Healing Nutrition: My Disc Protocol
by: Manny Aragon
In last weeks email, I told the story of how I injured my neck and caused 2 bulging discs complete with excruciating pain, arm tremors, fireworks, etc. In my last email I covered primarily the origin of my injury as well as the clinical pathway I took to resolve the injury (in this case, steroidal anti-inflammatory treatment followed by many sessions of spinal decompression- for full functional and sensorial recovery).
Although my clinical protocol likely provided the bulk of the healing, I believe that by implementing additional supporting lifestyle protocols – namely light exercise, nutrition, and supplementation, I helped prepare and keep my body in healing mode for the duration of the treatment (and for a good time afterwards as well). In other words, the diet, supplementation, and exercise helped ensure a speedy recovery.
Mind you, this injury hit me mid way through the triathlon season during the lull of june, july, and august of last year (luckily) and I was able to get up to speed with my training for the first of 4 half- Ironman races in 5 weeks starting on sept 8th. Not only that, but despite my injury and the several months I took off from training, I managed to successively PR in two out of 4 of those races. Not a bad way to end the season.
So, what were the secret lifestyle changes that I made to my diet, supplementation schedule, and what exercises did I do?
Diet: I stuck with my anti inflammatory diet but tightened it up a bit. The base of this diet is Paleo or whole food based with no grains, no processed foods, and no dairy. I say I tightened it up a bit because despite the majority of my diet being clean, about 5-10% of the time I would allow myself things like alcohol (with fresh squeezed fruit juice) and chocolate. All three of these things are inflammation creators (especially the sugar in all of them) and it was totally worth it to get complete healing. (those interested in what an anti- inflammatory diet looks like can access it here (http://bit.ly/15cBT3q)
I made a point of eating lots of varied leafy and non leafy green veggies (for mineral content), bone broths, shrimp and scallops (to boost my yin- helps in things like disc repair and rehydration), and coconut water for proper tissue hydration (its isotonic so it is absorbed into the body and tissues rapidly).
Supplementation: While there are general protocols for disc repair, I invested the time needed for biweekly visits to my colleague who performed NRT or Nutritional Response Testing- a sophisticated muscle testing technique used to determine the immediate nutritional needs of the body. I use this technique in my practice and have complete trust in the system as well as my colleague. I bought and took ALL recommended supplements on schedule – without fail. Link here (http://bit.ly/14B9ypJ) to an explanation of NRT and the process I used.
Exercise: The instructions from my doc were to STOP all exercise for a minimum of 6 weeks. This was incredibly difficult for me to swallow- being right in the middle of the season and all- but I did stop for about 4 weeks…completely stopped and allowed my body to focus ALL of my energy on the healing process. It was tough but I REALLY wanted and BELIEVED I could heal completely and if no exercise was part of that regimen- SO BE IT.
Well, my doc was right. It sure did work. But after 4 weeks, I got a little restless and started light swimming and cycling along with EASY running. I also incorporated whole body stretching (except for my neck), yoga sun salutes, and yoga back bends (wheel pose in particular as this would provide support for the trunk which, in turn supports the position of the neck).
I have to say, I am a bit of a rebel but in this case I completely trusted my care providers as well as my own ability to feel how my movement and exercise was directly affecting my injury. I had absolute certainty that I would heal completely given the experience of my providers, my own health, and my determination to be whole.
Believe in your body, it has a healing capability that is far beyond your imagination.