All posts tagged: Friday 5 Spot

Dr. Kenney’s Friday 5 Spot

On Fridays I like to share some of the experiences I’ve had during the week with patients and in my personal life that I’ve found significant in some way.  I like to share them in hopes that you might find value in them and have something resonate with you in your life. 

An amazing moment I had this week?  One of the teams I coach has mostly players that I’ve coached since age 7 (most are 10-11 years old now).  One of those boys is a wonderful young man – happy, likeable, hardworking, and honestly, our least talented football player though it never affects his enthusiasm.  For 3 years I have been trying to get him a touchdown because I knew it would mean the world to him, to me and to my team that loves him.  This past weekend we got near the goal line and it finally happened!  We came up with a play especially for him, he caught a short pass for a score and we all went nuts, none more so than myself who ran on the field and carried him off screaming the whole time.  It was a “Rudy” type moment and it reminded me how much we all love the underdog.  In 3 years, I’ve never once heard this young man complain and running off the field with him smiling was one of the best moments I have ever had!

Something good after something bad?  My undefeated football team lost in the semifinals this past weekend and it was a tough one for all of us.  As the coach I will tell you that I was devastated.  My brother in law that recently died used to be my assistant coach and having an undefeated, championship season seemed like it would be such a wonderful thing.  It was not to be.

When I got home after the game, some of the players and parents had given me gifts and cards.  One of the gifts was a framed photo of myself and the boy I described above after his big touchdown.  His mom also wrote me a note that said while most coaches would have dismissed her son, I have never given up on him, have been patient with him, have always encouraged him and have allowed him to keep enthusiastically playing football.  Honestly, it made me cry and meant the world to me.  It also made me think of my brother in law.  When he played football he rarely played.  He was dismissed, not encouraged and he ended up leaving football.  It occurred to me then that if he were looking in on me from heaven, he’d be much more excited that I played a role in helping a kid like himself than anything else I could’ve done as coach.

Something I have not been liking?  I see a trend more now than ever where people cite “science” to support their viewpoints.  Don’t misunderstand me, I believe in science and the scientific process.  What I do not like is just the general answer of “well it’s science” to dismiss someone or a different approach.  Science focuses on testing hypotheses through experiments and observing results.  Another important aspect of science is testing one approach, belief, outcome/expected outcome versus another.  This process allows us to learn more and gain insight.  Proven scientific outcomes are far more valuable to our decision-making process than merely the general science of something is.

How much stretching do I do?  I know many people that have elaborate stretching routines, I am not one of those people.  However, I do understand the importance of stretching and so I do it regularly.  I stick to brief sessions but make sure to do them regularly.  Typically, I will stretch out for about 5 minutes within 30 minutes of getting out of bed and then again at some point during the way (and/or before bed).  I also stretch lightly before I start my workouts or go for a run.  I stick to stretches that lengthen and strengthen my spine and core and I always feel better afterwards.  It’s not complicated or time intensive, but it helps me greatly!

Some quotes I love? 

“Unless some like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better.  It’s not.” – Dr. Seuss

“I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” – Dr. Maya Angelou

“Discipline is the bridge between goals and results.”

“The best math you can learn is how to calculate the future cost of current decisions.”

Want more?

• Don’t forget to follow Dr. Kenney on Instagram @Coloradochiropractor
• To see previous Friday 5 Spots, visit www.newbodychiro.com and go to “blog”
• Check us out on Facebook under New Body Chiropractic

Dr. Kenney’s Friday 5 Spot

On Fridays I like to share some of the experiences I’ve had during the week with patients and in my personal life that I’ve found significant in some way.  I like to share them in hopes that you might find value in them and have something resonate with you in your life. 

A habit I have found helpful?  Something I’ve been doing for years now that I believe is constructive is that I try to either say or think something nice about someone when I interact with them.  In many instances I will verbalize this to them.  It doesn’t have to be anything major and it’s never fake, but I feel it creates positive energy.  If it’s someone I don’t know (or can’t talk to at that time), I will simply think something nice about them.  This could be someone I see in a store from afar being nice to someone, being polite, showing motivation, whatever.  Again, the process of coming up with something nice to think about them creates positivity within myself which I believe is its own form of fuel.

