What causes a less than optimal functioning nervous system?

The nervous system is designed to control, regulate, and communicate with all the systems of the body. The nervous system receives signals from the internal and external environment, interprets them, and then decides what is best for the body. In order to understand why our nervous system goes into overdrive we first must understand how it works.

This blog is focused on the autonomic nervous system, aka the involuntary system that is half running behind the scenes. This system is broken up into two divisions: parasympathetic and sympathetic. The parasympathetic is “rest and digest” mode while the sympathetic is “fight or flight”. For example, if you were being chased by a bear, the sympathetic would turn on rather if you were meditating on the beach then the parasympathetic would turn on. Both systems are vital to the bodies survival, but should stay mostly in a parasympathetic mode.

Unfortunately, most people today are quite the opposite as they are stuck in sympathetic overdrive. Potential symptoms of sympathetic overdrive can include: headaches, anxiety, lowered immune response, irritability, fatigue, etc.

Why does our nervous system get stuck in this sympathetic response? As chiropractors we like to focus on three root causes: thoughts, traumas, and toxins (3 T’s). Depressive feeling, anxious thoughts, self-limiting, and negative thoughts can cause neurotransmitters to be released that ignite the sympathetics. Trauma, whether physical/mental/emotional can get stored in the body and effect how we process and interpret other incoming stressors. This topic is covered in depth in the book “The body keeps the score” by Van Der Kolk. We are exposed to toxins everyday through our food, water, and air whether it be chemicals, pesticides, harmful electromagnetic frequencies, micro plastics, etc. With more toxins in today’s world than ever seen before, our bodies can’t work fast enough to eliminate them. This puts our body in a constant stressed out state AKA sympathetic overdrive.

What can be done to help regulate your sympathetic nervous system? Chiropractic can help put your body into a parasympathetic state while also reorganizing stored tension. Getting consistent care can give your body a break and allow it to be better adapt to deal with all the various stressors. Another key is to try and eliminate as much of the three T’s as possible. The combination of these two things will give most people a great starting place for maximizing the function of their nervous system.

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What happens post adjustment?

There are many different scenarios that can happen post adjustment varying from person to person. A patient may feel immediate relief, no relief, relief after a few days or more pain. There are several things to do if one or more of these scenarios occur.

If you experience immediately relief, congratulations! Now it is important to monitor if the problem comes back, how long it took to come back, the quality of the relief, is it the same location or is your body calling attention to new places? Continue to be aware of what makes the issue dissipate rather than aggravate.

If you experience no relief, go ahead and relay that to your chiropractor. They will probably say something along the line of “give it 24 hours or more and see where you’re at”. This is true, sometimes an adjustment needs to “settle”. This means that the nervous system needs time to process and organize the input it was just given. Monitor your issue and follow up with any changes at the next visit.

Sometimes as your body releases stored tension, this can manifest into physical illness such as flu like symptoms. It’s important to drink lots of water so that it will hydrate your muscles, joints and body. If you experience more pain bring this to the attention of your chiropractor. Muscle soreness is relatively common and if is present icing the area is advised.

Is there anything you can’t do post adjustment? The short answer is no, typically you can resume day to day activity. A lot of people are afraid of working out after an adjustment, but it is actually good to retrain muscles to a new state of alignment. If anything is uncomfortable or causes pain, do not proceed with doing such activity. Overall, there really is not much to post adjustment care. The biggest takeaway is awareness of the state of your body post adjustment and relaying that to your chiropractor at your next adjustment.

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How Chiropractic Adjustments Work

How Chiropractic Adjustments Work

At Corrective Chiropractic, we have several locations where patients can visit for back, shoulder and neck pain. We know that chiropractic adjustments are beneficial for a variety of reasons. Here are 9 reasons how chiropractic adjustments work.

Chiropractic Adjustments Work by Improving in Balance

When the spinal vertebrae are out of alignment it can affect the body’s posture. It can also affect the mobility by making balancing difficult. With a chiropractic adjustment, the vertebrae go back into the proper positions. This releases the pressure on the pinched nerves in the back that lead to the hips and the legs.

Make Breathing Easier

We have clients with asthma and other respiratory illnesses. This can cause difficulty in the circulatory system. Chiropractic adjustments work by improving the condition of the muscles that are located around the lungs and trachea. This, in turn, makes breathing easier.

