February 2017 Newsletter

Jan. 19, 2017

Welcome to our February 2017 newsletter, which is a 6-page printed newsletter we mail out to many of our past patients here at Gordon PT.

Here are the articles featured in this edition:

• Page 1: An Ounce of Prevention…
• Page 2: Local Business Spotlight: “Bottles”
• Page 3: 5 Things to Do in Spokane This Winter
• Page 4: The Power of Visualization
• Center Insert: Heel Pain Workshop on March 11th

Here are the 2 downloadable links to view the newsletter in .pdf format:

Click here to download the newsletter

Click here to download the center insert

Finally, below are all of the articles in plain text. Don’t forget that there’s also mention of a 15% discount on 3 bottles of wine at “Bottles” when you mention this newsletter. Enjoy!

Page 1: An Ounce of Prevention… 

Have you ever heard the expression “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure”? I tend to hear it in regards to health and wellness, but it’s a pretty universal statement for a lot of people (you could apply it to things like insurance coverage or financial planning as well). Earlier this week, I did a bit of research to find out who the expression is credited to. Can you guess? I was thinking one of the early philosophers, but it turns out the credit goes to Benjamin Franklin! What’s more, he wasn’t talking about health or finances but was referring to fire safety. Pretty crazy, huh?

While I don’t really want to talk to you about fire safety (maybe another day…), I do want to talk about prevention in regards to your health. Although a lot of people are familiar with the concept of prevention, it seems like very few people are actually practicing it. This got me thinking about why it’s so hard for most of us to really invest in a few ounces of prevention and instead resort to several pounds of “cure”. In other words, why is it so hard for all of us to stay healthy and fit these days?

You may have your own perspective on this topic, or maybe you’re turning the page right now to a more light-spirited article, but let me give you my 2 cents (since I get to write the newsletter!). There are 2 things that make following this age-old wisdom so difficult.

First, even though most of us know we should eat better, the definition of “eating healthy” has gotten completely skewed. For example, we’ve been taught by the food industry the eating plenty of “whole grains and low fat dairy” is really good for us, and we should avoid eating too much protein and fat. In reality, this newer advice is completely misleading (again, feel free to disagree with me).

And the second obstacle is this: for most of us, practicing prevention is so much harder than simply going for a few pounds of cure. An equally popular saying these days is that there’s “a pill for every ill”, meaning that you don’t necessarily have to make any difficult changes in your life when your health gets out of balance. Rather, just visit your doctor for some medication! Think about it: if you have high blood pressure, anxiety and high cholesterol, all you have to do is take a few pills every day. Much easier than eating better and exercising! Not too many years ago, if you visited your doctor and had high blood pressure and were stressed out, your prescription would’ve been lowering your stress level at work, reconnecting with your spouse and going for a walk each day. But times have changed…dramatically.

Now to end on a positive note: while changing your lifestyle can be very difficult at times, I’ve run across 4 people in the last month who have made some positive changes to their eating habits and have lost significant amounts of weight. One of them is a neighbor of mine (hi, Patrick!) who’s already lost over 60 pounds. Do you want to know his and the others’ secret? They drastically reduced the amount of carbs they eat. That’s it. Doesn’t sound that bad (I hope). Instead, they’re eating more vegetables, along with healthy proteins and fats, and they’re not going hungry in the process. And do you know what else these 4 have in common: they’ve never felt better! Does that sound like something you’d like to be saying in a few months? If so, maybe you’re ready for a few ounces of prevention!

I hope this newsletter finds you well and doesn’t rock your boat too much. Or maybe that’s okay if it does…

Cheers,

-Luke

Page 2: Local Business Spotlight: “Bottles”

Nestled just next to the Rocket Bakery in Millwood you can find one of my favorite hangouts on a Friday or Saturday night. Earlier this month, I had the chance to interview a couple of the owners:

Q: What inspired you to open Bottles?

A:   Bottles opened in May of 2008 when six friends who enjoyed wine and beer got together and believed that a beer/wine store in Millwood would be a great opportunity for them to share what they loved with others.  Bottles has evolved over the years and new partners, Josh and Jen Robson, joined two of the original partners, Gilbert and Mariann Davis, in January of 2015.  Today, you can enjoy a pint of beer or a glass of wine while visiting with friends or watching the big screen television.  The patio debuted last year and was a huge success.  Watch for the patio again this year.  Food trucks are being planned along with many wine and beer tasting events.  Come join the fun!

Q: How many beers, wines and ciders do you carry?

A:   We have over 1,200 wines, over 425 beers and over 30 ciders.    If you don’t see it, let us know and we’ll try to special order it for you.

Q: How many beers and ciders to you have on tap?

A:  We have 18 rotating tap handles, with two of them dedicated to ciders. We often have specialty beers on tap as well, and growler fills are also available.

Q: Can you give us a few staff favorites?

A:   Staff favorites abound, so don’t be shy in asking.  Our Wine of the Month is a great introduction and is always well priced.

Q: What do you like best about owning Bottles?

