CARMICHAEL, Calif. – February 5, 2009 – For the first time in the history of the Olympic Games, the 2010 Winter Games in Vancouver, Canada, will include chiropractic care inside the Olympic Village Polyclinic, a multi-disciplinary facility that offers comprehensive health care and medical services. While doctors of chiropractic (D.C.s) have historically been included on the Olympic medical staff, the upcoming events mark the first time that D.C.’s from the host country will be treating athletes and officials from around the world directly inside the Polyclinic.

“This is an historic event not only for the chiropractic profession, but also the athletes who will now have access to the care that will help them prepare their bodies for competition,” states Michael Reed, D.C., MS, DACBSP, and Team USA Medical Director (USOC). “These athletes train hard and endure significant physical demands. Sports-focused D.C.s, along with other members of the sports medicine team, are specially skilled to assist them in reaching peak performance.”
Throughout the years, chiropractic has become a mainstay in the care of world-class athletes, leading to a growing number of D.C.s included in the Olympic Games. Countless athletes attribute the care they receive from their chiropractors — working along-side other health care professionals – as a key to properly preparing their bodies to perform optimally.

Chiropractic care has experienced several major moments in Olympic history, dating back to Leroy Perry, D.C., who provided chiropractic care to athletes representing Antigua during the 1976 Games in Montreal, Canada. During the 1980 Winter Olympic Games in Lake Placid, NY, George Goodheart, D.C., became the first official chiropractor appointed to the U.S. team.  George Goodheart, DC was the founder of  the International College of Applied Kinesiology, which San Francisco’s Dr. Andrew Cohen is certified in. With each subsequent Olympic Games and Pan American Games, the U.S. teams — along with a growing number of other national teams — have included at least one doctor of chiropractic on their medical staff, culminating with the 2010 Winter Games incorporation of chiropractic care inside the Polyclinic.

1) If you have an injury or pain, get it checked out by a doctor who is familiar with running injuries and the gait cycle.  It is also important to ensure that the leg lengths are equal because if you have an imbalance this may irritate things further up the chain.

3) I like some kind of foot cover such as the Vibram Five Fingers. While the “form of locomotion (bipedalism) has been around for millions of years, and we have been unshod for more than 99% of that time,”¹ we also have not had asphalt, concrete, broken glass, rusty nails, needles, etc. for 99% of the that time.  I would try running barefoot somewhere safe, like a rubberized track, a beach, or even a trail.

Once again, right now I would not rush people to try this, although there is some solid research behind it.  Too often I hear the argument that Kenya and other countries have remarkable barefoot runners. This doesn’t do much for me because to me it’s comparing apples to oranges.  When I was in rural Uganda with the Arlington Academy of Hope, a non-profit based out of the DC area, we provided the kids at the school with shoes.  It was a novel idea to many of them and some didn’t seem to wear them even after they got the shoes. They were used to walking or running to school barefoot, but they were running through the mud, dirt, and grass typically (not asphalt or, worse, concrete).  I was not, so when I tried walking up the hill barefoot it turned out be way worse than my mud caked boots, which I thought were basically useless. Also I got a couple splinters that could have be a result of the lack of callus formation on my feet.

My point is that these runners are conditioned. Do you know what else they are used to that most of us aren’t? Walking or running as a primary form of transportation.  They do not drive often and a walk usually means more than walking to the bus stop. That cardiovascular and muscle conditioning – and to some point genetics – makes some countries more likely to produce remarkable athletes, in my opinion.

Anyway, I am open to the concept of barefoot running; I just don’t want the mainstream media to blow it out of proportion.  Just make sure that you get into it carefully if you decide that it’s something you want to pursue.  Shoot, I’ve decided I’m going to try it myself.

Most people think of chiropractic helping with neck pain but very few think about improved balence. Balance is important for athletes who rely heavily on their proprioception (or balance) in order to perform the complex movements but it’s also important to our older population.

(A rail slide can be mighty painful if your balance is off)

The risk of slipping and falling compounded by the increased risk of mortality if a hip is fractured (in older populations) makes exploring every possible conservative option for improving balance.  This new research, although a small study size, points to the potential of improved balance, and some showed reduced dizziness.