack of exercise, so toxins accumulate in the body.

Additional benefits of rebounding include:

• Increased lymphocyte activity 

• Physically strengthens muscles

• Helps improve balance

• Improves cardiovascular function

Linda Brooks says gently bouncing on a rebounder for two minutes every hour is an ideal protocol for fighting against cancer. Within just two minutes the entire lymphatic system is flushed, creating a demand for more lymphocytes, including killer T-cells. The white blood-cell count is approximately tripled during this two-minute rebounding session.

Approximately one hour after rebounding, the white blood-cell count returns to normal, so it is time to rebound again to flush out the lymphatic system and to create another army of defensive cells. The object of this pattern is to keep the immune system operating optimally and naturally, hour after hour, day after day.

Rebounding exercise also strengthens each cell of the body so that healing can occur. Every process of every cell is enhanced allowing each organ to do its job more efficiently: digestion and absorption are enhanced; elimination is improved, thus removing more toxins from the body; and the body is relaxed and de-stressed so healing hormones are produced.

She explains that practice of rebounding against cancer is done using the “health bounce”.  Here is an explanation of the health bounce along with other rebounding exercises you can do.  

The Health Bounce

The health bounce is where the feet never leave trampoline. This still has positive effect. You’re getting all the one-way valves to open and close at the same time, increasing the activity of the lymphatic system throughout the entire body. 

The Basic Bounce

This can be done instead of the Strength Bounce below until you develop more balance.

1 Stand on the rebounder with your feet shoulder width apart.

2 Relax shoulders and arms and keep arms slightly bent at the elbow.

3 Gently bounce up and down while keeping your knees slightly bent. Your feet should never leave the trampoline surface more than a few inches.

The Strength Bounce

1 Stand on the rebounder with your feet shoulder width apart.

2 Relax shoulders and arms and keep arms slightly bent at the elbow.

3 Gently bounce up and down while keeping your knees slightly bent. Your feet should leave the trampoline surface approximately 8-12 inches.

High Knees

This is a terrific exercise that gets your heart rate up while working the muscles of your core.

1 Stand on trampoline surface with your feet hip distance apart.

2 Raise your right knee, lower it, then raise your left knee and lower it.

3 Once you feel able, begin doing the knee raises as if you are running in place.

4 Variation: Sprints – go as fast as you can in short bursts.

Butt Kickers

1 Stand on trampoline surface with your feet hip distance apart.

2 Begin jogging in place.

3 When your knee goes up, kick yourself in the tush with your heel.

Jumping Jacks

This will increase your heart rate while working both the inner and outer thighs.

1 Stand on the rebounder with your feet together

2 Jump up off the trampoline surface a few inches while extending arms out, up and overhead

3 Return to the starting position and repeat.

Twisting Jumps

1 Stand on the rebounder with your feet together

2 Jump up off the trampoline surface a few inches while twisting your body to the left.

3 On your next jump, twist your body to the right.

One Leg Jumps

1 Stand on the rebounder with your feet shoulder width apart

2 Begin jumping on one leg for 3-10 bounces.

3 Switch legs and jump on the other leg for 3-10 bounces.

4 Variation: kick out the leg you are not jumping on.

5 Variation: alternate legs every bounce, kicking out non-jumping leg.

Sample Beginner Routine

These are perfect rebounder workouts for beginners.

1 Health bounce for two minutes while breathing deeply.

2 Strength bounce for 3 minutes (do the basic bounce if you don't have enough balance for the strength bounce).

3 Health bounce for an additional 2-3 minutes while breathing deeply.

4 Repeat three times daily.

Sample Advanced Routine

1 Health bounce for 2 minutes while breathing deeply.

2 Strength bounce for 3 minutes.

3 High knees alternating with butt kickers for 3 minutes.

4 10-15 second sprint.

5 Jumping jacks for 3 minutes.

6 Twisting jumps for 2 minutes.

7 10-15 second sprint.

8 Strength bounce for 1 minute.

9 Health bounce (cool down) for 2 minutes.

For stability, most retailers of rebounders sell an optional handlebar to attach to the rebounder to help with balance. For balance you can also place the rebounder beside a wall or in a doorway and using the door frame or wall to help keep you balanced while performing rebound exercise.

I have seen improvement with my patients doing as little as 5 minutes a day of rebounding.  