A good lesson?  This past Sunday it was extremely cold and snowy.  Normally on a Sunday I’ll go for a run early, but I was doing a bunch of cooking and other stuff and figured I’d skip it.  I told myself I wasn’t really training for anything now, I’d trained hard for my last race, I deserved the rest, blah blah blah.  My inner wimp was coddling me and giving me the excuses I needed to call it a day.

The problem is my inner wimp has never gotten me anywhere in life.  There’s nothing wrong with rest but falling back on excuses or past successes and getting complacent is not helpful.  I want to constantly keep myself uncomfortable and challenged so that I don’t lose my sense of purpose or work ethic.  That run ended up making me feel great and I was glad I went (as I always am).

What are your thoughts on the positive body image movement?  For whatever reason I had this question multiple times this week, so I wanted to address it.  I am 100% in favor of people finding the best in themselves.  I think it’s great to feel attractive, confident, etc. so that part I love.  However, I do not like using confidence (or fake confidence) to try and make up for a lack of health.  As an example, if someone is overweight, smokes, drinks too much, etc.  I would never want them to feel ashamed of themselves.  At the same time, I would not want them to pretend they are in great health and ignore their underlying health issues because that can cause both short- and long-term health consequences.  I am a believer in being honest with yourself, taking stock of where you’re at and then using that positive energy to make changes that will benefit you.  This will create not only a better body image but better a lasting level of better health.

Something I’ve been enjoying?  My daughter is about 2 ½ months old and my youngest son is 2 years old.  Almost like clockwork these days, they’re both up sometime around 4:30-5:15 am.  I am a morning person by nature and so I love getting out of bed and having time with them in the mornings.  I get to feed my daughter, cook breakfast for my son and relax and enjoy them both.  Usually my daughter will fall asleep at some point and I’ll work out in my garage while my son rides his bike in circles near me.  By the time I head to work or start the day I feel like I’ve had so much productive and fun time that it really jumpstarts my day.  It may be early, but I adore these times with my young ones!

Some quotes I love? 

“When your armor is on, it’s too late to retreat.” – Team Never Quit

“Know your enemy and know yourself and you can fight a hundred battles without disaster.” –  Sun Tzu.

Want more?

• Don’t forget to follow Dr. Kenney on Instagram @Coloradochiropractor
• To see previous Friday 5 Spots, visit www.newbodychiro.com and go to “blog”
• Check us out on Facebook under New Body Chiropractic

Dr. Kenney’s Friday 5 Spot

On Fridays I like to share some of the experiences I’ve had during the week with patients and in my personal life that I’ve found significant in some way.  I like to share them in hopes that you might find value in them and have something resonate with you in your life. 

Something I’ve noticed?  With COVID affecting us since March, I continue to see people I haven’t seen in months that have put on considerable sums of weight.  Even coaching football for 9-10-year-old boys I noticed that a few of my previous players came back heavy.  I bring this up because it’s a good reminder of how our health and bodies work.  Picture your garden – to grow properly it requires sunlight, water, nutrients, and the removal of weeds.  Stay on top of these areas and the garden will flourish.  Ignore it, and within 3 weeks it’ll be an overgrown mess of weeds with dead plants everywhere.  Likewise, if you stay on top of what you eat, how and how much you move, what you drink, etc. then your body will prosper.  Tend to your body like a garden and you’ll get great results.

Can you treat someone with arthritis?  I receive this question daily and the answer is that of course I can.  Most people will show signs of arthritis in the spine (aka degenerative joint or disc disease) often in their late 40’s or early 50’s.  Movement of the spine and of the body both help arthritis and keep it from getting worse.  Probably 80% of my patients over the age of 45-50 have some form of arthritis so it is not something that would or should prevent someone from receiving care.  Arthritis is to your spine what cavities are to your teeth.  And just as dentists work with that daily, chiropractors work with arthritis daily.

