Dr. Thomas Dandrea DC of Monmouth Pain and Rehabilitation in Red Bank NJ offers tips and techniques on Physical Therapy, Rehabilitation, Chiropractic, Acupuncture, Massage, Medical and Pain Relief, and More.

Getting Obsessive About Your GF?

I know I am Gluten Sensitive. Will this form into an allergy? Will it form into Celiac? I don’t have a crystal ball and today’s diagnostic testing for Celiac can be invasive (biopsy) and not always so telling. Sometimes I find myself in a situation at a friend’s house or out at an event and I haven’t eaten in hours and the only thing available is something that contains gluten. Well? I’m going to eat it. My son on the other hand has a gluten allergy. In the same situation, he will not eat it because he will develop immediate abdominal pains. It is interesting to me that although I am playing Russian Roulette in a way (I do not know how damaging Gluten is to me,) I will chose to eat it because I do not perceive any immediate adverse reaction. My son knows implicitly to avoid gluten because of the immediate pain it causes him. He would prefer to suffer with hunger than deal with that pain in his gut.

I struggle with this concept. And as a physician, I analyze how I react emotionally is this situation. I find myself surrendering to my cravings, allowing them to get the best of me sometimes, even when there are other food alternatives available. And I will sometimes even do this in front of my son who makes the healthier choice (of course I feel immediate guilt- which of course is still not as painful as the abdominal pains or I wouldn’t do it!) I observe my decision making process and even as a health care practitioner I see how often I eat based on feeling and not logic.

I now find myself working to retrain my likes and dislikes. I sometimes convince myself that I do not want that slice of pizza. Sometimes I succeed and sometimes I fail. I guess this is the process we must go through to break bad habits and create new healthier ones.

I have a special place in my heart for all you marathoners competing this upcoming weekend. I was a competitive runner back in the day for a few seasons on the Rutgers Track Team. I understand that running is a mind game more than anything. However, it is important to take care of the body to perform at your best. I have put together a few suggestions for you all running the NJ Marathon this week and in general for all you runners out there.

Also, Anyone registered for The New Jersey Marathon can come in for a pre-race and/or post-race treatment for $25 per treatment (reg. price $75-$175). Set Up Your Appointment Today.

10. We heal when we sleep. You have finished up your training. To make sure those legs are fresh, get at least 8 hours of sleep each night for the week leading to your race.

9. While sleeping, try to sleep on your back with minimal or no pillow under your head and neck. Then slightly elevate your legs by propping them up under a few pillows (no more than 30 degrees.) This will facilitate the circulation of any inflammation out of any achy joints.

8. Prevent inflammation. I suggest natural anti-inflammatories regularly while training and certainly the week leading up to a race. For starters, try Curamin which is a plant based all natural herbal supplement which has shown to provide anti-inflammatory responses.

7. Breath! – Before bed and as soon as you wake practice how you plan to breathe when you run. Slow, steady concentrated breaths will keep those muscles well oxygenated.

6. Meditate! - The idea here is to sit still for 5-10 minutes without moving. You don’t need to be a guru to do this. Try to not think about anything at all. Empty your mind. This is meditation. If this does not work, don’t beat yourself up. Just sit still for 5-10 minutes daily and you will quickly find yourself at greater ease and peace.

5. Visualize! After you have meditated, see yourself achieving your goal. See that time you set for yourself as you cross the finish line. Feel it! And feel good about all of your success.

4. Eat Complex Carbs to fill your Energy pantry (called your Glycogen Stores). Pasta, Bread, Rice and sweet potatoes are all appropriate a few days before the race and leading up until a few hours before the race.

3. Make sure you eat enough Protein all week. It’s important to feed those muscles so they can do their job under the strain of the race.

2. Be Grateful – The fact that your body can run 26.2 miles is extraordinary. Be thankful for the gift.

1. Have fun! I am pretty sure most of you are not going to set the world record during this race. Relax and enjoy yourself.

And again as a reminder, Anyone registered for The New Jersey Marathon can come in for a pre-race and/or post-race treatment for $25 per treatment (reg. price $75-$175). Set Up Your Appointment Today.

Remembering the Old Economics Adage:  “There is No Such Thing as a Free Lunch”

So many of our patients are getting out of pain and getting fit.  Fitness includes everything from increasing cardiovascular health to losing some unnecessary fat.  The idea of getting fit after perhaps “hibernating” all winter can be a grueling process.  At the very least it takes work.  This entire process of getting fit after allowing your body to be, shall I say, less than fit, falls into the category of “Detoxification.”  No one likes toxins.  Even the word makes me cringe.  The idea of toxins in the body is something most want to avoid (or ignore) as the case may be.

I once took a basic economics class while in my first year in under-grad at Rutgers.  The instructor said something that has stuck with me for many years.  Although he used it in a different context, I have found it to be useful as it relates to health.   He said, “There is no such thing as a free lunch.”

No Free Lunches

We all have excuses for why we ate that extra slice of pizza (or even the first slice.)  We have excuses for why we stopped exercising over the winter.  We have excuses for why we have stopped spin class, stopped meditating, stopped eating our veggies.  Regardless of the excuse, we are now out of balance.  We are out of shape and we have put on some weight (specifically fat!)  Now we have to pay.  If we do nothing, we pay with poor health and eventually disease.  If we choose to whip ourselves back into shape, it’s going to take some work.  We will need to change some bad habits, and create new pathways of discipline.

Knowledge is Power

If you would like more information on my weight loss and nutritional detoxification program, I hold a free 45-minute class here at the office (7 Globe Ct., Red Bank) just about every two weeks.  This class covers some science, some anatomy, and most importantly ways to help reach your health goals!

Here is a link from our website to learn a bit more about my weight loss program. 

Here is also a link on detoxifying baths (an easy way to begin the process of paying back some of those free lunches!)