​“No pain, no gain” is often not the best advice when it comes to exercise. Mild muscle soreness from a good work out is ok, but when an injury has occurred, aggravating exercises can make it worse or prolong healing. It is important to restore activity as soon as possible to an injured area so here are some tips for exercising when in pain due to an injury.

1. Super slow stretching – when an area has been injured, even stretches can be quite painful. One solution is to slow down, way down. Imagine stretching so slowly that someone watching you may not even see you move. Stretching this slowly gives the muscle a chance to relax into the stretch rather than wanting to tighten up and fight the stretch. How slow can you go?
2. Temporarily limit your range of motion – even when an area is injured, there is still a comfortable range in which you can move so stay within that range. If turning your head all the way hurts, turn it halfway through the normal range until you can move further without pain. Keep moving as much as your range allows.
3. Don’t move while exercising – this takes the last recommendation a step further by not moving at all. This is called isometric exercise. For example, if you can’t turn your head due to pain you may still be able to activate the muscles of neck without moving your head. Just push against your fingers or another object with the amount of force you can tolerate (starting light and increasing resistance).
4. Non-weight bearing exercises – sometimes it’s just too painful to fight gravity, so don’t. Lie down or sit for your exercises. Or hop into the pool to exercise in a weightless environment. Some of the most complicated back injuries with disc problems are those that respond best to non-weight bearing exercises.
5. Walk – if your injury doesn’t prevent you from walking, then walk. Walking is the best exercise that works the whole body. Everything benefits from walking.
6. Exercise the other side – if it’s too painful to turn to the right then start with turns to the left. Even working the opposite (healthy) limb can have a positive impact on the injured one due to effects on sensorimotor integration of the brain (how the brain senses things and moves parts of the body). Ten or twenty repetitions of movement on the left side can be enough to make those same repetitions more tolerable on the injured right side.

With all these exercise tips, remember to start light and easy. As you see improvement and the exercises become more tolerable, gradually increase them. Lying around in bed is one of the worst things you can do. If you are struggling with a lingering injury, be sure to seek evaluation and treatment starting with conservative non-drug care like chiropractic first.

Can chiropractic adjusting be performed on a joint following surgery?

We are commonly asked if chiropractic adjusting may be performed on an area of the body that has undergone surgery. It's a question that can stop  patients from even considering whether chiropractic care could be helpful for unresolved muscle and joint problems. Research estimates 35% or more of spine surgeries may not adequately relieve pain, and with these surgeries becoming increasingly common this question is being asked more frequently.

The short answer to whether chiropractic adjusting may be performed following surgery in most cases is YES! However, there are factors that must be taken into account before considering adjusting a region of the body following a surgical procedure. Here are some of the factors our doctors consider during a thorough history and examination:

• how recent was the surgery?
• did the surgery include joint fusion?
• what is the condition of the joint or region following surgery?
• why did the surgery not adequately address the problem?
• is something being missed?

Chiropractic physicians regularly work with complicated cases that have not responded adequately to surgery or that have experienced re-injury following surgery and wish to avoid additional surgery. Rather than follow pain management guidelines that recommend trying conservative non-drug treatment like chiropractic first, patients too often try chiropractic last so it is not uncommon to see very complicated cases that have been through multiple medical interventions including medications, injections, and sometimes multiple surgeries.

Joint Fusions & Joint Replacements

While chiropractic adjusting can be helpful for post-surgical patients, it's often best to modify the adjusting approach depending on the case. Fused joints should not be adjusted but working on the surrounding joints and tissues can often be beneficial. An artificial joint can be worked on with a modified approach. In some cases, light pressure adjusting is best. It is also appropriate to wait a period of time following surgery depending on the surgery performed. Keep in mind there are a variety of conservative techniques and therapies regularly used by chiropractic physicians that can help relieve pain and improve function in complicated post-surgical cases.

Don't let past surgeries or a complicated condition stop you from considering chiropractic care as a treatment option. Medical physicians are generally not trained to know the variety of techniques and therapies utilized by chiropractic physicians, so consult a doctor of chiropractic to determine what may be best in your case.