Dr. Yogitaa Mandhyaan

Exercising should not a dreaded but enjoyed. Exercising in the water can be as challenging and intense as any other form of exercise but without the sweating. Aquatic exercises are ideal for every age and especially beneficial to those with injuries and joint limitations like arthritis. Exercising in water also helps with weight loss and stress management. If you want a reason to start exercising in water, here are three: 

Increases flexibility
Water is unpredictable in its movements. When exercising in water, the body has to push against water and faces water resistance. This resistance can be up to 42 times more than the resistance you would encounter when exercising on land. Thus while adjusting to the push and pull of water, the body is forced to move in various directions. This helps increase the range of motions in all the joints. The upward thrust of water or buoyancy also negates the effect of gravity and cushions the body. This reduces strain on weight bearing joints, muscles, ligaments and tendons. As a result, the body becomes more flexible. 

Low impact
One of the biggest differences between exercising on land and exercising in water is the impact of the exercise on joints. For example, running on land puts a lot of stress on your knees. However, if you were to run in water, your knees would not make you cry in pain. This is because of the buoyancy of water. By cushioning your body, it supports half your body weight and thus makes you bear only half your body weight. This reduces the impact on your joints and makes exercising in water appealing to those with joint problems or those undergoing physical rehabilitation after an injury. 

Makes the heart work efficiently
Water has a unique property that makes it makes the heart work more efficiently. By pushing against he entire body surface, the hydrostatic pressure aids in the flow of blood from the all parts of the body to the heart and thus improves blood circulation. This puts less stress on your heart muscles. Thus by exercising in water, you can lower your blood pressure and heart rate. 
Apart from these benefits, exercising in water also helps build endurance and increases muscle strength.  It is also one of the most cooling and enjoyable ways to burn calories. It would be rare for you to be in a pool all by yourself and hence exercising in water is also a social exercise. So when are you stepping into the pool? 

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300 Calories is the average calorific value of our daily sugar intake. It's no wonder then that dietician and weight loss gurus across the world will advise you to quit added sugar as the first step of a weight loss program. Added sugar refers to processed sugar in the form of cubes, sugar crystals or powdered sugar and does not include natural sugars found in fruits, vegetables etc. Apart from cakes and sweets, we eat added sugar in a number of ways including a number of packaged foods like sauce and salad dressings.

If you consume a lot of sugar on a daily basis, quitting added sugar could leave you with withdrawal symptoms. Quitting added sugar is not easy, but here are a few reasons it is well worth the effort.

1. You'll have fewer pimples: Sugar has inflammatory properties. This can trigger systemic inflammation leading to the acne. Thus quitting sugar can instantly reduce the number of pimples on your face and give you clearer skin.
2. It improves the health of your heart: Added sugar can raise insulin levels. This activates the sympathetic nervous system and increases blood pressure and heart rate. Stopping your consumption of added sugar can lower cholesterol levels and decrease the amount of triglycerides in the body. This lowers blood pressure and boosts cardiovascular health.
3. A friendly weight scale: Replacing toffees with dry fruits will considerably reduce your calorific intake. Similarly switching packaged salad dressing for fresh homemade dressing can also make your salad healthier. Given that we eat added sugar in so many forms, making a conscious decision to quit added sugar can have a big impact on your daily calorie intake. Studies show that this simple step can lead to a weight loss of up to 10 pounds in six months.
4. It'll make remembering names easier: Added sugar can hinder learning and memory. Over time, it can also damage communication between brain cells. Quitting sugar can boost both your short term as well as long term memory. You will also find it easier to focus on will be able to be attentive to something for longer periods of time.
5. A good night's sleep: You don't just need 8 hours of sleep a day; you need 8 hours of restful sleep at the right time. Sugar makes blood sugar fluctuate and the crash that follows a sugar high can make you feel sluggish around mid-day. Many people find that if they have an afternoon nap, it becomes more difficult for them to fall asleep at night. Sugar also releases cortisol that interferes with sleep. Thus quitting added sugar can keep you alert through the day and help you fall asleep easier at the end of the day.

In case you have a concern or query you can always consult an expert & get answers to your questions!

Concentrated pain in the neck can be especially tormenting. Before you look for a cure for this pain and start treating it, it is important that you try and find out the underlying cause behind it as well. Contacting a physiotherapist in time will allow you not only to avoid any and every side effect posed by neck pain, but also assist you to get good riddance from it.

