One of the key factors in maintaining a healthy lifestyle is staying physically active.  “Staying active” can mean much more than just another trip to the gym, though! With that in mind, we thought it would be fun to feature a few fun ways to stay active in the Mid-South.

Typically known for it's BBQ and blues, the Mid-South also holds many beautiful parks, trails, and opportunities to aid in maintaining a fit and healthy lifestyle, while also having fun.  Whether you’re a local or just visiting for a weekend, here are four (out of many!) great ways to get active in Memphis and the Mid-South:

Ride the Greenline
Shelby Farms Greenline is a 10.65 mile paved, urban trail that connects pedestrians and cyclists in Midtown Memphis through Shelby Farms Park to Cordova.  A rails-to-trails project that transformed an unused railroad line into one of Tennessee's favorite trails, the Greenline is one of our favorite activities in Memphis!  To learn more about the Greenline and everything else that Shelby Farms has to offer, visit the Shelby Farms website here.

Play a Round of Disc Golf
Meeman-Shelby Forest Park is home to one of the largest and most beautiful disc golf courses in the Southeast. The 36-hole, wooded course is divided into two 18-hole courses that offer beginners and advanced players a challenging game.  

In addition to Disc Golf, Shelby Forest Park also offers paddling, biking, boating, fishing and much more, making it more than worth the trip!  For more info on disc golf and all the park has to offer, check out their website here.

Hit the Treetops
If you’ve been to Shelby Farms Park recently, you may have noticed people scaling Go Ape’s intricate set-up of platforms, ropes, and nets with multiple zip lines hovering across Pine Lake.  It’s one thing to observe or read about this adventure course.  It’s an entirely different thing to experience it, though!  

If you're looking for a unique and adventurous way to get some exercise and enjoy the great outdoors, we highly recommend you try Go Ape!  For more info, check out their website here.  

Visit the Memphis Zoo
Regular cardio, at any speed, can help promote a healthy lifestyle. Situated on 70 acres and boasting more than 3,500 animals, the Memphis Zoo is the perfect destination for a day trip with the family, while also getting your steps in!  Known nationally as one of the nation's top zoos, the Memphis Zoo is definitely worth checking out.  Click here to plan your trip!

The Bluff City is so fortunate to have many options for the outdoor lover.  If you're looking for even more ideas, this article has some great additional options to explore.  We'd love for you to let us know your favorites in the comments below!  

Please let us introduce you to one of our newest additions to The Smith Clinic Staff:  Phillip Franklin.  Originally coming to us as an intern from The University of Memphis, Phillip is now a full time member of The Smith Clinic staff, and we couldn't be more delighted! 

In an effort to help you get to know Phillip a little better, we did a little Q & A with him. Check out Phillip's story below:

Q: Where are you from?
A: I am originally from Memphis,TN. Born and raised. 

Q: Education?
I graduated from White station High School in 2014 and decided to further my education by staying home to attend the University of Memphis. I spent the next 4 years graduating with a B.S. Degree in Exercise Sports Movement Science in the School of Public Health Studies. 

Q: Do you have any hobbies?
A: I have to find the time for hobbies as I have 2 jobs that pretty much occupy most of of my time. When I can get away, I like to go to the gym, cook tasty meals, and vacation with my girlfriend, Stephanie. 

Q: Favorite thing about Memphis?
A: Memphis is like a melting pot. It has everything and everyone you can think of. Each part of Memphis is unique. If I had to pick a certain thing that I love about Memphis has got to be the food. Locals that have their own businesses have all their own unique foods that each of us crave. You can get about anything you want anywhere from them and they all have their own special flavors that cater to our stomachs! You can catch me at Central BBQ, India Palace, or The Wing Guru. 

Q: Favorite thing about The Smith Clinic?
A: Never thought a working place could feel so much like home. The Smith Clinic is very team oriented and has an AMAZING family atmosphere. I almost forget that I am working when I am helping each patient with their care. From the moment you walk through those doors, you are immediately welcomed with a genuine smile and a huge hello! It’s just amazing the stories that come through the doors each and everyday.Every patient I have met, young or old, inspires me to do a little more. We always have a couple laughs here and there during sessions. Each patient we handle, we try to provide the best possible care and have them leave feeling satisfied and with a smile until the next time they come back. Not a day goes by that we don’t cherish and love one another that we meet everyday. 

