John Aaron Wellness

It's common knowledge that regularly stretching the muscles helps prevent injuries, but sports massage takes it one step further. Sports massage supports your training and stretching program by building healthier tissues and preventing injuries. Using this type of massage can help you prevent muscle strains and sprains, recover from events and strenuous workouts, and heal from injuries. Before athletic events and workouts, massage prepares you by stretching, loosening, and oxygenating muscles. Between workouts and events, massage can help increase flexibility with assisted stretching and the release of chronically contracted muscles. Massage Increases Circulation After a sports event, massage can hep soothe soft tissues of the body, aid in repairing micro-tears to the muscles, and further help enhance circulation. When tight, bunched muscles relax and lengthen, they aren't apt to press as much on surrounding structures. As a result, when circulation is restored the flow ...

Research published in the International Journal of Neuroscience, the American Journal of Public Health, and Journal of Child Neurology indicates that massage can reduce the occurrence and frequency of tension and migraine headaches. This supports the experience that many of my massage clients have had in which they tell me they have experienced a decrease in both headaches and neck and shoulder pain. How does massage help? Massage relaxes tense muscles and eases pressure on joints and nerves. When tension held in the muscles of the head, shoulders, and neck eases, there is less agitation to the nerves and blood vessels that supply them. Blood flow is improved and muscle spasms are often relieved. Trigger points in the neck, head and shoulders can be another cause of pain which respond well to specific massage techniques. These factors all add up to the relief of tension or migraine headaches. Massage therapy often reduces the anxiety and worry that can accompany headaches, t...

After last night's soccer game, your daughter complained that her shins hurt, so you iced her legs before she went to bed. Her legs felt fine after a good night's sleep and you sent her off to school this morning with a kiss and soccer practice clothes in her backpack. Now she's calling and saying that her legs hurt again. Could it be something more than simple pain? Shin splints are a common injury among athletes - especially runners, sprinters, figure skaters, and gymnasts. The term "shin splints" refers to pain felt in the shinbone or tibia (the large bone in the front of your lower leg) after an athlete has run or "pounded the ground" for a period of time. This force of impact can sometimes cause the muscles around the tibia to tighten, pull, or become inflamed, which leads to pain. Shin splints often respond well to home treatment, but if the pain continues, it's a good idea to have a medical professional check it out just to be sure it...

It's true. Massage can help reduce stress, and boosts well-being. Research demonstrates these benefits. Therapeutic massage has been used for stress and pain relief around the world throughout the ages. As long ago as the 5th century Hippocrates, the father of modern medicine, wrote, "the physician must be experienced in many things, but assuredly also in rubbing." Modern research, such as studies by the Touch Research Institute at the University of Miami Medical School, have demonstrated that massage is extraordinary in its ability to reduce the effects of stress and promote well-being. Therapeutic massage has become well known as one of the best ways to deal with the overload of stress so common in today's world. Although stress is inevitable and can be overwhelming at times, it can also inspire us to do our best, but when we experience an overload of stress for too long, our ability to respond with grace and balance may be challenged. Therapeutic massa...

Your body aches and you can’t wait to get to your next massage appointment to help alleviate the pain. You absolutely know how much better you will feel after getting your massage. But, have you ever wondered how it works? Well, there’s much more to it, but I’ve managed to condense it into small easy to understand bullet points Massage stimulates the release of natural pain-relievers such as endorphins.  Massage stretches tight muscles and sends messages to the nervous system to relax.  Massage not only increases circulation, but flushes irritating waste products and floods tight muscles with healing oxygen and nutrients. Combined with stress relief, improved circulation may be enough in itself to help you relax and allow the pain to recede as you let go. Massage releases trigger points. These are highly irritable spots that feel like lumps or knots, which send uncomfortable sensations to other parts of the body.  Massage softens contracted muscles and their con...

Did you know that cranberries protect brain cells from free-radical damage that impairs cognitive and motor functions? Well, recent studies seem to support the notion that cranberry consumption can actually improve function in age-related declines in working memory, reference memory, balance and coordination. In fact, when it comes to preserving brain function, cranberries are so powerful they can even reduce impairment following a stroke! In a 2003 study, researchers discovered that by exposing neurons to a concentration of cranberry extract, there was a 50 percent reduction in brain cell death. So take the following recipe prescription to heart (and mind)! It makes a great breakfast or mid-day snack and is not only healthy for your brain, but it’s good for your heart and waistline, too! Ingredients • 1 cup flaxseeds 250 mL • 1 cup each all-purpose flour and whole wheat flour 250 mL • 1 cup natural bran 250 mL • 1 tbsp baking powder 15 mL • 1 tsp each baking...

Okay. Before we can talk about how toxins make us fat, I need to inform you of a little known area of medical science called genomic reprogramming. Researchers in genomic reprogramming believe that human DNA, the genes we are born with, can be manipulated in a way in which they do or do not express health or disease for you. It was previously believed that your genetic makeup sealed your fate - no exchanges; no returns - but that is no longer the case. There are actions that can be taken in order to excite or repress certain genetic traits. That said, let's move on to discuss how toxins can manipulate your body's ability to gain and retain fat. Although the body has an amazing ability to process an incredible amount of toxins, there is little doubt that it can be overwhelmed. Since the dawn of the Industrial Revolution our systems have been awash in stew of man-made toxins that have increased at an alarming rate and have compounded over time. A toxin is basically an...