Having a Healthy Relationship with Your Body

Think about when you first wake up in the morning.  What are your first thoughts as you roll out of bed?  Do they have anything to do with how your body feels?  I tend to get a yes to that question only if that person is in pain or is afraid something is wrong with them.  If we are feeling fine we tend to ignore the body and go on with our day. We can’t be bothered by it. In our office we try to change that awareness.  We teach people to be aware of the food they eat, to make healthy choices and also be aware of the chemicals and heavy metal they are using in their daily life.  This change in awareness is about taking their health into their own hands and making those daily choices to create health in the body.  It takes a dedication, a determination and also self love to confront the body and take care of it. It takes courage to really look at ourselves, our body and do something healthy for it. That’s why a lot of people don’t come to the office unless their body is screaming at them. The body screams in the form of a symptom.  It is only with a headache, stomach ache, anxiety, weeks of insomnia, constipation etc. that people make an appointment.  That is, the majority of the people.  That is how we are trained. To actually go to the doctor’s when you are healthy doesn’t cross people’s mind.  Many doctors are trained in disease. They don’t know what to do if you are healthy.  If you don’t have a symptom they don’t have any advice for you.  Yet, as consumers we should have a new goal.  Our goal should be to keep the health we have.  Preventative healthcare is the best healthcare.

When we bring people’s awareness to their lifestyle and want to help them make changes that would improve their health part of that goal is to help them build their intuition with their bodies.  Listening to their body and what the body is trying to tell them is a new skill set for most people.  When listening to the body I don’t want to deepen the mind-body connection.  Instead, I want to get my patients out of their mind and into the body.  In the body is where your true power lies.  Meditation has it correct.  The goal in meditation is to quiet the mind and we do that by concentrating on the breath.  This concentration on breath gets us into the body and it is there that we find our center.  The center that is beyond the mind and beyond the body.  The center is where we are at peace no matter what is happening around us.  The center is our soft voice that is forever loving.  The center is our Spirit, our Higher Self, our love.  Call it what you would like.  Every religion has a different name for it.  It is our center, beyond anything in this physical world.     

The book by Eckart Tolle, The Power of Now talks about how the body loves your attention. It even states that the more consciousness you bring into the body, the stronger the immune system becomes. I find this to be true but let me specify our body loves our positive attention.  It loves to be loved,  not judged so watch your thoughts.  You think loving thoughts towards your body and you believe the body has the power to heal itself and it will.  If you think negative thoughts and put them in your body dis-ease can occur.  The book, Feelings Buried Alive Never Die is great at explaining that concept.  

A clear example of getting into the body to help it heal is how exercise makes us mentally feel better.  I often tell patients to exercise for better stress management.  I used to think that exercise helped get the stress off the body by changing the biochemistry of the brain but now I realize that exercise reduces stress by getting people to stop thinking and instead putting their attention into the body.  This change in attention from whatever is going on in the mind to the body allows feedback from the body to the brain so that exercise encourages the production of dopamine, norepinephrine, and serotonin in the brain. Exercise also produces endorphins, the ‘feel good’ chemical in the brain.  In this way exercise is nature’s antidepressant and is really good for helping people with all sorts of things like ADHD, anxiety, depression, insomnia, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, blood sugar imbalances, hormone imbalances etc.  You name it and exercise can help because it gets you to pay attention to the body and the body responds by changing the brain chemistry.  

The way to a healthier, happier life is by embracing the body, loving the body.  Start having a positive relationship with your body by checking in with it and listening to it.  If it is hungry, feed it healthy food.  If it is full, step away from eating.  If it is tired, go to bed at a decent hour.  If you know your body doesn’t do well with coffee, skip that afternoon cup.  There are so many choices we make a day to either help or hinder our body.  Be compassionate with yourself  and your body and know your only goal is to make better choices than yesterday and that we are here to help.  

Headspace: Meditation and Mindfulness Made Simple

Here at Healing Arts we treat the whole person, mind, body and soul. So as we adjust your back, give you vitamins or dietary advice it is also very common for us to give stress reduction advice to help you on your healing journey. Practicing meditation and mindfulness is often suggested in helping patients with stress. Not only does it help with reducing stress but also in making people happier. When I suggest adding meditation and mindfulness into a patient's daily life one of three things happen, 1) they have no interest and so I give other stress reducing tips, 2) they have interest but have never done it before or 3) they have interest and have been doing it but need to do it more. If you fall into the second group of having interest but little to no experience then Headspace is an app for you!