A:   Several items jump to mind, but it is the people, the town of Millwood and just interacting with customers who enjoy beer and wine.  We love our beer and wine tastings because that provides us with the opportunity to introduce our customers to beers/wines and help broaden their beer/wine experience.  Beer/wine tasting is an awesome way to learn and find out what you like.

Q: Anything else you’d like to highlight about the business?

A:   We greatly appreciate the support from the Millwood neighborhood and appreciate the loyalty of many of our repeat customers.  We invite you to stop by and enjoy a pint or glass of wine soon.  Friends meet friends at Bottles and often new friendships are formed by just chatting with the people at the next table.  Bottles is a friendly, locally owned spot to sit with friends or if you don’t know what you are looking for, we can provide assistance.   Drop by and see us soon and watch for the launch of our website!   Don’t forget to “like us” on Facebook!

Mention this article when you swing by Bottles and receive 15% off up to 3 bottles of wine! Also, mix-and-match 6-packs are always 10% off. Enjoy!

Page 3: 5 Things to Do in Spokane This Winter

If you’re like most of us, you may be starting to feel a bit of the winter blues right about now.  This weather does drag on some years! With that in mind, there are still a lot of fun activities around Spokane that might help you have a little fun and at least get you out of the house. Here are 5 of our favorites:

1. Visit the MAC (NW Museum of Arts and Culture): it’s easy to forget about our very own little museum, nestled in the historic Brown’s Addition neighborhood. The exhibitions rotate every few months, and the current display is a really fun one: “Titans of the Ice Age: Mammoths & Mastodons”. After checking out the massive replicas of these ancient creatures, you can also stop at Victor’s upstairs for some Greek food and a Turkish coffee (it’s delicious!)
2. Take the kids to the Mobius Children’s Museum or Science Center: depending on the age of your kids (or grandkids), both locations offer a wide range of fun games and activities. My 5 year-old and 2 year-old still love the Children’s Museum, located in the basement of River Park Square. The Science Center is geared towards children ages 5+ and is located at 331 N. Post in the old WA Water Power building.
3. Go to the Fox for a symphony: Also known as the “Martin Woldson Theater”, this historic location is definitely worth a visit, especially if you haven’t been since they remodeled it several years ago. My wife took our 5 year-old to the Nutcracker just before Christmas and had an amazing time!
4. Get your skis out and head to Mt. Spokane: I know not all of us ski (or snowboard), but visiting the mountain in the winter is one of my favorite activities. The view from the top of the mountain, combined with the cold, crisp air, always makes me feel refreshed. And if you don’t ski or board, they have several options to help you learn!
5. Visit the wineries: in a time before kids, visiting the local wineries was one of Claire and my favorite activities on a Saturday afternoon. With so many good wineries in our area, the options are endless. Our favorites include Barrister (downtown), Latah Creek (valley) and Arbor Crest (Riblet’s mansion, the view alone is worth the trip!)

I hope these ideas help you endure the rest of the winter season! And if you need one more idea, you can also take a mini-vacation over to Silver Mountain and enjoy the indoor waterpark. The Spring will be here soon!

Page 4: The Power of Visualization

For those of you who enjoy watching professional sports, from baseball and basketball to golf and Nascar, you might be surprised to learn of a common practice among the most elite performers: they all use visualization to improve their abilities. What was once considered a bit “out there” is now so common practice, that to ignore its potential would be a huge mistake. And while you may not be an elite athlete or performer, you might just want to harness the potential of visualization to improve some aspects of your daily life. Let me give you some interesting background, and I’ll follow it up with a couple practical uses.

For decades, top golfers have used visualization to improve their scores. The process looks something like this: the golfer will find a quiet place where they can completely focus, and they’ll create what’s called the “theater of the mind”. When the golfer enters this “theater”, he can watch himself in vivid detail hitting the ball perfectly. Making the vision as vivid as possible is the real key. Done correctly, the golfer can see every component of a successful stroke in exact detail, from pulling the club back, to the club striking the ball, to the ball flying over the green and finally to the ball landing near the hole.

Again, while this practice may sound a bit strange to some, the research behind it is overwhelmingly positive. So how can you harness the power of visualization? I have 2 ideas for you:

1. Relaxation/Stress Management: most of us deal with too much stress and have a hard time relaxing at the end of the day. Try this technique: imagine yourself lying on your back in the warm sand on a beautiful ocean beach. As you listen to the waves gently crashing on the shore, imagine that your body is becoming completely relaxed, and you can feel your body become heavy and start to sink into the sand. Start with your feet becoming heavy against the sand, and work your way up from there. Remember that the key is to create as vivid a mental image as possible!
2. Goal Achievement: let’s use the very common goal of weight loss for this example. You can use visualization to picture yourself in the future looking slimmer and healthier. This vision of your future self (again, as vivid as possible) can help you stay motivated as you’re trying to stick to some healthier habits.

One final thought: visualization combined with the appropriate ACTION is a very powerful combination. In the second example, visualization without action won’t get you anywhere but frustrated. So make sure you’re realistic with you expectations and are willing to make the changes in your life that will allow you to reach your goals. If you want more information on how to use visualization techniques, you can check out one of my favorite books: “Psycho-Cybernetics” by Maxwell Maltz. I’m visualizing you reading it right now!