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It's fall! What a great season to be outdoors. For those chilly days that keep you indoors, this newsletter will give you some good reading material and teach you new tips and tricks to keep you healthy and active! We're your one stop shop for injury prevention, improved performance in sport, and expert tips to help maintain your active lifestyle!
Fall
.
2015

In This Issue:

•  Clinic Updates
•  Make huge health gains with ONE small change.
•  Balancing an office job and a healthy, active body!
•  TYLENOL: Does it work?
•  OOST Eats: Oats! 2 quick & delish breakfast recipes
 

Keeping You Active With:

Osteopathy
Athletic Therapy
Physiotherapy
Massage Therapy
Kinesiology
Running Performance Assessments
Concussion Rehabilitation

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We recently updated our website! Click here to check out our fresh new look!
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Autumn Updates!


It's our birthday! We're 7 years old.
It's hard to believe we're turning 7 already. Thanks to the power of word of mouth, people have walked through our door over 41,000 times to get stronger, better and live healthier lives. Our passionate team of caring administrators and rehab professionals collectively thank you for telling your 8200+ friends, family, neighbours and colleagues to give us a try. We're always looking for ways to improve, but for today, we'll just put that on pause and say a heartfelt thank you for placing your trust in our hands.


Congrats: Shauna Ironside
A huge congratulations to Shauna Ironside and her husband Andrew on the birth of their son, Hugh Alexander. Hugh joins big brother Bennett, and we're sure both of them will keep Shauna quite busy!

Shauna is currently on maternity leave and plans to return in the fall of 2016. If you were seeing Shauna and require treatment in her absence, please speak with us to arrange treatment with another therapist. We will be happy to help you to choose a suitable alternative to meet your needs, whether it be for osteopathy, physiotherapy, or massage therapy.
 
We wish her all the best as she enjoys this wonderful family time, and look forward to her return!


Quick Tips
The best posture for: raking leaves.

With fall comes leaves. With leaves comes raking. With raking comes back pain.  You can avoid the last step of that cycle (sorry, we can't do anything about the leaves) if you follow these three simple tips for proper leaf-raking posture. 
1) Stick your butt out. Simple as that. Picture it like you're lifting your tailbone to the sky as you bend over. This will help keep your spine aligned while you're raking.
2) Two for two rule: If you've just filled two bags of leaves, spend two minutes leaning backwards just a touch with your hands on your lower back. Imagine you were looking at the clouds in the sky. This will help reduce strain on your discs in your spine.
3) After you've finished raking, reward yourself (and your back) with three minutes of lying on your stomach propped up on your elbows reading your favourite magazine or website (we like www.ottawaosteopath.com). It will help you get out of bed the next day feeling like your usual self and not your age plus 20 years.
Happy raking!


Birthday? Christmas?
Give the Gift of Pain Relief.


It is NEVER too early to start your Christmas shopping.
Get your shopping done here!
 

Live a better, longer and happier life with just one change!

The single most important change you can make to improve your health is to be physically active at least 30 minutes a day. This physical activity can include walking, cycling, sports or even walking your dog if you have one. Research shows that the thirty minute goal can be broken up into three 10 minute segments and you will still see the same health benefits.
 
Health studies show that adding 30 minutes per day of easy to moderate exercise can reduce your risk of heart disease, slow progression of dementia and Alzheimer’s, lower pain from knee arthritis, reduce anxiety and depression and slow the progression of diabetes among other things.

So if you're motivated to live better this year, park your car a little further away from the store, go for a walk with a friend, or make a habit of strolling your neighborhood after dinner. Every little bit helps!
 

What your practitioner wants you to know: How to keep your body happy while at work.


One of the best and easiest ways to stay healthy and injury-free is to keep active.  Sounds simple, but it's easier said than done, especially if you're stuck at a desk all day! Here are some quick and simple tips to help you stay active even when you're stuck at work.

Stretch it out: There are a plethora of stretches and exercises you can do right at your desk.  They don't require a lot of space, and your body will thank you for doing them.  Here is a collection of our most beneficial stretches and exercises that you can do in the workplace:
> OfficeWise Stretches
> OfficeWise Exercises


Go walking: If you work in a small space and don't have the ability to do any stretching, and are sedentary most of the day, there are still lots of things you can be doing. Walking more frequently is perhaps the single greatest thing you can do for your body.  This could mean taking the stairs instead of the elevator, parking farther away and walking to the office (or even biking or walking to work), going for a stroll on your lunch break, or making a point to get out for a walk in the evening. You can even do some laps around your office (pro tip: carry a few files/documents around with a pen and everybody will think you're doing very important work).

20-20-20 Eye rule: Now that your body is happy, don't forget about your eyes! To decrease your risk of eye strain (and also to help prevent neck pain), it is recommended that you follow the 20-20-20 rule: after 20 minutes of screen time, take a 20 second break and look at something 20 metres away. Use this short break to move your neck and shoulders around to loosen them up.

