Last week, I hurt my back. This time it was serious. I could barely walk. Tying my shoe was a chore. Working out was completely out of the question. I was in a lot of pain. And since I refuse to take any pain meds, my sleeping greatly suffered.
So after a few days of being completely miserable, I decided to schedule an appointment with my chiropractor. I used this guy several times in the past and referred a ton of family and friends to him over the years. He’s definitely not your typical chiro either. Rather than manually work on the localized spot which I’ve seen other chiros do, this guy puts you through a series of tests so he can identify where the issue is coming from. More often than not, it’s a weak muscle that is not firing or what he refers to as “turned off.” Once he gets to the root cause of the issue, he works on loosening up the muscle before its re-activated so the it can properly fire and get back to doing its job.
It didn’t take long for him to determine that my right hip flexor was super tight which was in effect pulled down on my back causing the constant and throbbing pain. He also pointed that I likely had some digestive issues going on, which only exacerbated my back problem causing inflammation and ultimately weakening my body’s ability to fight the stressor coming from the pain in my back.
After spending the last few years improving my gut health and focusing on including more fermented foods, Gut Kulture Shots and a wide variety of organic veggies into my daily diet, I have to admit I was a bit surprised, when he told me that a digestive issue could be contributing to my back problem.
So after thinking more about what changed in my diet over the last few months, I kept coming up short. Not much changed other than maybe an extra bowl of ice cream here and there during the week…nothing too crazy…
It than quickly dawned on me…
I’ve been drinking more, since quarantine began.
Now I can come up with a million excuses why, but after all, it is summer time…the time of the year that is filled with social events and spending much of our free time hanging out with family and friends, enjoying the nice weather while watching the kids run around playing out front while the parents sit in their chairs, socializing over cold drinks.
The other excuse for my increased drinking (which i admit in advance is quite lame), are the very popular Hard Seltzer’s, which have taken the market by storm recently. Since I never have been a big beer drinker, I found the hard seltzer’s (love me some High Nooner’s!) to be very refreshing on a hot and humid summer day…and quick frankly, way too easy to over-consume. As my neighbor likes to say, they can quickly get away from you.
At any rate, I digress. The main point of sharing this post with you is to first publicly acknowledge my over-consumption of alcohol over the last few months. This in turn has negatively affected my health and contributed to my recent back issue. Perhaps one of you, who is reading this newsletter right now, has been drinking a bit too much as of lately and can completely relate to my story here.
Remember this. We all experience various struggles and challenges at some point in our lives. We’re are human. Yet, we all have a responsibility to accept our choices and actions, admit our mistakes and make the necessary changes to back get on the right path to living the best life we possibly can…
PS Since last week, I have completely cut out drinking and already noticed a nice improvement in my workouts and sleep. I also started a 2 week keto cleanse to help improve my gut biome and strengthen my immune system. A few small changes can make a big improvement.
As always, don’t hesitate to send me an email to [email protected] with any questions or comments you have. I’m right here. Only an email away.
-Steve