Take
care of your legs and your legs will take care of you.
I came home and said I am going to take matters into my own hands or at least try. Last summer I went for my annual check up and of course Doc had the notation in my file concerning my knee. He rotated it, he listened and found nothing, the knee was normal. He looked at me in a strange manner. I started to laugh and told him what I had been doing with my knee in the last year. He put his head down and just went on with the routine examination and said "How's your plumbing?"
This feature is closely to related to our recent experience with my wife's knee replacement as she wasn't as lucky as I was.... http://www.blueeyedcurse.com/Kneereplace.htm feature and you may want to check it out.
Lets get started with what you can do
to take care of your legs
Cushion your feet before it is too
late
Prepare in advance by cushioning your feet on tile and
any hard surface is smartest thing you can do. We had a Romanian tile setter that told us after
he got done doing tile work for us. "Get a pair of comfortable easy to get
into shoes/slippers, because if you don't this tile will kill your legs and in
particular your knees" That was 20 years ago and my wife and I have
walking on our tile most of the time in our stocking feet. Don't let that
happen to you. Learn from our mistakes.
Numero Uno
I asked someone the other day what was the most important part or section of their body? Most people will respond with the heart. I follow up with a loaded question "If you are suffering from poor circulation in your lower extremities that are eating your bones and cartilage etc. up alive, creating huge amounts of wastes, how long will it take before your heart fails along with your entire cardiovascular system?"
Last loaded question is "If you neglect your lower extremities and have to have an operation on a knee or hip and experience a blood clot as many do that finds its way to the heart, lungs, brain etc. then how would you rank taking care of your lower extremities now? Would you put it on the top of your priority list?" If you are a little hesitant, let's throw in these deadly staph infections that are running rampart in the hospitals today after going under the knife. Read recently where there was a comment that if you had to go to hospital it was like getting "Death sentence". Are you leaning to taking care of your lower extremities now?
Misconception
Let's clear up a misconception right from the start of this feature and one we strongly believe in. There is no question people with lower extremity problems, from the hips down to the toes can be a result of a multitude of causes. Injuries for one, old age reasons for another as in arthritis, cartilage erosion as described above and to the left. There are the bone spurs, meniscus issues, repetitive activity concentrating in one area, creating an imbalance, muscles in particular and of course dietary considerations including the right alkaline liquids to drink to flush out the wastes that accompany all of these problems. If you don't drink enough of the right liquids and we will cover this below, just get ready to eventually schedule a knee replacement leading to a hip job as well. It is inevitable and blood clots and staph infections could hop aboard for the ride.
Of course Alzheimer's can come along and clog up your brain with all of the debris wandering around and solving all of your concerns about the pitfalls. Alzheimer's "saves" a lot of people from the degeneration and di-habilitation of the lower extremities, because they don't last that long. The Alzheimer's devil saves the day and puts you out of your potential misery.
The first thing most of those that are afflicted try to seek help that can target the particular area that is involved, such as the knee/knees.
Our
theory and it is backed up with professional information is that in most cases
the underlying problems are caused by a general breakdown in the area and in
some cases the entire area from the hip down and in a good percentage of cases
it is muscle related. Again this doesn't mean that
you do not have specific issues. Again it is the muscles that have
created the problem in many cases, by simply weakening the area. No matter
what your problems are, it will be smart to address the circulation of the
entire area from the hips down, that includes the major muscle complexes.
This does involve exercises and some weights to build up these areas, but
best done under the direction of a therapist that knows what they are doing.
The question is how do you approach the situation? In some cases getting your legs back to a decent condition is all you need, perhaps not as you were as a kid, but enough to function with much less discomfort and enough to keep you out of the operating room. In fact increasing the condition of your legs could lead to self healing as I related at the start of this feature and you owe it to your legs to try.
We have recently discovered that the intense rehab that we have been involved in on the recent replacement for one knee has spun off on the other leg, as we were strongly advised to work this leg at the same time we were rehabbing the new replacement knee/leg. We believe that tending to the other leg diligently could have many long term benefits. The least would be preparing for a replacement. The better condition this ailing leg, the shorter and better recovery.
Lets face it most people would not do the necessary due diligence in their rehab if it wasn't for the knee replacement. My wife's general condition overall has improved greatly and keeping up the regimen to keep the knees limber and loose with great range of motion will pay dividends for the rest of her life from her head to her toes. You talk about a twist of fate. In fact hopefully I am not looking at knee replacements, but with what she went through I have increased my due diligence in the exercise department. I use the same devices she uses.
Back to the knees.
A couple of examples would be muscle break down in the quadriceps, hamstrings
and calves that support the whole
area. Those doogiggers illustrated on your right top and bottom attached and
wrapped over your knees are not there for cosmetic purposes. The
break down is usually the result of
poor circulation and not enough of the right exercises and other therapies
professional and home and we get deeply involved in all of them, so hang on and
let this old fruit peddler try to keep you out of the operating room.