You can sign up for free and just 10 minutes a day (more if you want to) it can help you with a number of things including your sleep, anxiety and concentration. The meditation is done by a British man whose voice I find soothing but I have had others comment that they tend not to like the voice so you'll have to find out for yourself. They also have SOS exercises to do if you are in a real panic and need extra help.

If you are in group 3 you could also find this app of use to get you back on your routine or if you want someone to take you through a visualization. If you are in group 1 this post is not for you and instead hit the gym!

Home Remedies for Constipation: Foods that Help!

Over the years I have given a lot of tips on how to help the bowels move better by adding certain things into the diet. I finally have decided to sit down and write about it! If you have a remedy that helps you please let me know.

#1 Lemon water

Increasing the amount of water you drink has long been touted as a remedy for curing your clogged pipes and it’s true. If your insides are all dried up like the Sahara how do you expect anything to flow? Adding the juice of half a lemon into 32 ounces of warm water and drink first thing in the morning will help. For those fighting Candida add a tablespoon of Apple Cider Vinegar.

#2 Baking soda does it all

Baking soda lies at the heart of home remedies. It’s is so incredibly versatile, and it pretty much does its job most of the time. It works incredibly well for constipation (and tummy aches in general) because it is a bicarbonate, which will encourage air to come out of you one way or another, and relieve pain from pressure. It also re-alkalizes the stomach, neutralizing the acid a little bit and helping things pass through your gut.

You will need…
-1 teaspoon baking soda
-1/4 cup warm water

Mix a teaspoon of baking soda with ¼ cup of warm water. Drink all of the mixture-the quicker you finish it, the better it seems to work.

#3 Dandy Dandelions

Dandelions are a terribly annoying weed, but you might view them differently after they help relieve your constipation. The constituents of dandelions make it a gentle laxative as well as an effective detoxifier, and a cup of dandelion tea will be enormously beneficial to those who are suffering from constipation due to inactiveness or the consumption of a lot of processed foods (although drinking it does not mean you don’t need to exercise or eat healthy!)

You will need…
-1-2 teaspoons of dried dandelion leaves
-1 cup of hot water

Directions
Put 1-2 teaspoons of dried dandelion leaves into a mug, and pour hot water over them. Cover and let steep for 6-10 minutes. Drink up to 3 times a day.

#4 Coffee is our friend (sometimes)

A lot of people love their morning coffee, but it does more than just give off heavenly aromas and help you perk up. Caffeine is a natural stimulant for the digestive system, so indulging in a cup of joe will help get you up and running in more ways than one. 1-2 cups is fine, but make sure you don’t overdo it-too much can actually have the opposite effect. Coffee is a diuretic and makes you urinate more frequently, and if you drink it an excess, it can cause constipation by dehydrating your body and drawing out water that would normally soften your stool.

#5 Get moving

If you want stuff to move through your body, you need to move too! Our lifestyle these days not only involves dietary changes that increase constipation, but we’re often sitting much more than we’re active. While there isn’t an exact scientific reason as to why lack of exercise is linked with getting clogged up, we can assume that moving the body helps get the smooth muscle in the colon moving as well. Keep in mind, however, that you should wait an hour after big meals before exercising. Here is a stretch that works well!

Ardha Matsyendrasana (photo below): From a seated position, cross your right foot to the outside of the left thigh (or to the inside which is less intense). Bend left knee and draw heel towards you, sitting down between both feet (or keep left leg extended out straight on the floor which is less intense). Hook your right arm around your right knee and hug it in close to stretch the right outer hip and glute. Release your left hand to your mat behind your back. Inhale and lengthen your spine, exhale and twist, looking over your back shoulder. Hold for 5-10 breaths and repeat on other side.

#6 Oil…it gets more than cars running

Pure olive oil is more than just a healthy and tasty fat, it can also help relieve constipation. It’s not surprising really when you consider what olive oil’s texture and consistency is like- it’s practically the poster child for constipation home remedies. It stimulates your digestive system, which helps get things moving through your colon, and taken regularly it can prevent constipation as well.

You will need…
-1 tablespoon of olive oil


Directions
In the morning consume one tablespoon of olive oil. Easiest to take it like a shot. It works best on an empty stomach, so have it before you eat anything else. If you forget, wait until later when you haven’t eaten for a while. You can mix it with a little bit of lemon juice if you like to lighten the flavor (lemon juice also acts as a natural aid for constipation. See above, #1).