Overcoming Digestive Issues

Some of patients have recurring digestive issues from stomach and this can make life difficult. By adjusting the spine, the nerves that are in the gastrointestinal system are improved, therefore reducing problems that include diarrhea or nausea.

Reducing High Blood Pressure

Having high blood pressure is dangerous because it affects the arteries, blood vessels and heart. This can lead to additional health problems. An adjustment can help relieve the pressure on the sensitive nerves in the back, which can reduce blood pressure.

Increased Joint Mobility

Our patients often have conditions that include arthritis or fibromyalgia. These are debilitating and chronic conditions that tend to progress. We recommend working on the back with special instruments to adjust the vertebrae to increase joint mobility.

Boosting the Immune System

Boosting the immune system can help a patient to overcome a temporary or chronic health problem. With spinal adjustments, the nerves in the spinal column that control the immune functions of the lymph glands are released.

Chiropractic Adjustments Work by Giving Headache Relief

Some of our patients suffer from severe cluster headaches or migraines. These can make daily living difficult. These types of headaches cause excruciating pain in addition to dizziness and nausea. Our chiropractor will focus on the neck and upper area of the back to alleviate this discomfort.

More Energy

Our patients may complain about having no energy. Despite getting enough sleep and consuming a healthy diet, it is possible for our clients to feel tired all of the time. Fatigue is often caused by low levels of discomfort or inflammation in the body. Spinal adjustments can help reduce this pain.

Restful Sleep

It is important to sleep well at night for a variety of reasons. Some of these reasons include improving cognitive abilities and preventing illnesses. A regular adjustment can realign the back, neck and hips, in turn making a good night’s sleep possible.

 

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preventative-healthcare

Preventative Healthcare

Another week, another blog from your Corrective Chiropractic family! Who else looks forward to our small talks? As always, we are so excited to educate and empower you to live a life based on vitalism AKA preventative healthcare.

Preventative Healthcare

Today we are talking all about preventative healthcare. Why? Well, we often overlook the importance of preventative healthcare. If you have not already read our most recent blog, “Why Quick Fixes Aren’t The Answer,” we encourage you to go read that one first. We talk about how our “quick-fix” society tends to spill over into the way we approach our health.

For us, prevention means reducing the chances of problems arising in the first place. The World Health Organization defines health as “a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.” You see, it is not always about the absence of disease, but rather learning how to take preventative actions. Rather than waiting until we are unwell and require expensive treatment, Corrective Chiropractic focuses on preventative healthcare and keeping our patients well from the very start.

Prevention Over Pain

When it comes to our physical bodies, our aim revolves around prevention instead of pain. A lot of people tend to measure their health by their level of pain. While pain is a warning that something in your body is not functioning correctly or healing properly… it is not a good indicator of whether or not you are healthy. Because of the close relationship to your nervous system, your spine plays a huge role in your health. Pain is usually a late finding of long-term spinal dysfunction. Luckily, it is also usually the first thing to go away again. However, that doesn’t mean that when it does your spine is functioning perfectly again.

Nervous System Function on Preventative Healthcare

As Chiropractors, our aim is to ensure that your spine and nervous system are functioning at optimal levels. As a result of better nervous system functioning, pain and other symptoms often go away. With that being said, it’s still good to have your spine checked regularly even if you do not have pain. Think about it! Your body is constantly changing. It is constantly adapting to what you do in your day to day. Sitting down, bending, lifting, falling, and accidents are all examples of daily stressors that can cause spinal problems over time.

Diagnostic Testing

Here in our office, we do a lot of diagnostic testing… which includes digital x-rays, muscle scans, thermal nerve scans, digital posture analysis, and range of motion assessments. The reason why we do all of this diagnostic testing is because we want to see what’s going on with you and your spine. Your findings will act as a window into your health. We love the saying, “To see is to know.” If you, yourself, don’t even know what your spine looks like or what kind of shape it is in… you might not ever do anything to correct it. Are you tracking with us? Preventative healthcare encourages us to do things for our health before we are in pain or before it’s too late. Corrective Chiropractic care is just the place to start for true health and healing! So, what are you waiting for?