There
is one more critical issue that we cover regarding the sheaths that are
connected to the muscles and the sheaths are what are attached to the bones.
It is not the bones that raise and lower your legs or allow you to run, it is
the muscles and although bones can become inflamed it is the muscles that have
to be addressed and to be very careful that you do not do anything aggressive
next to the bone. An example of that would be my particular problem, shin
splints. If you go down the leg on each side you will feel the muscle on
the outside and if you gradually work closer to the bone you will see where it
basically attaches to the bone. I had a bad habit of taking a vibrator
that is demonstrated below in the feature and passing it rather aggressively
next to and some times on top of the bone area, just where the muscle and
the sheath
join
the bone. This was in areas where there was little if any in meat.
If you are wondering what a sheath looks like, think of the bones you buy for
the dog. That white membrane to the right is the sheath and it can be
easily aggravated and in some cases damaged. Even massaging with your
hands aggressively too close to the bones where the muscle connects to the
sheath can be damaging. You want to work the muscles and improve
circulation within the muscles. If you do this, benefits will soon arrive
at the sheaths and bone.
Sure you may have knee problems, but not searching for the underlying cause is analogous to folks with cholesterol problems, that go to the Doctor and obtain dangerous medications and continue their lives as before, pigging out on foods cooked at high temperatures and washing them down with soda pop or booze, without taking new measures to address the underlying problems.
Poor circulation develops in the blood, lymph,
synovial and electrical
network, usually a combination of all 4. When this happens nutrients along
with their healing powers cannot find their way to where they are needed and the critical wastes are not
removed with poor circulation. In the case of electrical problems, nerve
damage results and this is addressed below. Nerve damage can have a very
serious consequence on parts of your body that may not be close to the area of
question. The brain being the nerve center of the body for one.
We believe and have written extensively on it that problems such as in the
knees, can create foreign materials that can wind up in your brain, hence
Alzheimer's. Could you think of a better reason to put your nose to the
grindstone?
Self Help. What can we do to help the situation?
Deterioration in the knee area is a logical happening as we age. The
feet, legs and knees in particular are a complex mechanism that of course moves and flexes and being in the lower
extremities where a series of arteries, veins, nerves and lymph fluids and check
valves moving up the legs to rid the wastes that accumulate, have quite a chore
as we age. Therefore these areas easily become deficient in adequate
circulation (again blood, lymph and electrical) to have nutrition and
wastes handled efficiently in and out of the area. You have to be brain
dead if you look at that diagram to the left and not believe that circulation is
not going to play an important role in the health of your lower extremities.
There is another aspect that we feel is very critical and that is the recommendations that we put forth in this feature and how relative each one is to circulation. Example: The common over the counter cartilage building supplement Glucosamine/Chondroitin/MSM. We personally believe is a good supplement, but if one did not address their circulation that in some cases it would render this very good nutrient useless. I mean if you are downing good proven supplements to help your condition, but the area is choked off by poor circulation, what good are they? They are winding up at the sewer treatment plant.
Glucosamine/Chondroitin/MSM has been questioned regarding its efficacy recently in fact. The question is can the supplements do the job if they can't travel to the problem areas and was the study skewed by the individuals lack of absorption because of poor circulation?
Therapy
A good therapist can outline a series of home exercises, but you may have to get a Doctors script to get you started with some professional care. As you are treated, observe what they do, ask questions about in home exercises. A good therapist will not deny this information if you schedule modest visits between home work so they can adjust their format with you and relieve you or Uncle Sam of a few bucks. Hey they have to make a living too.
We have recently dug up
information regarding stretching areas counter to the repetitive actions of let's
say running. Landing on the toes for long periods of time will create a stress
not only in the toes but right up the leg through shins, through the knees and
up to the hips. There are counter measures such as sitting in a lounge
chair and bending the toes back and protruding them forward to the max.
Try writing your name with your toes and writing from 1 to 10 with your toes.
When you are walking
around anywhere in your bare of stocking feet, walk pigeon toed on your toes and
then spread out and counter it with you toes walking with they touching down to
the left and right a little. Run on sand when ever you get a chance.
You will feel the stress applied to your entire leg and this will tell you that
counter measures are needed to kind of equalize things.
We personally depend on both home remedies along with professional visits. I told a Chiropractor that I bought an electrical battery operated neuropathy device, (for damaged nerve areas) similar to what he was using in his office on my wife. Did he bite our heads off, no, in fact he gave us specific instructions how to use it.