Q: Why did you chose PT as a career path?
A: I chose PT because when I was in high school I was running cross country and track, and in between seasons getting ready for track in the winter, both of my legs were experiencing IT Band Syndrome. To start my runs, I would have to hobble and skip. I would clinch my teeth, as I would be cutting around corners and going up hills, and all I could feel was a sharp knife pain digging into my knee. Finally, I decided to seek some help by going to physical therapy. I still laugh about this day, as I went to track practice after my very 1st PT session feeling great! That was me being stubborn and not thinking that I just needed to take some time off to heal. I really took things in perspective, when I realized there were a lot of exercises that I use to be strong in, were now very weak. I needed PT to re-strengthen the muscles I tore down. Even if my PT sessions were only a hour long, the care that I received was tremendous, as they were always paying attention to me and hands on throughout. Soon enough after healing, I ran my fastest mile time by the end of my senior season. That is what has fed my drive to be a profession in the field. 

Q: Any additional thoughts?
A: It is honestly a very heart warming feeling that I planted my own little seed in helping a patients recovery. The patients put in all the work, but with just a little help from us at the Smith Clinic, we make them feel brand new again!

We are so excited to have Phillip as a part of The Smith Clinic Family!  

Did you know the human head weighs an average of 10-11 pounds? Grab two 5 pound bags of sugar or think about a 10 pound bowling ball...that is how much weigh is perched up there on your neck! Knowing this, it makes sense that your neck may have problems from time to time.

One of the most frequent conditions involving your neck bones is a bulging disc. Between each vertebrae is a gel-filled disc that acts as a shock absorber and helps the spine move. A damaged disc, may bulge, pushing backwards into the spinal canal. The disc usually bulges toward one side of the canal (either right or left), which is why people with a bulging disc are likely to have pain and tingling on just one side of the body.

A bulging disc in your neck may be relatively painless, but it can also cause severe pain in your neck, as well as your shoulders, chest, and arms. Additionally, it may cause numbness or weakness in your arms or fingers. Sometimes, this pain and numbness may even cause you to think that you’re having a heart attack.
Degenerative disc disease is the most common cause of bulging discs, often resulting in spinal osteoarthritis. Other factors that can cause or contribute to bulging discs include:

• strain or injury
• obesity
• smoking
• poor posture
• inactivity

If you have pain that could be from a bulging disc, your doctor will give you a physical exam. You’re also likely to have one or more imaging tests. Fortunately, there are several ways to treat a bulging disc:

• Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as ibuprofen are the first-line prescription medications for a bulging disc
• Physical therapy (PT) 
• At-home traction devices 
• Cortisone injections (known as epidural steroid injections, or ESI) into the spine can provide longer-term relief.

Are you experiencing pain in your neck?  Don't delay in seeking medical attention, as it can lead to more serious (and possibly untreatable) conditions.  Call us today to schedule an evaluation and start on your journey back to health! 

If you’re like many, you’ve struggled to stick with exercise plans in the past. You’re busy, life is crazy, and it’s hard to find an hour or so a day to exercise.  Maybe you’re tired of starting exercise plans that you can’t follow through with. You start…but you can’t seem to stick with it, and then you feel like a failure.  

What if we told you that the problem isn't YOU? What if we told you the problem is the outdated belief that workouts have to be long, brutal, and sweaty in order to be worthwhile? Or that the problem is trying to fit yourself into a model of exercise that just doesn’t work for you and your needs?  Well, we're here to tell you that you, in fact, are NOT the problem!  There IS a better way.

You’ve likely heard about HIIT, or high-intensity interval training, and there’s a reason you've heard about it: it really works!  HIIT is a training technique in which you give all-out, one hundred percent effort through quick, intense bursts of exercise, followed by short, sometimes active, recovery periods. This type of training gets and keeps your heart rate up and burns more fat in less time.

Contrary to popular belief, you don't have to go slog it out at the gym for 30 or 45 minutes to get the results you are looking for.  In fact, working out for just 15-20 minutes (yes, 15!) comes with an abundance of health benefits, from upping your calorie burn and whipping your body into shape, to lowering your risk of certain diseases and even adding years on to your life. That's right, these quick sweat sessions are no joke. Need more convincing?  Here are several more reasons to start carving out 15 minutes of your day:

1. QUICK RESULTS
Researchers recently found that a 10-minute workout, with just one minute at high-intensity, had the same benefits as 45 minutes of jogging.  One group of study participants did a two-minute warm-up on a stationary bike, followed by a 20-second sprint, then rode slowly for two minutes. They repeated that sequence two more times for a total of 10 minutes. Another group just rode steadily on the bike for 45 minutes. After 12 weeks, both groups showed a 20 percent increase in cardiovascular endurance.

