When our Chiropractic clinic opened its doors for the first time in 2007, it was the first step in creating a truly integrated ‘health house’! From a tiny room off the personal training studio, we introduced our clients to the benefits of chiropractic care. Then as now, many of them were not aware that chiropractic covers head to toe treatment for all ages. Each month throughout the year, we will focus on a different part of the body and the conditions that may appear and how chiropractic can help treat them. Last month we talked about the causes and treatment of headaches, this month we move slightly below to the shoulder!

Our clinic regularly deals with issues related to the shoulder helping patients effectively treat shoulder pain by addressing misalignments, stiffness, and muscle imbalances. By using techniques like joint manipulation, soft tissue therapy, and specific exercises for the shoulder, neck, and spine they can help restore movement, reduce discomfort, and improve overall function. Focusing on the root cause, they provide a natural, non-invasive relief for issues from injury or poor posture, improving joint stability and preventing future problems. This makes chiropractic a good option for conditions like rotator cuff issues, frozen shoulder, arthritis, or tendinitis. 

Common Causes They Address:

• Rotator cuff injuries (tendinitis, impingement, tears)
• Frozen shoulder (adhesive capsulitis)
• Arthritis
• Instability or dislocation
• Postural strain and overuse 
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What to Expect:

• Shoulder issues don’t always start with the shoulder, so our team will often assess on your whole body's mechanics to pinpoint the cause.
• From here, our tea, will use a combination of adjustments, therapies, and exercises for long-term relief.
• With this treatment plan in place, we would expect improved range of motion, reduced pain, and better strength. 

If you  are suffering with anything we mention above, please do get in touch.  Our 1st appointment is a full hour which includes treatment and is £75.00.

​When our Chiropractic clinic opened its doors for the first time in 2007, it was the first step in creating a truly integrated ‘health house’! From a tiny room off the personal training studio, we introduced our clients to the benefits of chiropractic care. Then as now, many of them were not aware that chiropractic covers head to toe treatment for all ages. Each month throughout the year, we will focus on a different part of the body and the conditions that may appear and how chiropractic can help treat them. This month we start at the very top, with the head and headaches.

Why Do I Get Headaches?
There are multiple reasons why someone might experience headaches. Whilst some are linked to lifestyle habits, others stem from physical strain or underlying health issues. Understanding the specific triggers for headaches can help in effectively managing them.
 
Are there different types of headaches? 
Migraines and tension headaches are two of the most common types of headaches that we treat, but they differ significantly in their causes, symptoms, and impact on daily life.
Tension headaches are typically associated with muscle tightness and stress. They often feel like a dull, aching pressure or tightness around the forehead, temples, or the back of the head and neck. These headaches are usually mild to moderate in intensity and aren’t associated with other symptoms. Most people with tension headaches can continue daily activities, though they may feel discomfort or fatigue.
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Migraines, on the other hand, are a more complex and involve both the nerves and blood vessels inside your head. Symptoms are often moderate to severe throbbing or pulsating pain, usually on one side of the head. Migraines are often accompanied by other symptoms, including nausea, sensitivity to light and sound, and in some cases, visual disturbances known as “auras.” Migraines can severely impact daily activities, with sufferers often needing to rest in a dark, quiet space until the episode passes. Migraines can last from a few hours to several days, and common triggers include hormonal changes, certain foods, stress, lack of sleep, and environmental stimuli like bright lights or strong smells.
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Common causes of headaches:
Muscle Tension
One of the primary contributors to headaches is muscle tension, especially in the neck and shoulders. This tension is often due to prolonged periods of inactivity, such as sitting for long hours at a desk or in front of a computer. When muscles become tense and strained from inactivity, it can lead to what are commonly known as tension headaches. These headaches usually create a dull, aching sensation, often felt as pressure around the forehead or base of the skull. Often patients get a feeling that their head feels ‘too heavy’ for their neck and will be aware of tension in their shoulders. Adding regular movement throughout the day can significantly reduce the risk of these headaches. 
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​Dizziness and Headaches: A Common Connection
For some individuals, headaches are accompanied by symptoms of dizziness or light-headedness. This combination of symptoms can occur for various reasons, including tightness in the neck muscles and restriction of movement in the joints of the neck. Known as cervicogenic dizziness, this type of dizziness is often linked to the same tension and strain that trigger headaches. Chiropractic care can be particularly helpful for addressing these linked symptoms, as relieving neck tension can often reduce both dizziness and headache frequency.
 