Interesting theory
Last with all of the above theories I recently decided to go to a local chiropractor to treat a lower back problem and in the process discussed my leg issues. The numbing underneath the knees all around to the calves on both legs led to a questioning by the Doctor. He asked me two pertinent questions, the first was whether the problem was symmetrical on both sides of my lower extremities. The answer was yes and I could only answer that question after the symptoms of my fall in the kitchen and my right leg issues had subsided. This took over a year. The second question was when I encountered discomfort in my legs and back if it was relieved in just a matter of seconds after sitting down. The answer was yes. I was astonished that the Doctor with these two answers in hand came to an immediate conclusion that my problem or at least the cause of my symptoms were Spinal and in most cases was a slam dunk indication of spinal stenosis. In my case he believed it was a lumbar stenosis problem, the lower area of the spine.
Every recommendation below is based on improving circulation of blood, lymph, synovial and electrical, whether it is dietary or mechanical. Most everything you will read below we practice on a daily basis and our legs and all the parts are getting better and better every day.
So lets go down the list.
The following is a random run down of Diet and Supplements. Remember if you are not eating right, all the therapy that we recommend below in the diet section will be mostly in vain.
The Bike
A bike at home is probably one of the best tools for your entire regimen. We purchased a bike for the knee replacement that we ultimately had to do and you will read at the end of this feature that we will be doing the other knee this coming fall 09.
Recumbent bikes equipped with a back rest versus the upright bikes that would be very difficult to mount are best. The recumbent bike is very easy to get into.
We purchased the Proform model 10.8. pictured above from Sears. We both expect to use it to limber up before exercise for years and years. It is a comfortable bike, the back rest is very supportive. There is an adjustment on the bottom rail to move it forward or back. There is a magnetic device that you can set to increase the tension as you progress. Nice little fan to cool you off coming at you from the console. It was on special for a little over 200 bucks. Sears did not have it displayed but they did have one in stock. The big problem with these purchases is they come in a box broken down and they are a bitch to put together, like most of these prefab deals. Quite honestly you may be able to pick one up on Craig's list or out of the newspaper. Now whether you can land a recumbent like the one above is questionable.
The bonus of all the above in the knee concerns is the added benefits you get from the use of a bike for general health benefits that includes cardiovascular. Resistance settings as in the bike described above is important in cardio workouts. I told my wife today that we know has had her first knee replaced that the need for the bike in her rehabilitation would turn out to be a Godsend for general health needs.
Alkaline Diet
A
predominate Alkaline diet is a magnet for wastes. It also serves as a
conduit for all circulation operations in your body.. Everyone has
heard of electrolytes. You need them and an alkaline diet provides
them. It certainly provides them to the nerve system as electrical
impulses and minerals to conduct them are like Mike and Ike. You can
better believe that an alkaline diet serves your lymph and blood system as
well, where acids work against you. Acid diets attract wastes and because of
the chemical nature of it sticks around, alkaline diets attract wastes too,
but do not stick around, they are picked up and eliminated and when you have
wastes in your legs you have a big chore getting rid of them. If you adjust your diet to 75%
alkaline 25% acid you will automatically reduce the acid consequences and not even
know it. You know it now though. You do need some acids as in meat and Omega 3
fatty acids etc. Not much room for the bad acids. The alkaline foods come from the Veggies,
Veggies, Veggies and Fruit, Fruit. This is the principles of the
weight watchers, about 8 servings a day (about 4 on the veggies and 4 on the
fruit) The 4 to 5 sessions a day of fruit for men actually takes the place of
refined sweets and you get the anti-oxidants of the fruit as a bonus.
Again to repeat the advantage of doing a 75% alkaline, 25% acid food balance you are automatically reducing one of the biggest diet detriments and that is the reduction of meat, especially fatty meat cooked at high temperatures, as well as bakery products cooked with cheap fatty oils at high temps. When you do this you limit the amount of damage to your cholesterol and scavenge whatever there is with the anti-oxidant powers of fruits and veggies.
When you are going through a rehabilitation process you are generating wastes, and they need to be scavenged on a regular basis. It will take time, be patient. You can't abuse your legs for 50, 60, 70 years and expect them to clear up in a few months, more like years. Even if you could scavenge at a rapid pace you could put undue stress on your kidneys and urinary network. GO EASY.
Check out our feature on Alkalinity http://www.blueeyedcurse.com/alkalize.htm
Parsley
Although I just got done with veggies, veggies, veggies there is one standout in this group. Parsley for a Healthy Heart and a healthy heart, and network must have good circulation to do its job. There are different foods and supplement sources to accomplish this and not necessarily in their order of importance, as really they are all important.
Take note of my little bed of Parsley on the left that is really not that little. There is also some basal planted there as well as Grandma uses it for cooking with pasta. We took that area around the tree, placed a border ring around it and filled it with a big bag of Miracle grow potting soil. You can use a good top soil and save some money, but I splurged on the potting soil. We baby this bed with 40 years of agricultural know how including occasional hand cultivation right up to the trunks of the plants as the Chinese do and I use parsley every day. It not only is one of the finest alkaline sources of food there is much more and detailed below.