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healthy-lifestyle
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Healthy Lifestyle Habits

Healthy Lifestyle Habits

During this unknown and unpredictable season of life, we want to help you keep on track and create healthy lifestyle habits! Here at Corrective Chiropractic, we do not expect our patients to be perfect. Instead, we expect you to be great! How does one achieve greatness? By taking hold of their health and the health of their family.

What are Healthy Lifestyle Habits?

It all starts with creating healthy lifestyle habits. We encourage you to create healthy habits that aren’t just here for a short time, but here for a long time! Living a healthy lifestyle is so much more than just eating a nutritious breakfast. It’s about setting yourself up for success. It’s about making a plan and sticking to it! It’s about taking time for your healthy practices. It’s about moving your body daily! It’s about giving yourself grace when you’re not perfect. It’s about choosing better options! It’s about taking small steps every single day towards a more mindful life.

How Do I Start to Make Healthy Lifestyle Habits?

You might be asking yourself, “Well, that seems like a lot. Where do I start?” Don’t worry – we’ve got you covered! Take a moment to think about the first thing you do when you wake up in the morning. Once your alarm goes off… do you immediately roll over, grab your phone, and check all of your notifications? Do you find yourself responding to emails first-thing, scrolling through Facebook to play “catch up,” or ending up on someone’s Instagram page – just wishing you had more vacation time? If the answer is yes, it’s okay.

We’ve all been there. But be encouraged – there is a healthier way! For starters, consider your night routine. Do you sleep with your phone in the room? If so, try leaving your phone in the room outside your bedroom (or even the bathroom).  We want to allow ourselves to be able to go to bed without our phones. Not only will this optimize your sleep environment, but it will allow you to relax and prepare your body for sleep!

Put the Phone Away!

Another tip is to protect the last hour or two before your bedtime as a phone-free zone! LED screens (such as our cell phones & tablets) give off blue light, which is suggested to hinder the production of the sleep-inducing hormone melatonin and disrupt our circadian rhythms. While the reason is still not completely sure, it could be because blue light emits wavelengths that are similar to daylight. Moreover, our bodies can be deceived to think that it’s actually day time, even at night. Instead, enjoy some time reading a book, taking a bath to wind down, or even doing your recommended at-home exercises we’ve given you!

When you wake up, don’t let your phone rule your day! Instead, have a plan that will leave you feeling more filled! Maybe you will try waking up a little earlier to read, pray, or meditate? Maybe you will take 15 minutes to write down your goals / positive affirmations for the day? Maybe you will get in a 30-minute workout because you have a busy work schedule? Or maybe you will spend some time on your porch… sipping tea as you watch the sun start to rise? Think about something that brings your heart joy… something that grounds you… something that takes you puts you in a good head space. Now, that is how we want you to start your day!

Make It Happen!

Whatever you choose, we encourage you to make it happen! If you make a plan and tell yourself that you are going to wake up at 6:00 AM for a workout, but then snooze your alarm clock five times and procrastinate until it’s too late… the first thing that you are doing in your day is lying to yourself. Subconsciously, you start cutting corners and cheating yourself in other parts of your day. Make sense?

Creating a healthy morning routine is essential for your health! But please, don’t get stuck in feeling like you have to change everything all at once. We want you to slowly incorporate healthy habits into your routine. Remember – small steps will lead to a more sustainable lifestyle! For you, it might be turning your phone into “airplane mode” an hour or so before you go to bed. It might be sleeping without your phone right by your pillow at night. It might be adding in 30 minutes of exercise in the morning! It might be eating a healthy breakfast instead of scrolling through social media. It might be committing to the one thing you’ve been half-in on for awhile now.

There are a lot of people who say that the very first hour and the very last hour of our day are the most important hours of our whole day! Think about it… it really is so true! This week, try beginning and ending your day with small “wins” that are bound to help you be more productive and leave you more refreshed than ever. Ready, set, go!

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Healthy Paleo Egg Wrap

Need a quick lunch that is equally quick, healthy, and delicious?