A recent interaction that reinforced a good lesson?  I was speaking to a rookie head coach in my football league.  His team is struggling and he’s beating himself up for lack of results (though he tries very hard, cares very much, and has great enthusiasm).  He and I have become friends and I’ve shared things that I feel can help him.  During one of recent talks he was talking a lot about wanting to be better in various areas.  I inquired about how he was going to get them better in those areas and he said he didn’t know.  This reminded me of a lesson I was taught long ago which is to get good, you need to know how to get good. 

Pick anything – finances, getting into shape, picking up a new hobby, you name it, and for you to improve in that area you need to know some steps to get you to that goal.  In the case of this coach, I shared certain adjustments I’d make to show improvement in the areas he mentioned – adding drills, simplifying concepts, removing confusing things.  It was nothing all that complicated but this helped him quite a bit because while he was focusing on what he ultimately wanted to happen he had been ignoring the aspect of how to get there.  This is quite common, and this was a great reminder lesson for me.

Something that I’ve found helpful recently?  I was reminded about the importance of deep breathing exercises recently, so I’ve been working on doing them daily.  I take in a deep breath for 4 seconds and push it out for 4 seconds and repeat this process about 4 times (sometimes more).  It’s amazing to me how much lighter and more relaxed I feel after doing this simple practice.

Some quotes I love? 

“You can’t jump a battery with a dead battery.  Don’t surround yourself with people that drain your battery but energize it. – Eric Thomas

“A man makes his own way. No one gives it to you. You have to take it.” – Frank Costello, The Departed

Want more?

• Don’t forget to follow Dr. Kenney on Instagram @Coloradochiropractor
• To see previous Friday 5 Spots, visit www.newbodychiro.com and go to “blog”
• Check us out on Facebook under New Body Chiropractic

Dr. Kenney’s Friday 5 Spot

On Fridays I like to share some of the experiences I’ve had during the week with patients and in my personal life that I’ve found significant in some way.  I like to share them in hopes that you might find value in them and have something resonate with you in your life.  

A good question to ask yourself?  Whether in team sports, business or elsewhere; we often hear about “creating a culture.”  Creating a culture means implementing values and processes that lead to success.  While I think people understand this in business or sports, they often neglect it in their personal lives.  A question you should ask yourself is with your habits and actions, what type of culture are you creating for yourself and your family?  Decisions that repeatedly lead to drama, debt, frustration, anger, poor health, bad relationships, etc. would be examples of creating a poor culture.  Decisions leading to better health, contentment, less stress, enjoyment, happiness, etc. would be geared toward the creation of a good culture.  Decide where you are and where you want to be and start implementing the things necessary to take you there and keep you there.

A great lesson I’ve seen play out?  Something I believe strongly in is keeping things simple and mastering the basics.  This is true in most things but a place I’ve seen it up close has been within the football team I coach.  Last year we started out terribly and I realized I was throwing too much at the kids.  Therefore, I simplified what we’d be doing so rather than doing a whole bunch of stuff just okay, we’d master a few things.  Almost immediately, the results were amazing, and our season turned around.  I am coaching those boys again right now and I’ve noticed that since they’ve mastered the basics, we’re able to adjust plays and concepts without any problems because we have such a great foundation to build on.  Even better, rather than having a team that relies just on a couple star players, our system has allowed some of the players that are not as naturally gifted to become top players.  Keeping things simple and mastering the basics is like building a house on a solid foundation.

Something that happened this week?  We had a new patient this week that came in for an adjustment and massage.  Somehow a phone call was missed and all the specifics of her insurance were not relayed to her so after her treatments we charged her the appropriate price but one she was not expecting (massage was not covered under her plan).  She was upset and left a low review for us.  I reached out to her, acknowledged that I understood where she was coming from, refunded her money and offered her a complimentary massage.   The lesson from all of this is that sometimes stuff happens.  We all make mistakes but rather than make excuses or blame others, it’s best to just say “my bad” and try to move forward in a positive way.  This patient was very pleased with how we handled the mistake and said she’d like to come back in.  No one is perfect, if you screw up just admit it and fix it if possible. 