The
handful of parsley on the right is just about what I consume every day fresh
out of this garden. Now when the little lady sends me out once a week
for parsley for a batch of clam pasta she makes me bring it in and take the
stems off of it. Why, I don't know, I guess it is because she is a
fuddy dud, but when I devour a handful every day it is stems and all, down
the hatch chewed well I might add.
Parsley is a good source of folic acid, one of the most important B vitamins. While it plays numerous roles in the body, one of its most critical roles in relation to cardiovascular health is its necessary participation in the process through which the body converts homocysteine into benign molecules. Homocysteine is a potentially dangerous molecule that, at high levels, can directly damage blood vessels, and high levels of homocysteine are associated with a significantly increased risk of heart attack and stroke in people with atherosclerosis or diabetic heart disease. Enjoying foods rich in folic acid, like parsley, is an especially good idea for individuals who either have, or wish to prevent, these diseases. Folic acid is also a critical nutrient for proper cell division and is therefore vitally important for cancer-prevention in two areas of the body that contain rapidly dividing cells-the colon, and in women, the cervix.
Fish Oil/Omega 3 fatty acids/Vitamin D3
Fish
and Fish
oil/omega 3 fatty acids, along with freshly ground flax seed with their lignin's
are known to be heart healthy and there is no question increased circulation
comes into the picture. We are not getting off the track here.
Remember increased circulation is the key to cleaning out crap in those joints,
plain and simple. Of
course it was intended to replenish your bones as well with a proper diet along with
Vitamin sunshine and foods with Vitamin D3 in them such as in fish and fish oil
supplements. There is also a calcium correlation with Vitamin D3 that we
know has a bearing on your bone health. Vitamin D3 is very important
in making calcium more absorbable in your bone mass. Adding calcium
in a natural food form is our choice, Sardines and Salmon with their bones
on board for one example. Nuts and seeds also harbor an array of natural
minerals. Lets not leave out fruits and vegetables. Unfortunately because of the size and the
process the bones are taken out of Tuna fish and for that reason we are sticking with
Sockeye Salmon and Portuguese Sardines.
There are supplements that have calcium and other minerals in them. In fact we take a supplement that has, but we only do half of the recommended daily dosage as in most of our supplemental intake.
Glucosamine/Chondroitin/MSM
There is the common "cartilage" supplement Glucosamine/ Chondroitin/MSM that we take on a regular basis that may be of help. They claim that cartilage can be replenished and this particular supplement can be instrumental in this process. I know something increased my cartilage. Now whether it was Glucosamine etc. in combination with everything else I don't know and care. All I know for the rest of my life everything you read in this entire feature I will be doing and encouraging my wife to do it, and if one of my kids wants to put me in a funny farm because of it, I will find a way to do it in a funny farm.
We rely on our foods to do the job and our
fish, cottage cheese, nuts, seed, fruits and vegetable etc. intake supplies the
majority of our nutritional intake. Again calcium and minerals in conjunction with
Vitamin D3 from the sun and
aforementioned
foods is the way to go.
Vitamin D3
Quote out of Life Extensions in their Sept 07 monthly publication states "Given the vast benefits of Vitamin D3 for cardiovascular and whole body health, insuring optimal vitamin D status is an essential part of every wellness program ". The best way to know your vitamin D status is to have your Doctor measure the blood level of 25-hydroxyvitamin D not to be confused with 1,25 dihydoxyvitamin D. Most experts believe a level of the 25 hydroxyvitamin should be at a minimum of 40 ng/ml."
Our http://www.blueeyedcurse.com/sun_and_you2.htm feature will go into the benefits of the sun and in my humble opinion controlling the suns rays, not necessarily avoiding it, is the most important health issue of our times.
There
have been recent studies that Vitamin D3 cuts the risk of cancer
considerably. So here you are getting three for the price of one,
heart, bone health and cancer fighting, you
can't beat that. Oh you don't like fish? How about a cane to get
around with, do you like that better? They have some neat wheel chairs, short
turning radius's, no on board potty though.
The Endothelium and Cacao
We don't generally recommend supplements in any of our features as it is a personal matter and should be discussed with your Doctor, as there are conflicts with supplements and medications and we don't want to interfere with this process. There is one supplement that you may want to consider and it is a continuance of the chocolate and cacao section above. Life Extension in Ft. Lauderdale has such a supplement and we have no financial affiliation with this company. We buy some of our supplements there and we believe it is a first class concern. There are a number of polyphenols product that they have. We have been using the Endothelial Defense supplement with Pomegranate and Coca Polyphenols. There is large amount of information supporting these theories and we are taking a moderate approach to all of them including the below recommendations.