2. BURN MORE CALORIES
HIIT workouts, which usually lasts just four to 15 minutes, can also give you more "bang for your buck" in terms of calorie burn. In a study published in the journal Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, those who did 13 minutes of HIIT burned more calories per minute and increased their VO2 max by 12.5 percent more than those who did steady-state cardio for 40 minutes. More payoff in half the time? Sign me up!

3. LIVE LONGER
Just 15 minutes of exercise per day could actually increase your lifespan. Scientists actually studied participants over a 12-year period and found that those who exercised at a low level (or the equivalent of a 15-minute brisk walk) were 22 percent less likely to die during the study period than those who didn’t exercise at all. In addition, participants who exercised at medium and high levels reduced their risk of death by 28 percent and 35 percent, respectively.

4. MANAGE WEIGHT
The calorie-burning benefits of even the shortest strength-training bout keep coming long after you've left the gym. In one study, researchers found that when volunteers did just one set of nine exercises, or about 11 minutes of strength training, three days a week, they increased their resting metabolic rate (the calories burned when just hanging out) and fat burning enough to keep unwanted weight at bay.

5. STAY YOUNG
HIIT can have a profound effect on aging at the cellular level. The older you get, the less efficient your energy-producing mitochondria become. In fact, when three groups of exercisers were analyzed over 12 weeks—one that did high-intensity aerobic interval training, one that did resistance training, and one that did a combination of the two—they found that those who did HIIT actually reversed that age-related degeneration. Translation: Their mitochondria actually worked like those of much younger people. 

6. BOOST BRAIN POWER
You know working out is good for your body, but you probably don’t think too much about how good it is for your brain, too. Actually, just 10 minutes of exercise can boost your brainpower for a short time afterward, according to a recent study published in the journal Neuropsychologia. The researchers found that study participants who rode a stationary bike at a moderate to vigorous pace for 10 minutes answered questions 50 milliseconds faster after exercising than they did before, a 14 percent increase in cognitive performance.
Need a brain boost stat? Try this 15-minute workout for stronger abs. 

7. LOWER YOUR RISK OF CERTAIN DISEASES
Obviously, all exercise has health benefits. But according to a study published in JAMA Internal Medicine, participating in 75 minutes of vigorous activity per week can decrease your risk of getting cancer or cardiovascular disease. That’s just 12.5 minutes a day.

8. DON'T WORRY, BE HAPPY
Everyone knows about exercise and endorphins. But science actually says that just one hour of exercise per week (that’s less than 10 minutes a day) could prevent up to 12 percent of depression cases.  One study published in American Journal of Psychiatry followed more than 22,000 healthy adults who did not have symptoms of anxiety or depression for about 11 years. In the end, researchers found the people who reported not exercising at the beginning of the study were 44 percent more likely to become depressed versus those who spent one to two hours working out each week. 

 So there it is - no more excuses!  15 minutes a day is definitely achievable and, if you combine with a healthy eating plan, you'll be knocking your healthy and weight loss goals out of the park in no time at all!

​Baking is comfort food, not just for the end result, but just by way of the process. The meditative work of whisking and watching ingredients combine from the ground up, to the aromatherapy of flavors swirling through the air and that final moment of pulling your baked goods from the oven, it is pure comfort.  And the good news is:  it doesn't have to be unhealthy to taste good!  

If you love to bake but try your best to eat clean, then this Chocolate Chip Banana Bread is for you!  It is the perfect combo of warm and cozy meets decadent, is delicious, and it is perfect for breakfast, as a snack or even a dessert treat.  Try it....you won't be disappointed!  

Chocolate Chip Banana Bread
Ingredients

• Dry:
• 2 c whole wheat flour
• 1 cup coconut sugar
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon, optional
• 3/4 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 3/4 tsp salt
• Wet:
• 1/3 cup + 1 Tbsp coconut oil
• 1/3 cup non-dairy milk
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 extra-ripe large bananas, mashed
• Fold in:
• 1/2 - 3/4 cup chocolate chips 

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 415 degrees. Grease a loaf baking dish very well with any oil.
2. Add all the dry ingredients to a large mixing bowl. stir well to combine.
3. Add the water, non-dairy milk and coconut oil to a small bowl. Place it in the microwave for about thirty seconds. Remove from microwave and stir until the coconut oil is just about fully melted.
4. Pour the oil mixture into the dry bowl and whisk for a few strokes. Then add in the vinegar and vanilla. Whisk again until smooth and fluffy. Finally, add the mashed bananas and stir well. Fold in the chocolate chips.
5. Pour the batter into your loaf pan.
6. Bake at 415 for 15 minutes. Then lower the temperature to 350 and bake for another 35 minutes until cooked through. Use the toothpick test to check for doneness.
7. Cool for at least twenty minutes before removing loaf from pan and slicing to serve.