A cool conversation I had this week?  I have a regular patient that is big into self-improvement, maximizing performance, etc.  He was telling me about a challenge he has been doing that involves doing a certain amount of exercise, reading, meditation, healthy eating, etc. for a certain amount of days in a row (I think 75).  What he and I discussed and agreed upon was that to most people making a commitment like this can be very daunting and seemingly impossible.  However, in terms of our lifespan a couple months is nothing.  If a person can really commit to a program like this, the results can be not only significant but life changing.  You can be a different person within a short period of time by going all in on an endeavor like this and set yourself up for boundless success thereafter.  I’ve done it myself and have seen it in others many times!

Some quotes I love? 

“The difference between winners and losers is a mindset.” – William King Hollis

“Champions keep going when they don’t have anything left in their tank.” – Eric Thomas

“To be loved, be loveable.”

Want more?

• Don’t forget to follow Dr. Kenney on Instagram @Coloradochiropractor
• To see previous Friday 5 Spots, visit www.newbodychiro.com and go to “blog”
• Check us out on Facebook under New Body Chiropractic

Dr. Kenney’s Friday 5 Spot

On Fridays I like to share some of the experiences I’ve had during the week with patients and in my personal life that I’ve found significant in some way.  I like to share them in hopes that you might find value in them and have something resonate with you in your life.  

Why is posture so important?  I get many questions and comments about posture daily but twice this week I have been asked this specific question.  To me, the answer is twofold.  First, poor posture is to your spine what poor dental habits are to your teeth – a recipe for decay and problems to come.  Your spine supports your entire body including your spinal cord so as your spine misaligns and degenerates it will absolutely lead to problems down the line involving pain, decreased mobility, etc.  Second, remember that your posture is how you present yourself to the world.  If you’re crooked or hunched over you’re not going to convey to the world around you a strong, confident presence. 

If you get adjusted once will you have to get adjusted forever?  I’ve covered this before, but I get asked this so often I’m addressing it again.  Adjustments can obviously be beneficial to your overall health, well being and ability to move and feel how you’d like.  For a good majority of my patients, this is something they willingly choose to continue.  For those that do not choose that path, there is nothing about receiving a single adjustment that would set in motion any sort of negative reaction to your body or mandate requiring you to keep getting adjusted.  You can stop dental care anytime you like though it’s not likely to help your teeth.  No one goes to the gym worried that if they start working out, they’ll have to do it forever.  Chiropractic adjustments will help your spine and nervous system but you’re in charge of whether that’s something you’d like to pursue and if so, how often.

A piece of nutrition advice I gave recently?  I was speaking with a patient and he has been doing well over the past few weeks with eating better.  Last weekend he ate a bunch of stuff he wished he hadn’t, and it snowballed for him over the rest of that day.  His question to me was essentially how he could punish himself so that he wouldn’t do this again and I told him this was the wrong approach.  My first piece of advice was that there is nothing wrong with treating yourself to some food that isn’t great for you – we all do that.  The key is for this to be a 5% of the time type of deal as opposed to the norm.  If you do it like this it will both motivate you and boost your metabolism believe it or not.  Second, if you regret what you ate last, do not punish yourself or make the next series of meals bad and start feeling even worse.  Simply eat better, healthier food at your next meal and get back on track. 

Two general pieces of exercise advice?  I often speak to patients and friends who are just starting/getting back into exercise and they ask for all sorts of tips.  As far as maintaining regular exercise, there are two things I have found incredibly beneficial.  First, try to find a partner.  Having someone to hold accountable and be accountable to is proven to lead to greater success.  Plus, it’s a lot more fun embarking on a journey with a friend and helping each other out.  Second, schedule some type of event that you need to train for.  In times of COVID there may not be as many events out there but find something where you have a date in the future you need to get prepared for.  In my experience, someone that signs up even for a simple 5K race is far more likely to start getting in shape than someone who just makes a New Year’s resolution.  Find a friend and find an event and you’ll be off to a good start!

Some quotes I love? 

