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49er Tight End Talks Chiropractic

By On · Add Comment · In Aaron Rodgers, athletes, chiropractic, Emmitt Smith, healthy, Jerry Rice, National Football League (NFL), San Francisco 49ers, Vernon Davis
V to the M#$F%# D

You know what makes NFL football players the smartest in all professional sports? It’s their love and respect for chiropractic. That’s right! Every NFL club has its team chiropractor, and from the beginning the San Francisco 49ers have led the charge.

Who doesn’t remember Joe Montana getting adjusted before Superbowl XXIV? And Roger Craig? And Jerry Rice? Keeping in line with a long list of 49er greats, superstar tight end Vernon Davis is also a regular chiropractic client. Why, you may ask, considering that there are still a few Neanderthals that claim chiropractic is for suckers? Well in Davis’ words:

[Chiropractic] helps me to go out and perform at my very best each and every week. So that’s why I get the work done, because not only does it help, it makes it possible for me to stay healthy. I benefit by this by prolonging my career. This game is very brutal on your body–it can really tear you down. My experience with chiropractic care has taken me to a whole other level with my game, my performance on the field. I’m able to stay healthy and just play; play for a long time, and play till the end of the game.

Doesn’t ‘believe’ in chiropractic

Yes, many other NFL greats have said the same–Emmitt Smith, Jerry Rice, Ed Reed, Maurice Jones-Drew, and even last year’s Superbowl MVP, Aaron Rodgers, whose father, Ed, is a chiropractor (booyah!)

So why are these multi-million dollar athletes choosing chiropractic to stay healthy and prolong their careers? If you don’t get it by now…man, you may as well lay down your club and fossilize.

Watch the video of Vernon Davis speaking about chiropractic:

Hamstring Injuries Rampant in NFL Preseason

By On · Add Comment · In athletic trainers, back pain, chiropractic, hamstring tears, Jerry Rice, massage, National Football League (NFL), NFL Injury Surveillance System, preseason, pulled hamstring, stretching

Hamstring pulls, strains and tears can be debilitating, and they are a common injuries in professional American football.  A recent study showed that more than half the hamstring injuries in the National Football League (NFL) were caused in the preseason, and not surprisingly, positions requiring the most sprinting activity were also the most often injured.

A ten year review (1989-1998) of injury data were prospectively collected by athletic trainers for every NFL team and recorded in the NFL’s Injury Surveillance System.  Over the ten years, 1716 hamstring strains were reported with more than half (51.3%) of hamstring strains occurred during the 7-week preseason.  The most commonly injured positions were the defensive secondary, accounting for 23.1% of the injuries; the wide receivers, accounting for 20.8%; and special teams, constituting 13.0% of the injuries in the study.

This study has a few implications: First, professional athletes that require significant sprinting in their sports–baseball outfielders, track and field, soccer, etc–would be wise to adopt a preliminary warming-up period even before the preseason (typically training camp) starts.  Perhaps a structured regimen over a period of one week where physical activity is started slowly, and combined with light stretching (yoga?), chiropractic and massage to decrease the amount of ‘colder’ full-on workouts that might precede the preseason. 

Second, the athletes themselves might want to take a half page or so from the off-season training book of NFL Hall of Fame receiver, Jerry Rice.  Rice was well known for his strenuous workouts between seasons, which likely kept him in the great shape that led to his playing in 189 consecutive games.  Now his regimen might be a little much for the average NFL player, but no doubt his dedication to his body kept him injury free–along with regular chiropractic care–for 12 years!  In the NFL?  Wow!

Finally, for the non-athlete or the weekend warrior–this study should show the importance of warming up before a run, a friendly softball game, or any other activity that includes sprinting of any sort.  Hamstring injuries are not fun–and they can be stubborn healers.  Be smart and warm up right, and hopefully you’ll avoid the unpleasant experience of the strained hamstring.

*Symptoms of a pulled hamstring:

  • Sudden sharp pain at the back of the leg during exercise–most likely during sprinting or high velocity movement
  • Pain on stretching the muscle (bending forward with straight knees)
  • Pain on contracting the muscle against resistance
  • Swelling and bruising
  • If the rupture is severe a gap in the muscle may be felt

Chiropractic Superstars

By On · Add Comment · In chiropractic, chiropractor, ESPN the Magazine, Jerry Rice, low back pain, NFL, Philadelphia Phillies Cole Hamels, San Francisco 49ers, The Foundation for Chiropractic Progress (F4CP)
Two more sports superstars plugging chiropractic:

Philadelphia Phillies pitcher and World Series MVP, Cole Hamels, has been using chiropractic since 2005. He originally went to see a chiropractor for low back pain that had been plaguing him since high school. Hamels has also used chiropractic to relieve him of an elbow injury that disrupted his 2007 season.

Says Hamels, “I felt a difference right off the bat. A lot better than my physical therapy and the prescription drugs the doctors were giving me.” Hey, that’s a progressively-minded young man. Hamels also does yoga, spins (bike-riding), and has a supplement tray in the locker room filled with vitamins and fish oils. Nice.

Also speaking out for chiropractic is NFL legend and former San Francisco 49er, Jerry Rice. Rice was named the national spokesman for chiropractic by The Foundation for Chiropractic Progress (F4CP); he has been featured in full-page advertisements in ESPN the Magazine with positive statements on how chiropractic helped him become one of the greatest receivers in the game. According to the F4CP, Rice’s ESPN ad is the beginning of a comprehensive public relations effort for the chiropractic profession.

Booyah! See the video below to hear Rice’s words on how chiropractic helped him. Rice also talks about chiropractic’s role in his success on Dancing With The Stars.

Thank you Cole Hamels and thank you Jerry Rice. As more and more athletes step up and tout the miraculous benefits of safe, effective chiropractic care, the more the general public will feel inclined to try it. And the better off we’ll all be.

Copyright © 2013 Dr. Nick Campos - All Rights Reserved.