Stress and Lifestyle Factors
Stress is a frequent contributor to headaches, as it can lead to both physical and mental tension. When we are stressed, we may hold tension in various areas of the body, including the neck and shoulders, which can lead to headaches. Additionally, lifestyle habits such as irregular sleep patterns, dehydration, or inconsistent meals can exacerbate headache symptoms.
 
Other Factors
Although headaches are usually not a sign of serious disease, it is always important to get them properly assessed. For example, high blood pressure can be cause of headaches and certainly something that a chiropractor will want to rule out. There a thorough examination will therefore often include a blood pressure test.
Eye strain can also cause headaches, so getting your sight tested by an optometrist can help assess your vision being linked to headaches.

Through hands-on techniques that promote relaxation, mobility, and natural healing, chiropractic care can offer effective relief for both tension and dizziness-related headaches.  This comprehensive evaluation helps identify any contributing factors, such as neck tension or joint restriction, that might be causing your headaches. Or indeed if onward referral may be indicated.  Once the chiropractor is confident that there are muscle and joint issues which could be the source of your headaches, a combination of approaches is often used.
 
Neck Adjustments - Chiropractors use gentle adjustments to improve movement of the vertebrae in your neck and upper back which will help alleviate tension in the surrounding muscles.
 
Soft Tissue Therapy - Chiropractic care often includes soft tissue therapy, which targets areas of tightness and muscle restriction around the neck and shoulders. By addressing this muscle tension, chiropractors help reduce the likelihood of tension headaches and associated dizziness. This can include massage or sometimes acupuncture.
 
Exercise and Movement Advice - It is important to keep up with regular movement and exercise to help or prevent headaches. By incorporating simple, regular movements into your day—such as stretching or short walks—you can reduce muscle tension and support neck flexibility, which helps decrease headache frequency. There is no particular good or bad exercise for headaches, so find what you enjoy, start gently and see if it may help your headaches.
 
Home Exercises and Stretches – A chiropractor may also recommend specific based exercises to help maintain neck flexibility and strength and reduce muscle strain. These exercises are designed to be easy and practical, helping you keep progress on track between visits.
 
Practical Tips for Managing Headaches at Home
Along with chiropractic care, there are practical steps you can take to manage and even prevent headaches at home. Here are some effective strategies for supporting your headache relief journey:
 
Avoid long static positions
Frequent movement is essential in preventing muscle tightness and tension headaches. Try setting a timer to remind yourself to stand up, stretch, and move every 30 minutes, especially during prolonged tasks like computer work. These microbreaks can be thought of as the 30/30 rule: Get out of your chair and move for 30 seconds every 30 minutes. I timer on your phone or computer can really help here as we all know how engrossed we can be in front of a screen.

Keep active
Engaging in regular exercise, like walking, swimming, or yoga, helps reduce muscle tension and improve circulation, which can prevent tension and cervicogenic headaches.
 
Mind your sleep
Adequate rest is crucial for headache prevention. Aim for 7-9 hours of quality sleep per night and consider maintaining a consistent sleep schedule. Good sleep hygiene, including limiting screen time before bed, can contribute to more restful nights and fewer headaches.
 
Conclusion
For anyone dealing with recurring headaches, it’s natural to feel concerned, especially if they’re affecting your quality of life. However, most headaches are manageable and often connected to treatable factors, like muscle tension, neck and upper back stiffness or stress. Chiropractic care can offer a practical and natural approach to reducing headache frequency, helping you achieve relief without relying on medications.

Ever since we opened the doors to the studio in 2001, we have tried to help people recover what they had lost, be that mobility, strength or confidence in their bodies. Over the years our training methods have evolved and with the introduction of our chiropractic clinic in 2007, we have been able to help more clients preserve what they have pain free! For many of us, maintaining health and fitness can be an uphill struggle and the slope only gets steeper with age. But from our experience we still have a great deal of control over its trajectory.
We are still capable of building muscle mass, increasing strength, improving coordination, agility, and enhancing balance, but we are at just as much risk of injury from overdoing it as we are to not exercising at all!