Dark Chocolate
The effect of chocolate on cardiovascular health is considered a controversial issue because dark chocolate ingredients, such as polyphenols and flavonoids, have protective and antioxidant effects, while other chocolate ingredients may adversely affect glucose, lipids, and body weight. Dark chocolate has a much higher polyphenol content per gram than other antioxidant-rich foods, such as wine, tea, or berries. Take note that ingredients that adversely affect glucose, lipids and body weight are primarily in the cheaper chocolates as these cheaper chocolates have increased amount of sugar and fats. The higher amount of Cacao the less amounts of the negative ingredients and the higher amounts of the beneficial polyphenols. We have tried different products and some of the intense dark chocolates are quite bitter and leave an after taste in your mouth. We personally like the Ghirardelli Midnight Reverie 86% Cacao. It is about the smoothest intense dark chocolate you can buy. Shop around, most of your supermarkets are carrying Ghirardelli now and have it on special at times. My wife and I "indulge" in one piece a day each that is.
Bromelain
Bromelain supplements are from the stems of pineapples and more concentrated than the fruit itself although I am sure the pineapple fruit alone with some Bromelain has many fine health properties.
Bromelain modifies the production of compounds produced in the body that cause swelling and pain. By reducing inflammation, blood more readily circulates in an injured area, which reduces pain and accelerates healing. Bromelain also breaks down fibrin, a protein involved in blood clotting.
Astaxanthin (Pronounced asta-ZAN-thin) Now why they didn't put the Z in at the start instead of the X we will never know, at least at my level of literacy.
We
have recently been introduced to this powerful anti-oxidant called the "King of
the carotenoids". In fact it is written that scientists have not found a
stronger anti-oxidant for free radical elimination or what they call singlet
oxygen quenching. Astaxanthin is derived from the sea either by a process
that extracts it from different seas substances, algae for one or from
eating Salmon that feeds on these substances. They find that the substance in
Salmon is the highest concentration and it is in the muscles of the fish.
They claim this explains the salmon's Herculean spawning efforts, against
unbelievable conditions, that a human being apples for apples would not be able
to physically achieve. We are going to rely on canned Sockeye red
salmon from the wilds of Alaska. They claim Sockeye Salmon has a great deal
more Astaxanthin then the other breeds and that includes farm salmon.
Incidentally there is a practice of feeding farm Salmon synthetic Astaxanthin
just for the purpose of coloring the flesh. Of course they will tell you
that it also mimics the benefits of natural Astaxanthin. We don't buy
synthetics mimicking anything. Sockeye salmon and/or Astaxanthin produced
naturally from sea algae is our choice.
BioAstin is a natural Astaxanthin and is an outstanding natural anti-inflammatory that works through multiple pathways to combat inflammation throughout the entire body. BioAstin is also an exceptionally powerful antioxidant, with antioxidant activity that has been shown to be 550 times stronger than Vitamin E and 14 times stronger than Pycnogenol.
Bioastin is much easier to tolerate than conventional anti-flammatory medications.
Cyanotech the
manufacturer of Bioastin has conducted several double blind, placebo
controlled clinical trials which have shown benefits in many different
applications including Rheumatoid Arthritis, Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (also
known as Repetitive Stress Injury), in the reduction of joint and muscle
soreness after exercise and as an internal sun block to prevent skin damage
from ultraviolet rays.
Garlic
GARLIC EXTRACT also has anti-blood clotting properties. By itself it is an excellent chelator of metals such as lead and mercury.
Malic
Acid
Malic acid is a natural substance found in fruit and vegetables - one of the richest sources being apples. It is also naturally present in your body's cells and large amounts of it are formed and then eventually broken down again on a daily basis.
It possesses many health-related benefits such as boosting immunity, maintaining oral health, reducing the risk of poisoning from a build-up of toxic metals and promoting smoother and firmer skin.
Malic acid powerfully enhances the energy systems throughout the whole body, including the heart and brain.
Again it is in these toxic buildups especially in areas of wear and tear where they settle. Circulation enhancements have to be diligently followed and Malic Acid is one of them.
WATERMost people do not drink enough fluids, especially when they have joint and tissue problems, brought on by wastes, inflammation, immobility, physical and mental blocks.
If you are going to remove the wastes from your body, you need plenty of water and not just any water, especially chlorinated water that we believe can compound the problems in more ways than one.
Below is an excerpt from a another feature we have that goes into water and we believe the principles of drinking water that has had natural alkaline ingredients added to it, will accelerate the removal of the wastes that are causing your problems.
There are volumes and volumes of
medical information regarding the bodies needs of adequate hydration and the
elimination of wastes. Now there has been written pros and cons regarding
distilled water. We personally have drank distilled water for over 40 years
now, starting with my concern of the percolation of hard agricultural
chemicals into our wells on our farm and around our home there. This was
followed in Florida where our water source is treated and it needs to be
treated as bacteria in water is common. Unfortunately chlorinated water
taking care of the bacteria in it, takes care of all bacteria in the gut and
this is not good, as we need certain bacteria's working in our gut.