Look no further than a Paleo Egg Wrap!
(from Jessica’s blog, @more_than_food)
Ingredients :
Grass-fed Butter (for cooking)
1 paleo (coconut) wrap
1 pasture-raised egg
1/2 avocado, sliced
Handful organic lettuce greens
A pinch of Celtic Sea salt, ground pepper, garlic powder
Instructions ::
1. Soft boil the egg.
2. Melt grass-fed butter in a pan to heat a paleo wrap.
3. Layer your wrap with the egg, greens, avocado, salt, and pepper.
4. Enjoy!
*My favorite brands :: butter (Kerrygold, Banner Butter), wraps (Thrive Market), eggs (any pasture-raised, local brand, Vital Farms)
Check out Jessica’s blog, More Than Food on IG // FB for more healthy tips and recipes! (@more_than_food)
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3rd Trimester of Pregnancy
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What To Do During Your 3rd Trimester Of Pregnancy

3rd Trimester of Pregnancy

You’ve made it past the first 28 weeks and only have a few weeks left before the baby is born. Take a few deep breaths, connect with your baby, and prepare for your new life as a parent. Ditch the mile long to do lists and prioritize the most important things during your last trimester.

[title size=”2″]1) Create a Birth Plan[/title]

Your support team is there to honor the type of birth you wish to have. However, if they are unaware of your birth plan, how can they help you achieve your ideal birth? Or worse, if you are not certain about the type of birth you wish to have, you may fall victim to the agendas of others. Become clear in your vision, write it down, and maintain communication with all parties of your birth team. Important considerations for the birth plan include:

Labor and Delivery:

  • People in the room
  • Birth Environment
  • Pain Management
  • Birthing Positions
  • Vaginal Exams
  • Time Limits on Pushing (if any)
  • Monitoring (intermittent, continuous, etc)
  • Preferences if complications occur

After Birth:

  • Skin to Skin contact
  • Vaccinations (Hepatitis B, Vitamin K)
  • Breast Feeding vs. Formula supplementation
  • Instructions about baby leaving room
  • Instructions regarding cord clamping
  • Placenta encapsulation
  • Circumcision

[title size=”2″]2) Pack your Birth Bag[/title]

Pack the bag with your birth partner so he/she knows what is in the bag and where the items are located. Here are some essentials for the birth bag:

  • Birth Plan
  • Clothes for Baby (including take home outfit)
  • Disposable nappies
  • A change of clothes for yourself (take home outfit and extra undies!)
  • Socks
  • IPOD or CD player to play music
  • Camera (with extra batteries or charger)
  • Food snacks and drinks
  • A Water Sprayer
  • Lip Balm
  • Massage Oil
  • Items to help with Pain Relief (i.e. Essential Oils, (Warm) cloth Nappies and bucket for water, Homeopathic remedies, Lacrosse Ball, Calcium Foods)
  • Bendable Straws
  • Cell phone and charger
  • Nursing Bras

[title size=”2″]3) Put the car seat in the car properly[/title]

Make sure that the baby’s car seat has been properly installed and has passed a safety inspection. Health care professionals will not allow you to bring home your little one unless all the safety recommendations have been met. Here is a website where you can find locations of Child Car Seat Inspection stations throughout Georgia. http://www.safercar.gov/cpsApp/cps/index.htm

[title size=”2″]4) Ensure that your hips are in proper alignment[/title]

With all the hormonal and gravitational changes that take place during the last trimester, it is so important to make sure that your hips are in proper alignment (so the baby has the optimal amount of room for proper growth and development). Research shows that chiropractic adjustments during pregnancy reduce intra-uterine constraint, labor times, and the chance for a potential cesarean section. In addition, these adjustments allow you to have a more straightforward delivery with less pain and trauma.

If you have any questions about your third trimester of pregnancy, or would like to make a chiropractic appointment, call Corrective Chiropractic at 404-355-5499.

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How to Choose a Chiropractor
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How to Choose a Chiropractor

How to Choose a Chiropractor

Having the largest chiropractic college in the world right in its backyard, Atlanta can be a confusing place to find a chiropractor. Similar to finding a dentist, medical doctor, mechanic, or hair dresser it is important to do research if you’re looking to find out who is the best chiropractor in Atlanta. In today’s article we’ll discuss how to choose a chiropractor and provide questions you should ask yourself and the chiropractor you’re visiting.

Choosing the Best Chiropractor

There are certain strategies I feel are very important when seeking to find a chiropractor that give you and your family the best care.