Here are four things that we suggest you focus on over the coming year to help maintain your potential and push back against decline.

1. Low-Intensity, High-Volume Movement
Exercise sessions do not always require intense effort, but every day should include deliberate, low-intensity movement—such as walking, cycling or swimming. This is not just about burning calories, it is more about staying metabolically flexible and biologically “youthful”, as this forms the foundation for mitochondrial health, glucose control, and recovery. Nearly every longevity study highlights significant benefits from walking just 7,000 steps a day that becomes your baseline, and for some it’s their ceiling, but whatever it is, it’s a non-negotiable! 

4. Proper Nutrition
By consuming plenty of protein, lots of fruit and vegetables and a healthy amount of carbohydrates and good fats you give your body the best chance to thrive. Put simply, your nutrition supports muscle, movement, and metabolic health, protecting lean body mass by consuming protein aids muscle maintenance, allowing you to continue with physical activities. That means eating well most of the time… and still enjoying the occasional glass of wine, slice of cake or dirty burger without feeling guilty.

​Any good technique is crucial in order to avoid injury and gain the Take a big step forward with your right foot, keeping your spine in a neutral position. Bend your right knee to create a right angle, focusing on keeping weight on the toes of your left foot whilst dropping the knee of your left leg toward the floor. (Repeat on other leg)
This article has highlighted that the aging body has the propensity to become weaker, less flexible/mobile which has the consequence of impacting our balance. Brazilian Physician Claudio Gil S Araújo developed a simple evaluation of balance, flexibility, and strength to prove this point. **
From a standing position, without support or leaning on anything, you slowly lower yourself to the floor and then attempt to stand back up again.
Starting with a score of 10. You deduct points for the following:

• Hand used for support: -1 point
• Knee used for support: -1 point
• Forearm used for support: -1 point
• One hand on knee or thigh: -1 point
• Side of the leg used for support: -1 point

For example, if you were to sit down placing your right hand on your right knee, then your left hand on the floor before your hips touch the ground, you would deduct 2 points. Then as you attempt to stand up you place your left hand and then left knee on the floor for support, you would deduct a further 2 points giving you a total score of 6 (10-4=6) for the Sitting-Rising Test.
The Sitting-Rising Test, or SRT was performed by over 2,000 patients between the ages of 51 and 80. Araújo and his team found that individuals who scored less than 8 points on the test were twice as likely to die within the next six years. Those who scored 3 or fewer points were more than five times as likely to die within the same period compared with those who scored more than 8 points. Araújo concluded that each point increase in the SRT score correlated with a 21% decrease in mortality from all causes.

The Sitting-Rising Test reinforces the point that muscular strength and flexibility are just as important aerobic health in delaying the impact of old age.
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We are all mortal and our time on this earth is limited, but the quality of that time can be improved if we feel better and move better. Getting started is never easy, but one of the simplest things you can do is to try and lessen the amount of time spent sitting and walk a little bit more every day. The thought of entering a gym can be intimidating and overwhelming for many, but some of the best physical activities for your body don't require the gym or assume you are preparing for an Ironman. Remember the dolphins? They move just for the fun of it! Find something you enjoy whether it is on your own or in a group, indoors or outside. Don’t give yourself a hard time, find joy in moving and recreate just like our aquatic friends!

​The startling difference is, however, that the latter group report up to 30 days more of debilitating pain per year than the “maintenance group”. In other words, a little maintenance does not cost much more but pays off in spades.
 
For those with a physical job, it is even more important, as your body is one of the main tools of your trade. Taking care of your spinal health is vital and we would recommend for those in physical jobs to have a treatment once every 3 – 6 months to help maintain optimal health.
As your spinal nerves deliver signals to every part of your body to enable it to function healthily, whatever job you do, even if it is sedentary, you can optimise your musculoskeletal and internal organ health by having healthy spinal function.
Discover how chiropractic can help you by booking a maintenance chiropractic treatment- you can replace teeth, but your spine is irreplaceable.