Most municipal water has a certain amount of beneficial minerals that comes
from ground water. There has been some bad press regarding plastic
containers and water. There is question regarding Coca Colas Da Sani
brand. The last thing Coca Cola and their bottled water enterprise would
need is bad press on their water, so my guess is they are very quality
control oriented.
Another avenue is spring water and the Giant Nestle
company has their
Zephyrhills brand. Again we would be astounded if Nestle would allow
something to slip through the cracks. We would say the same applies for the
other large bottled water suppliers. In fact if the only source of water
rather than distilling your own was bottled water we would go along with a
popular spring water.
We are very apprehensive about
buying distilled water in dubious plastic containers, simply based on the
integrity of the material in the container and distilled water being a
solvent in itself with the chances of
picking
up
the plastic residue perhaps left over from the manufacturing process.
The containers you find in the super markets look flimsy, they look weak,
cheap is a better word. Now someone could straighten me out about this
perception. On the other hand the bottles in the better waters from the
larger suppliers appear to me that they are very conscious of container
residue and pay more for quality containers and pass this on to the
consumer. These better containers look more impervious, what do you think?
Distilled water takes everything
out of the water and this is not good especially if you subscribe to a diet
alkalizing regimen as we do. The solution is simple. Spike the distilled
water with natural sources of alkaline minerals. We use lemon juice a
couple of squirts in a quart, a tablespoon of Braggs apple cider vinegar and
we put in a shot of pure cranberry
juice,
the Lakeside brand, all in about a quart to a half of a gallon of
distilled water to drink before during and after a workout. A little baking
soda could be smart. Just a dash. A sprinkle of Paprika with
its
high concentration of Potassium is a nice addition. We use it in our water
every day. A glass of distilled water at a meal or snack can have either
Green tea mixed with it, or a squirt of lemon juice. We rarely drink
distilled water straight. The kidneys and your joints need water for
flushing, but it is the natural minerals in the water that does the trick.
Natural minerals have an affinity for free radical/tissue and joint waste.
We are talking an array of minerals that scavenge the impurities. This is
the principle behind a high natural alkaline diet regimen because an acid
regimen works in reverse, hence tissue acid waste. The Nepalese tribe in the
Himalayas drink water coming down from the mountain side that is the color
of milk it is so alkaline. Most of these dudes live into their hundreds.
Spiking distilled water with natural bi-carbonates etc. is just a great
means to increase your alkalinity intake and put you on the road to
recovery. Water is the key to any rehab. Have you ever tried to
clean your dirty hands without water? You have a great deal of "dirt"
in those joints friends.
Incidentally if you are just a little curious what our diet regimen is we just happen to have a feature on it. Hold on to your hats.
http://blueeyedcurse.com/newmeal.htm
Below is a bunch of issues relative to the problems and hopefully some methods that may or may not solve the problems. Again we do them all, every day.
The following information is a random list of issues and different treatments regarding the waste down concerns, the legs, the knees, the feet and eventually the hips.
Obesity
Incidentally have you seen an obese Doctor lately?
We were in a cardio vascular unit of a hospital awhile back and all the
Doctors looked like they were warmed over death they were so thin. Do
you think they know something? You are dammed right they do. In
the cafeteria
we watched a heart surgeon eat his
lunch. It was two apples that he diced up with a sharp
knife as if he was operating on some poor soul, most likely loaded with
damaged cholesterol. Sweets
make
you fat and they clog up your arteries and especially the ones to your
brain and your legs too. They will eventually put you in the hospital and if what
they put you in there for doesn't take you something else very well may.
As someone told me awhile back "If you are sick you don't want to go to a
hospital"
Let's not forget that excess weight puts a burden on your hips and knees. This is reason enough to get the weight off in addition to reducing the acids that certain foods encourage, as in meats, refined grains and sugars.
Add to that foods as in meats that are cooked at high temps and refined grains that are cooked with cheap oils at high temps and you have accomplished oxidizing your cholesterol, damaged is the word. Every cell in your body needs clean, undamaged, unoxidized cholesterol and in particular the brain, the microprocessor for every nerve in your body, going down to your lower extremities I will add.
Lymphatic Drainage
Lymphatic drainage with a wash cloth is one of the easiest means to fight
circulation/bone
problems. Lightly brushing the area in the directions to the right
as illustrated (Always toward the heart) aids in the drainage of
wastes from the effected areas. Go lightly though.
heart.