Causes of Neck Pain:
There can be multiple causes of neck pain. The treatment of the same depends wholly on the factor that is causing the pain. Some of these causes of neck pain include

1. Misaligned hips,
2. Misaligned Spine,
3. Misaligned shoulders,
4. A constantly forward-tilted head,
5. Lack of movement of the head from one specific position,
6. Tensing up of the muscles in the upper back,
7. Tensing up of the muscles in the neck region, etc.
8. It is all these factors and a few more that end up resulting in stiffening of muscles in and around the neck and causing you intermediate to unbearable pain.

Side effects of neck pain:
Neck pain also has some side effects, which includes temporary loss of consciousness, nausea, vomiting, blackouts, temporarily blurred vision, headache, spondylitis, etc.

Exercises for neck pain:
Neck exercises are a predominant part of the treatment extended by every physiotherapist, to cure neck pain. Some of the most vital and effective exercises for neck pain are listed below.

1. Frog: Funny as it way sounds, the frog is one of the best exercises when it comes to treating neck pain. All you have to do is lie down on the floor with your knees apart, your feet joined, your hands laid upward on the floor at a 45-degree angle to your body and just stay there in that position for two minutes. This will force your back to arch naturally, slowly giving some relief to your neck.
2. Sitting floor: Try sitting floor for neck pain. All you have to do is sit straight with your back rested on a wall, with your legs laid straight forward. Bring together your shoulder blades and bend to help them meet your knees while curling the toes outward to optimal. Stay in this position for a good 3 minutes, without bending the legs.
3. Static wall: Lie down on the floor with your bottom against a wall and your legs up it. You can always scoot back a bit if there is the slightest of discomfort. The aim here is to help the tail bone lie comfortably on the floor. Tighten your thigh muscles but curling your toes outward and pointing your feet straight out from its previous position. Maintain this position for 3 minutes for maximum effect.
4. Static back: The static back is the most common and most helpful exercise for neck pain. All you got to do is lie down on the floor, while placing your legs on an elevated surface, such as an ottoman or a chair at a 45-degree angle to your body. Now put your arms at an angle of 45 degrees to your body as well, only sideways on your shoulder. Follow this position by lifting your palms and staying in that position for five to ten minutes.

All these exercises are aimed to positively influence one muscle or the other in and around the neck region and to help you get rid of that pain. Consult a physiotherapist first, and he/she will advise you on the best neck pain exercises. In case you have a concern or query you can always consult an expert & get answers to your questions!

Frozen shoulder (also known as adhesive capsulitis) is a condition in which the shoulder is stiff, painful, and has limited motion in all directions. A person suffering from a frozen shoulder can be pretty uncomfortable.

Frozen shoulder treatment should be done immediately once it has been detected. Stretching exercises are considered as the best-frozen shoulder treatment exercises. A proper warm up becomes very necessary before any exercise. Making the area warm by using a heating pad is one of the warm-up methods. However, a warm shower covers it all. Physiotherapy for frozen shoulder includes various exercises that should be first confirmed by a doctor. There are a number of exercises for frozen shoulder.

Some very important frozen shoulder exercises are listed below:

1. Pendulum Stretch: To start with, you can do the pendulum stretch. This dictates that the shoulders should be in a state of relaxation, initially, following which the arm which is affected should be allowed to hang down slightly. Once this is done, the arm is to be swung in a small circle i.e. about a foot in diameter. This is to be done consistently so that there can be a gradual improvement in the condition. As there is an improvement, the size of the circle can be increased and once the shoulder can take sufficient weight again, minor weights (up to five pounds) can be used.
2. Finger Walk: A simple exercise which can be done almost anywhere is the finger walk. What this exercise entails is that the person stands about three-fourths of an arm’s length away from a wall and then places his or her fingers on the wall itself, at around the level of the waist. The fingers are to crawl or walk up the wall till the point that it becomes a little uncomfortable. While this is just one repetition, after the fingers have been lowered, it is to be done again. In order to have the best results in combating frozen shoulder, the finger walk exercise is to be repeated about twenty times in a day.
3. Towel Stretches: Towels do not serve a greater role apart from drying up post a bath or over the course of a visit to the spa, right? Well, this is not really true due to the fact that they can be used to even help with frozen shoulder! Indeed, towel stretches done by holding the towel with each hand across one’s back. The arm which is normal should then pull the affected arm so it is stretched. As is the case with the finger walk, about 20 repetitions a day is ideal for good results.

If one goes a step forward and follows a regime of with all these exercises, the person suffering due to frozen shoulder will be back to normal in almost no time at all!