Yield: 1 loaf

Spring is (hopefully) just around the corner, and the cold will soon be on its way out!  For many people, spring is the time to get up and get outside to actively enjoy the sunshine. While an active lifestyle is encouraged, if you “spring” into activity too fast there could be some serious consequences.  With that in mind, here are some friendly reminders to play it safe:

Build Gradually
If it has been some time since participating in an activity, slowly ease back into it to reduce the risk of an injury. Light exercise, like leisurely walking, can help build stamina. Gradually increase the intensity level before you actively jump into a new activity. It is important to be comfortable with moderately intense physical activity  before participating in a vigorous activity.

Hard Day, Easy Day
Maximum gains in conditioning are best obtained when appropriate rest is allowed along with exercise.  Inadequate rest increases the probability of sustaining an injury, therefore, an intense workout should be followed by a lighter workout the next day. Always remember that your body makes gains in strength and endurance during recovery. If you don't provide time for recovery, the body can break down.

Warm Up and Stretch
Warming up and stretching go hand in hand, but it is important to remember that they are different from one another. Sports injuries are most commonly caused by improper warm ups. Warm up with a low level activity  like jump rope or jumping jacks before you stretch. Warm ups raise muscle temperatures, which prepare the whole body for physical activity, and thus reduces the risk of a sports injury. Warm up for a minimum of 5 to 10 minutes so the body can prepare for an activity.

Stretching improves blood circulation, in turn increasing flexibility, and continue to raise muscle temperatures after a warm up. When you stretch, hold each stretch for 20-30 seconds. Each stretch should only be done once. If a person stretches a muscle before a proper warm up, the muscle will still be cold, and make the person more susceptible to injury.

Use Proper Techniques
Many sports require the use of different techniques. Learn the correct technique that is associated with a sport to lessen the risk of sports-related injuries to tendons, bones, and muscles. If you are unsure of what techniques you are supposed to use, talk with your coach or ask a professional to help you.

Recognize the Symptoms of Overuse Injuries
Overuse injuries can be prevented if you are familiar with the progression of injury, in addition to modifying your workout prior to the onset of injury. Overuse injuries usually progress through stages, which include:

• Benevolent pain is good pain that is a normal result of overload within a conditioning program. This type of pain is present after activity, but is absent by the time of the next day's practice or is relieved by warm-up.
• Semi-harmful pain indicates that you are starting to get in trouble. Semi-harmful pain is pain that is partially relieved by warm-up.  It is present during activity but performance is not noticeably reduced. When semi-harmful pain is recognized, your conditioning program should be cut back and the treatment regimen described below should be followed. If the pain lasts more than one week, or is severe, get medical attention.
• Harmful pain indicates that you are in trouble. With this type of pain, performance is noticeably reduced and is not relieved by rest. A period of rest and medical attention will likely be required before continuing a conditioning program.

Treatment
In the unfortunate event that you do obtain an injury, we recommend using treating using RICE+AR:
Rest- Determine a level of exercise, which produces only benevolent pain, and provides relative rest. This may require complete rest from the exercise program for a few days or possibly cross training with a different sport.
Ice- Apply an ice pack several times a day for about 15 minutes at a time. This is especially important during the first 24 to 48 hours after injury.
Compression- Apply an elastic wrap with comfortably firm pressure during and after ice application. Remove the wrap during sleep.
Elevation- Elevate the injured area above the level of the heart whenever possible.  
Anti-inflammatory- Medication such as aspirin or ibuprofen can also be used to assist in the reduction of the inflammation.
Re-conditionstretching and a gradual progression to strength training and gradual return to activity. If improvement is not felt in three to five days, please contact us for an evaluation to avoid further injury.  

The most effective treatment for spring related injury is prevention. Your brain may be telling you that you’re pumped to get outside and give it all you’ve got, but your body could be telling you otherwise. Take it slow while the body adjusts, and make sure to use suitable equipment. Should you find yourself with an injury, however, don't delay in contacting us for an evaluation, so you can quickly return to your activity injury-free!