This elaborate check valve system is activated
by muscles and joints moving. This is where the muscular connection
comes into play. You need a healthy muscular system in the lower
extremities to keep things working properly, especially the lymphatic
network, because again as a reminder the lymph system does not have the
luxury of a pumping heart and it is the only vehicle to remove wastes from
the area, the blood net work does not. In fact if you study the location of the key lymph
nodes in the body and in the legs in particular you will find them in the
back of the knee for instance, allot of them in the groin area too.
Keep in mind the lymph nodes are the garbage cans, the filters of the body
and the garbage cans have to be taken out to the curb on a regular basis.
Next leg weights
shown to your left. These are
very important if you want to build up the muscles in your Quads and
Hamstrings in back of your knees as most knee problems can be traced to
a breakdown in these key areas as mentioned above. What do they say "A
building is only as good as its foundation". In case you don't know
it your knees are one of the main areas of your foundation and they have to move
yet. Go to the Sports store and ask for
leg weights. Sports Authority should have them. You may have to
buy two of them and adjust the weight in each, one for you and one for the
little lady or vice versus. One each allows you to switch from one leg
to the other. They come in a cloth
Velcro sheath where you can put these tubular iron weights into slots
to suit your abilities. You sit down in a chair and gently raise and lower your
leg one at a time is best and you will feel the pressure on your Quads and
Hamstrings. It is recommended that you support the knee by
holding just in back of your knee with your hands as you do this operation.
It is also advised to lay on the stomach and reverse the process. This is what you want and
of course if you have an injury you would want to clear this with your
Doctor and/or Therapist. Start slow on this procedure. My wife
over did it when she started and strained the sides of her legs. She
cut it out for a few days and when she resumed she only did 5 on each leg.
She is up to 25 on each knee per day.
I am up to 50 on each leg, once or twice a day. I
intend to continue this regimen for the rest of my life or at least until I
just can't do them anymore. I describe a vibrator below near the end
of this feature. I use this vibrator right before I do the leg weights
to kind of loosen/warm the area before the stress of the leg weights.
When
you walk even in the house get in the habit of a little heel to toe motions. My
opinion is you can't beat a treadmill and doing it in your stocking feet.
I personally do 5 minutes everyday. It is a little boring, but I
add my facial exercises to the session to move lymph fluids into and
out of the all
important Alzheimer's related areas of the upper extremities.
A treadmill can also create the counter balance we referred to
in the first part of this feature as well, for those who are suffering
from repetitive activities and complications from it. I have developed
a pigeon toe motion on the tread mill that I feel will counter some of the
repetitive actions that I constantly engage in. In the process I cross
one foot over the other a little and press down in the toe and that come
back with the other leg and toe. One important practice you can bring
into the mix is bending your knees while walking, on the treadmill or just
standing holding the arms of a chair. When knees start to give you
problems the first thing that happens is you start to favor them, by
dragging your legs instead of bending your knees and not dragging your legs.
When you start to drag your legs you may temporarily alleviate the pain, but
in a short time things will start to go down hill and pain and stiffness
will escalate.
interested in preventing Alzheimer's
check out our Alzheimer's feature. Alzheimer's and knees have one thing in
common, acid wastes. Have you ever had someone that you knew for
50 years or more walk up to you with a cane supporting their knees and
asking you who you were and where am I? Hello tissue acid waste! 
As
we have mentioned circulation is not just confined to the blood and lymph
network. Your entire body works on electrical impulses and directed by
the brain. The lower extremities again are subjected to nerve damage
because they have been deprived of nutrition and suffered from the lack of
acid waste removal. There are other causes of neuropathy, diabetes for
one, but we are not going to even approach treatment for other causes. This
we will leave for the professionals and hope that you can find one that is
on the ball.
There
are various methods to correct nerve problems. Acupuncture by again a
professional could be effective. There are therapists that have
different techniques including electrical devices that attempt to
which
revitalize those nerves. When this is accomplished, it promotes new
nerve growth, restores blood circulation, returns feeling to the patient’s
extremities, and reduces pain. Chiropractors of course work with the nerve
system and in fact they too employ electrical stimulating devices.
Alternating
hot and cold water (contrast bathing) improves circulation of not only blood, but also
Lymph fluids. It could also enhance the electrical process and nerve
healing as discussed above.
To
the left you will see 2 lever handles. These are the shutoffs for the
hot and cold water feeds coming out of my laundry room to my outside shower.
The feeds were easy to access from the washing machine piping etc.
These types of lever valves make it real easy to do the contrast bathing we
speak of. Just shutting off the hot and opening the cold in a jiffy
with a swipe of the wrist instead of the common turn valves let alone the
complexity of the Moen type valve is much more practical.
So after you take your
regular shower, inside or out you then switch the power massager to the pulsation position
from the gentle shower position. You don't need a hard stream to
accomplish the objective. In fact as in Lymphatic brushing aggressively is counter productive. Going easy goes a
long way. Just a gentle hot pulsating stream for a minute or so
is enough. In fact if you really want to do it up right via
contrast bathing work the
valve from hot to cold, like 40 seconds of Hot and 20 seconds of cold.