Still in pain? There are lots of things you can be doing for your physical health while you're at work.  If you've tried all of these strategies and are still having pain or discomfort after a day at your desk, come in and see one of our massage therapists or physiotherapist. There could be underlying issues causing your pain, and it's best to take care of it now before it gets worse.

To book an appointment, call us at (612) 521-3222.
 

Researchers have concluded: Tylenol doesn't reduce back pain.


We've long heard how Tylenol is effective. Their tagline is "Trusted relief for back pain" and they even have a product called Tylenol Back Pain. But, after a recent review of 13 different studies that looked at the effectiveness of Tylenol, the verdict is in: Tylenol simply does not reduce low back pain.

The reason is simple: most back pain is mechanical. That means there is a muscle that is too tight, a joint that isn't moving well, or there isn't enough core stability. Even if you take a medication designed to remove pain, as soon as the effect wears off, the pain will come right back.

Fortunately, there are reliable ways of assessing and treating back pain that DO provide relief. Manual therapists certified in the McKenzie method have been shown to provide lasting relief for all types of back pain.  Our practitioners use the standardized McKenzie approach that ensures nothing is overlooked. Proper identification of the cause of your pain is key, and subsequent manual therapy and exercises specific to your back really are the gold standard.  After gaining a deeper understanding of what is causing your back pain you'll learn how to prevent recurrence.

Having a manual therapist who knows your back will be far more reliable that a medication. So the next time you're feeling the familiar pain, email or call us and we'll be happy to help. Click here if you want to read the full article.
 

OOST Eats: Oats!
Quick & healthy breakfast recipes

Bonus: They're all make-ahead and full of prOATein!

You've heard it before: breakfast is the most important meal of the day. However, it's easy to run out of time or sacrifice breakfast for 5 more minutes of sleep. An informal study showed that 4 out of 5 people who came into our office on the day this article was written classify themselves as 'Not Morning People'.  That means most of us aren't getting the proper nutrition we need right off the bat. We're here to help: 2 tOATally tasty make-ahead recipes to get you through the morning.

Overnight Oats
1/3 cup old fashioned or rolled oats
1/3 cup unsweetened almond milk (can substitute soy)
1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt (can substitute vanilla or a different flavour)
1 tsp honey
1 tsp chia seeds (optional, but a great source of nutrients and antioxidants)
1/2 cup chopped frozen fruit (cherries, berries, bananas, anything!)

The easiest way to make these overnight oats is in a bowl, but if you're feeling trendy, don't hesitate to use a mason jar. Prepare the night before. Layer the uncooked oats first, then the milk, chia seeds, honey, Greek yogurt, and fruit. Stir everything together. Cover and put in the fridge.  All you have to do is take it out in the AM and enjoy!
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'Cookie Dough' Bites
1 1/2 cups rolled oats
2 tbsp coconut oil (or extra-virgin olive oil)
2 tbsp natural peanut butter (or almond butter, sunflower seed butter, etc)
1/4 cup pure maple syrup or other liquid sweetener (agave nectar, honey)
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup raw almonds, blended into almond meal*
1/4 tsp sea salt
2 tbsp dark chocolate, chopped (or dark chocolate chips, or can substitute dried fruit)

* To prepare the almond meal, blend 1/2 cup whole raw almonds (in a blender or food processor) until they are a flour-like consistency. Set aside.

1) In a blender or food processor, blend oats until a fine flour forms. Set aside.

2) In a large mixing bowl, combine oil, peanut butter, liquid sweetener (maple syrup/agave/honey), and vanilla.  Beat with a hand mixer until smooth. Add in the almond meal, oat flour and salt. Beat again until well combined. Fold in the dark chocolate (or fruit).

3) Roll the dough into small balls (about 1 tbs of dough). Place the finished bites on a baking tray lined with parchment paper.

4) Freeze bites for 5-10 minutes, or until firm. Store bites in the freezer in an air-tight container or freezer bag for quick access later.

[Original recipe by Angela Liddon, taken from the Oh She Glows Cookbook.]

This recipe makes a great snack to munch on throughout the morning or whenever hunger hits. It's easy to make and super easy to modify. In our OOST versions, we often swap out the almond flour for ground chia seed/flaxseed or psyllium husks. For an extra treat, we trade the smooth peanut butter for crunchy peanut butter or dark chocolate peanut butter (yes, it's a thing, and can be found at most grocery stores in the area.). There are so many ways to personally perfect this OATstandingly versatile recipe! (done with the oat puns now.  But they were OAT-of-this-world, AMIRITE?! #sorrynotsorry)
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Let us know how you make out with the recipes! We always like to try new things so if you have a tasty recipe, don't hesitate to pass it along, and you never know - it could end up in the next issue of OOST Eats!
Ottawa Osteopathy & Sports Therapy offers:
- Osteopathy
- Athletic Therapy
- Physiotherapy
- Massage Therapy
- Strength & Conditioning
- Running Performance Assessments
- Concussion Rehabilitation

Email us at info@ottawaosteopath.com

Visit our website at www.ottawaosteopath.com

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