Living a healthy lifestyle doesn’t mean hours of training at the gym and eating only salad leaves. It’s about making easy-to-manage healthy choices in your day-to-day living. When it comes to adopting new healthy habits and making them stick, there are lots of little things you can do that will make a big difference in the long run (and not make you crazy in the process). So, instead of trying to upgrade your health with a huge makeover, try these nine small, practically painless moves instead for long-lasting results.

1. Eat a variety of foods!  For good health, we need more than 40 different nutrients, and it is not about a single food or meal, but a balanced food choice over time that will make a difference.  
2. Ease yourself into getting more sleep with five-minute increments.  Completely abandoning your to-do list, whether it’s business or personal, to go to sleep three hours earlier just isn't realistic. Instead, try going to bed five minutes earlier each night (or every few nights, if this is really tough for you) until you hit the seven to nine hours the National Sleep Foundation recommends for adults.
3. Replace saturated with unsaturated fat!  Fats are important for good health and proper functioning of the body. However, too much of it can negatively affect our weight and cardiovascular health. Some of these tips could help us keep the balance right:

• We should limit the consumption of total and saturated fats (often coming from foods of animal origin), and completely avoid trans fats; reading the labels helps to identify the sources.
• Eating fish 2-3 times a week, with at least one serving of oily fish, will contribute to our right intake of unsaturated fats.
• When cooking, we should boil, steam or bake, rather than frying, remove the fatty part of meat, use vegetable oils.

4. Enjoy plenty of fruits and vegetables!  Fruits and vegetables are among the most important foods for giving us enough vitamins, minerals and fibre. We should try to eat at least 5 servings a day. Perhaps an apple and a piece of watermelon as snacks, and a good portion of different vegetables at each meal.
5. Reduce salt and sugar intake!  A high salt intake can result in high blood pressure, and increase the risk of cardiovascular disease. Here are a few different ways to reduce salt in the diet:

• When shopping, choose products with lower sodium content.
• When cooking, salt can be substituted with spices, increasing the variety of flavours and tastes.
• When eating, it helps not to have salt at the table, or at least not to add salt before tasting.

As for sugar, it provides sweetness and an attractive taste, but sugary foods and drinks are rich in energy, and are best enjoyed in moderation, as an occasional treat. We could use fruits instead, even to sweeten our foods and drinks.
6. Eat regularly and control the portion size.  Eating a variety of foods, regularly, and in the right amounts is the best formula for a healthy diet.  Skipping meals, especially breakfast, can lead to out-of-control hunger, often resulting in helpless overeating. Snacking between meals can help control hunger, but snacking should not replace proper meals. For snacks, we could choose yogurt, a handful of fresh or dried fruits or vegetables (like carrot sticks), unsalted nuts, or perhaps some bread with cheese.  Paying attention to portion size will help us not to consume too much calories, and will allow us to eat all the foods we enjoy, without having to eliminate any.
7. Drink plenty of water!  Hydration is very important because, well, our bodies are made up of a whole lot of water!  Water is the best way to stay hydrated, and it's also calorie-free!  How much water is enough? According to the World Health Organization, the minimum water requirement for a 70 kg human (154 pounds) is three liters (100 ounces) per day. But, to keep things simple, we suggest aiming for eight, 12-ounce glasses of water per day (96 ounces).
8. Maintain a healthy body weight!  The right weight for each us depends on factors like our gender, height, age, and genes. Being overweight increases the risks of a wide range of diseases, including diabetes, heart diseases, and cancer.  Excess body fat comes from eating more than we need. The message is reasonably simple: if we are gaining weight, we need to eat less and be more active!
9. Get on the move, make it a habit!  Physical activity is important for people of all weight ranges and health conditions. It helps us burn off the extra calories, is good for the heart and circulatory system, maintains or increases our muscle mass, helps us focus, and improves overall health well-being. We don't have to be top athletes to get on the move.  150 minutes per week of moderate physical activity is advised, and it can easily become part of our daily routine. Suggestions include:

• use the stairs instead of the elevator,
• go for a walk during lunch breaks (and stretch in our offices in between)
• make time for a family weekend activity

Don't wait...Start now! And keep changing gradually.  Gradual changes in our lifestyle are easier to maintain than major changes introduced all at once. While maintaining a healthy lifestyle takes work, perseverance and consistency pay off and keep you from spiraling back into old, unhealthy habits.