“Hate is the only emotion that kills the vessel it travels in.” – Joe Rogan

“Do it now.  Sometimes ‘later’ becomes ‘never’.”  – Ray “cash” Care

“you can waste time wishing a situation was easier or you can step up and face the challenge.” – JJ Virgin

“Don’t expect to be motivated every day to get out there and make things happen.  You won’t be.  Don’t count on motivation.  Count on discipline.” – Jocko Willink

Want more?

• Don’t forget to follow Dr. Kenney on Instagram @Coloradochiropractor
• To see previous Friday 5 Spots, visit www.newbodychiro.com and go to “blog”
• Check us out on Facebook under New Body Chiropractic

Dr. Kenney’s Friday 5 Spot

On Fridays I like to share some of the experiences I’ve had during the week with patients and in my personal life that I’ve found significant in some way.  I like to share them in hopes that you might find value in them and have something resonate with you in your life.  

Something I’ve been reminded of lately?  As many of you know, I am a football coach and it is one of the things I enjoy most in life.  As I arrived early to our first game last weekend I was walking around the fields and kept getting stopped by parents of kids I coached and former players as well.  It seemed like every 5 feet I was hearing ‘Hey Coach Matt!”  It reminded me of how important being part of a community can really be.  I’ve gone through a tragic loss recently and coaching has been a welcome distraction.  Arriving at the field and talking to people really uplifted me and reminded me how great it can be to part of positive groups like that football league is for me. 

Something I greatly believe in?  A concept I talk about often is that of creating “fertile ground.”  Just like your garden requires regular attention, water, proper sunlight, weeding, etc. to properly grow and prosper; so too does any endeavor in which you want to succeed.  I’ve had to be out of the office over the past month far more than usual – first for the birth of my daughter by emergency c-section that had me out longer than expected and then dealing with the loss of my brother in law.  As a result, I have  seen a dip in my business.

While I certainly don’t regret taking that time off, my choice is to either use that as an excuse that it’s not my fault or to get back to work planting fertile ground.  I choose the latter which for me means making sure I create content for my emails, making sure each patient leaves feeling satisfied, making sure my office looks 100%, hustling to see as many visits as possible (whether it’s during my lunch hour or a less convenient time or not) maintaining high energy levels and so much more.  Whatever you want to succeed in, remember you always have the choice to either turn it into a bunch of weeds or plant fertile ground. 

You are so upbeat; do you only believe in being optimistic?  A patient asked me this and I thought it was an interesting question.  The answer is basically yes and no.  It’s yes in the sense that I can take something very small and find a great positivity within it.  This helps me to go further in my endeavors, accomplish more, motivate others, etc. and is very useful.  Basically, all I need is a glimpse of something good and I can really get rolling with it.  On the other hand, I can be pessimistic.  If I see something or someone that lacks motivation, doesn’t work hard, is lazy or is just overall not good; I will not be shy in telling you it sucks.  In these situations, the pessimism serves the purpose of helping me to problem solve and find a better solution. 

As an example of both, if I hire someone or am coaching a player that works hard and makes mistakes, I am thrilled to work with and help them.  Conversely, if they don’t work hard, blame others, and make excuses; I would rather move right on and not worry about them.

A cool moment recently?  I coach a football team of 9- and 10-year old’s and we had our first game last Saturday.  A group of those boys were some of my first players ever and my late brother in law and I coached them for years together.  Prior to the game, I gathered those boys and asked them if they’d be willing to play even a little harder in the memory of Coach Sam.  They all enthusiastically said yes and then collectively they all played the best they ever had on the way to a win.  After the game I thanked them as I gave a post-game speech to the team and it ended up being a very moving moment – especially for myself and my son. 

Some quotes I love? 

“Don’t make a habit out of choosing what feels good over what is good for you.” – Eric Thomas

“Most of you don’t want success as much as you want to sleep.” – Eric Thomas

Want more?

• Don’t forget to follow Dr. Kenney on Instagram @Coloradochiropractor
• To see previous Friday 5 Spots, visit www.newbodychiro.com and go to “blog”
• Check us out on Facebook under New Body Chiropractic