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The Body Personified

Good Morning!

Welcome and thank you for joining us today. We hope we can inspire you with some interesting information, relevant tips and inspirational ideas to optimise your best asset in the whole world – you!

So what lies in store …

Louisa is talking about Platar fasciitis in our ‘Body of the Blog’ and will take you to the ‘Stretching corner’ (can never do too much stretching) We also offer five ways to adopt the correct posture at your desk because we all know about the ‘desk slump’ we are all prone to during the long working day.

Finally we have Laura, our resident Nutritionist, giving us some ‘Thought Fullness’.

BODY OF THE BLOG

Plantar fasciitis – Louisa Bennett

Plantar fasciitis is the most common cause of heel pain. It has been found to affect 10/15% of the population. The pain is normally worse first thing in the morning or when you take your first step after being inactive.

Common risk factors of Plantarfasciitis include having a high instep or flatfoot, wearing flat soled shoes such as flip flops, having a job that involves prolonged standing and having a high BMI (>30).

90% of cases are successfully treated conservatively. Below are some ways you can help aid recovery.

• Avoid excessive walking and prolonged standing.
• Freeze a bottle of water and roll the sole of the foot.
• Wear shoes with cushioned insoles and good arch support
• Calf and plantar fasciitis stretches (see below)

Pull toes up and massage along the arch of your foot.

Place one leg behind the other and lean your body forward without bending the back knee until you feel a stretch in your back calf. Hold for 30 seconds.

Place one leg behind the other and slowly bend the knees while keeping heels on the floor until you feel a stretch in the calf of the back leg. Hold 30 seconds.

Extend your toes against the wall and try to bring your knee towards the wall until you feel a gentle stretch under the foot. Your physiotherapist can assist and confirm the diagnosis, assess and treat any bio mechanical factors which may contribute to your condition.

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5 Ways to improve your desk posture

• Top of monitor at eye level or just below.
• Monitor roughly 1 arm length away.
• Your keyboard should be one hand width away from desk edge and the mouse position right next to keyboard.
• Adjust chair height so shoulders can relax and elbows at 90 degrees.
• Short, frequent breaks to change posture.

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The Stretching Corner

Stretching Corner

Name: Child’s Pose
Benefits: Stretches spine, ankles, shoulders and thighs.

• Start in a kneeling position.
• Lower your buttocks down to sit onto your heels and walk your hands forward
• In the fully stretched position, rest your arms in a relaxed position along the floor, rest your stomach comfortably on top of your thighs, and rest your forehead on the mat.

You should feel a mild stretch in your shoulders and buttocks and down the length of your spine and arms.

**Avoid this exercise if you have knee problems**

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Thought Fullness

What is the perfect diet? And as a dietitian do I eat it?!

Often quizzed at dinner parties or under scrutiny with after mouthful that passes my lips, being a dietitian can give rise to a stressful social life.

What a good dietitian should do is tailor advice to the individual taking into account up to date evidence and put in context with someone’s medical conditions, lifestyle, and all sorts of other factors related to why we eat what we eat.

Nutrition is an evolving science if we thought we knew everything we would stop researching! There has been a surge in dietary advice, shared via social media channels by all sorts of self-styled experts. It has confused people, in some cases inspired them but above all has put nutrition on the map for better or worse! Bloggers are now sited as being more influential than health care professionals in the health choices we make!

When deciding on the best dietary advice to give we do have to look at evidence one study done on a handful of people does not pave the way for recommendations to avoid x, y or z at all costs (despite what the headlines suggest).

We look at lots of research compiled and critiqued and draw conclusions from it. There is an art to this and poorly interpreted research can cause a whole lot of bother! Wacky statements and fear mongering around certain food groups is not helpful so always challenge what you read. Check credentials and also seek professional advice ideally from a registered dietitian like me.

More on the blog (www.lecnutrition.co.uk/blog) via Facebook and Twitter @lecnutrition and of course through the SW19 Physio blog/

Images Food navigator, Huffingtonpost, weheartit