I do a hot a cold and finish with a hot. Again dilation,
constriction, dilation.
When
you start gradually increase the hot water temp until it is still
tolerable, but don't scald your self, that wouldn't be smart. Your
feet, your knees, your legs, quads etc. can tolerate a much higher
temperature than what you could apply to your tender upper body.
Incidentally I have been experimenting myself and finish with a generous
power shower massaging of my wrists and hand where I believe will eventually
lead me to Carpal Tunnel Syndrome if I don't act. I have been
typing on health issues for 20 years now and there is no question that
Carpal Tunnel could be in my future, but not if I have anything to do about it.
Remember no one is burning the midnight oil worrying about you and your
family but you. Take charge of your knees and everything else.
In
addition to the above stimulating abilities of Hot and Cold water there is
also the mechanical means of stimulation and one in particular is a hand
vibrator and is demonstrated to the left. In this image the vibrating
is concentrated on the cartilage compartment of the knee and after that it is used above and behind the
knee on the hamstrings as well as quadriceps Remember stay away from the bone.
The
photo on the left clearly indicates the feet (For some reason I get a better
action with my socks on) and although this may seem to
be a departure from the knee area, the feet being the lowest extremity has
the propensity to attract more than its share of wastes simply based on the
forces of gravity. Now it is only logical that if you are
building up garbage in your feet and the only way it can exit is by going by
your knees, if things are not up to snuff your knees are going to be
subjected to cumulative matter and once this matter collects, inflammation
follows, (it always does) and breakdowns occur, like what do they call it,
ARTHRITIS.
Small
Slice
Prickers.
Cut those prickers off of the sides of the leaf. They are lethal
buggers.
The
picture on the left has some components to be able to add some regular
aspirin to the mix. A hammer to crush the 325 mg aspirin that you will
note are on a paper towel. By doubling the paper towel around
the aspirin, you proceed to crush the aspirin with the hammer. You
will note the plastic container with the letter A on it, the plastic bag and
green tie to store the powder. Don't do too many ahead at one time.
Aspirin goes down hill fast. This is one of the reasons in our other
health features where we strongly recommend that you keep a SEALED bottle of
325 Mg aspirin handy with you at all times. In the medicine cabinet in
the car, in your pocketbook. There is nothing more effective than a
couple of aspirin for a heart attack, until some serious help arrives.
We invite you to read our
Two
Birds.
Heating
pads I used a heating pad
on my knees regularly. Since my knee has improved I don't use it as
much, but I have my wife with her arthritic knees doing it every night.
15 minutes on, alternated to the other knee to give the first heated knee a
break. Do another 15 minutes each watching TV with your legs elevated.
Everyone over 40 years old should have a recliner so they can put their legs
up to take the pressure off of their heart, lymphatic system and
meniscus compartment as standing up compresses it to some degree. If don't
have a recliner get one, if you can't afford it, steal one.
constriction
brought on by cold conditions is totally against all principles of
circulation and that could be dressing inadequately, it could be sitting in
your living room chair on a cold night or even going to bed without adequate
protection for your legs and feet. If you have the luxury
of a couple of dogs, (The two dog night theory) you may be able to train
them to lay next to your legs and feet. I
just
hope you have better luck than what we have with our brat because she lays
wherever the hell she wants to. Now certain footwear such as long
socks and a good pair of slippers makes a lot of sense and there is a
demonstration of some old geyser modeling to your right. He just wears
the black socks to bed and for dress he wears white.
and tests prove to be a slam dunk. We have written an
extensive feature on women's hormones. We believe in the past 10 years my
wife's deficiency in hormones brought on by post menopause may have contributed to her knee problems. We
have taken a modest step to correct this that involves simple saliva testing,
some preliminary natural hormone applications (staying with in the safe
limits and ratios.) 
It is estimated that over 25 million adults
in the United States have, or are at risk of developing osteoporosis.
Osteoporosis is a disease characterized by fragile bones. It results in
increased risk of bone fractures. Unfortunately the operations such as hip
replacements, and knees as well set up a perfect scenario for dangerous blood
clots with the blood thinners and high powered drugs that are used following
these procedures. 
We believe that natural hormones as described in our women's hormones feature,
sunshine to obtain sufficient UVB rays to aid the Vitamin D3 process, the right
foods especially omega 3 fatty acid foods that again aid in the Vitamin D3
process, yogurt, some cheeses especially cottage, fatty fish like Sardines,
Salmon and some Tuna provide all of the on board calcium etc. The
compliments of good fat and minerals needed for the Vitamin D3 process is
critical.
We
personally believe this regimen can halt the progression of arthritis and even reverse it. 
Ultrasound