GUT HEALTH TEST (ONLY LAUNCHED LAST WEEK AFTER 7 YEARS OF RESEARCH)
Measures functional output – revealing how your gut bacteria and body work together to produce health-linked metabolites: 
Science-backed markers – analyses three key tryptophan-related metabolites linked to gut, immune, and metabolic health
Advanced analysis – uses HPLC-UV-FLD technology for high-precision results
Balance insights – shows how a protective metabolite from gut bacteria relates to other insightful markers
Clear scoring – your results distilled into an easy-to-read Gut Health Index
Personalised guidance – tailored diet and lifestyle recommendations, with a focus on fibre and polyphenols, based on your unique results
Simple at-home self-test – dried blood spot (DBS) collection, no stool sample required
 
For more information, watch this short video or chat to Kristine on your next visit!
https://www.zinzinoplay.com/en/watch/86

1. Tell a Friend
Sharing your goals with someone who truly cares for you is the easiest and cheapest option. But it’s vital that you chose the right person who will ask you about your goals, support you in achieving them, and celebrate with you when you do. Choosing someone who judges you or is highly competitive with you, could hamper your progress and potentially threaten your success. The ultimate accountability partner will support you and your goals with complete sincerity and commitment.
 
2. Go online
In our ever-connected world, there are dozens of apps and websites at our fingertips which have been specifically designed to help with your accountability. These are great tools that can offer you reminders, track your progress or connect you with other people who are also trying to complete similar goals. Garmin, map my run, Strava, Runkeeper to name but a few!
 
3. Join a Group
Joining or creating an accountability group can help you perform and achieve things that you may struggle to do on your own.
 
4. Seek professional help
There has been a huge growth in both life and business coaching over the past few years. There is no real surprise as we struggle to find a work/life balance or take our business to the next level! A good coach will help you clarify your goals, set a reasonable and realistic timeframe, and help develop strategies for overcoming barriers to your success. As you will have probably invested financially, you are more likely to commit and stay focused in order to see a return on your investment.  
 
​5. Put pen to paper
Perhaps the easiest and cheapest way to stay focused is to write your goals down on paper. Post it notes on the fridge or entries in your daily planner or on your wall calendar, act as daily reminders. Which support system you chose to hold yourself accountable, is up to you. Perhaps a combination of some or all the above would be the optimum. Whatever you chose, remember it’s just as important to invest in that as much as you invest in your goals!
 

Zinzino Balance Oils (also available for Vegans):
The omega-6 to omega-3 ratio is important because it influences how your body regulates inflammation, cardiovascular health, and cellular function. Both omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids are essential fats—your body can’t make them, so you must get them from food—but they play different roles.

Here’s why the ratio matters:

1. Inflammation Balance

• Omega-6 fatty acids (like linoleic acid, found in seed oils, nuts, and processed foods) are precursors to compounds that can promote inflammation. Some inflammation is necessary (for healing and immune defence), but too much contributes to chronic diseases.
• Omega-3 fatty acids (like EPA and DHA, found in fatty fish, flax, and chia seeds) tend to reduce inflammation and produce signalling molecules that protect tissues.
• A healthy balance helps your body respond to injury without tipping into chronic, low-grade inflammation.

2. Historical vs. Modern Diets

• Historically, humans likely ate an omega-6:omega-3 ratio close to 1:1 to 4:1.
• Today, Western diets often push that ratio to 10:1, 15:1, or even 20:1, mostly due to high intake of vegetable oils and processed foods with little omega-3.
• This imbalance is linked to higher rates of heart disease, obesity, diabetes, arthritis, and autoimmune issues.

3. Cell Membrane Health

• Both types of fatty acids are incorporated into cell membranes.
• The ratio affects membrane fluidity and signalling, which influences brain health, nerve function, and metabolic regulation.

4. Chronic Disease Risk

• Too much omega-6 relative to omega-3 can tilt the body toward pro-thrombotic (clotting), pro-inflammatory, and pro-constrictive states.
• A more balanced ratio supports heart health, brain function, joint health, and immune balance.