1. How thorough is the consultation?

The first day in a chiropractic office is what sets the tone for the relationship and is the determining factor for what the patient will need. In our office we use the first visit to analyze the entire spine to figure out:

  • Can we help this person?
  • If so, how long will it take?
  • How often will we need to see them?

These questions are important in the first day and should be asked by the chiropractor your visit. This will help you achieve your goal and not waste your time.

To give you an idea of which tests we utilize here is a list of what 99% of each client receive on their first visit:

  • Blood pressure: Research shows chiropractic can lower blood pressure better than two medications
  • Spirometer: This detects lung capacity and how much air a person can blow out. We track this number since our office specializes in corrective care and as the patients posture improves they are able to increase their lung capacity
  • Grip strength: Each patient should be stronger by roughly 10-20% on their dominant hand. By assessing this we can determine if there is soft tissue or nerve blockage not allowing for increasing grip strength.
  • Nerve scans: We use digital thermography to assess the nerves in the spine to detect stress on the nervous system. This can help us locate pinched nerves and see where the problem is coming from.
  • Postural assessment: Each person receives a front and side view picture so we can track to measure if the spine is moving back into it’s normal position.
  • Digital x-rays: It is important to have a set of x-rays done on the spine to measure the curves and make sure it is straight on the front view but has 3 smooth flowing curves on the side view. Since we are one of the only offices in Atlanta to specialize in corrective care we use these first x-rays as a base in order to help our patient get as close to normal.

2) Do they adjust on the first visit?

When I look for chiropractors in other states for people that need them the first question I ask is “Do you adjust on the first visit?”. If the chiropractor adjusts on the first visit this means I immediately hang up the phone and call the next chiropractor.

Personally, if I was visiting any healthcare provider or personal trainer I would prefer they perform all the testing and gather as much data as possible then follow-up with me the next day or two days later to review their findings.

3) Are there classes to learn more about the body and how it works?

An area I feel we specialize in which I would hope more healthcare providers followed suit is education. The term doctor literally means teacher and unfortunately this is not the case in our healthcare world.

Our office holds 4 classes a month to help our patients know what they can do at home to achieve the best results and keep their bodies healthy. Two of these classes are our Natural Healthcare Orientation which is the first class each patient will attend to explain to them how they got their spine in this situation and steps to take to get the best results in the quickest amount of time.

4) What is the follow-up protocol to track progress?

Most doctors track progress based on symptoms and how their patient feels. Unfortunately, this does not work as they are a lot of people walking around who feel great but they have heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and other diseases that do not show symptoms until the latter stages. This is why our office focuses heavily on objective results versus subjective results.

We re-evaluate the spine using all of our technology to strategically show someone is getting better not because their symptoms are going away. This is very important in healthcare as most people only care for their health when they are symptomatic but neglect their health when they are asymptomatic.

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Are you playing a bigger game in life?

This past weekend I had the opportunity to go to Milwaukee, Wisconsin to visit one of the top organically   photo 3  grown supplement companies in the World: Standard Process. If you are interested in learning more about their products, which I recommend, then check out Jessica’s article “Which supplements are best for you?”

We arrived at the Standard Process (SP) farm on Friday at 10:00 AM and took a thorough tour through the farm and facility to better understand the efficiency and quality of their products. Everything about the company is contagious from the way the employees clean the machinery to the types of produce they put in their supplements to the passion of each SP worker.

Following the 2-hour tour, our weekend speaker asked the group of 60 chiropractors if we are “playing a bigger game” in our lives. This question intrigued me and sparked many ideas, as I truly believe my life’s purpose is to reeducate people about TRUE healthcare. In today’s U.S. society, we are marketed a different kind of healthcare system, one that has the potential to have the best of intentions but does not always come with desired results. Obviously, if what everyone is doing worked so well, then we would be the healthiest country on the planet, but unfortunately, we are one of the sickest. photo 4

When you look at your life ask yourself, “Am I playing a bigger game?”

The speaker’s message drove the point that most people focus on the outcomes and goals, but they rarely focus on the game itself. However, if people spend more time on the game, then everything else will be a byproduct of playing that game, and success will be a result of each action. photo 2

For example, we set specific goals for our practice, such as the number of new patients we want to accept each month, the number of people who will attend workshops, and the list continues. If we only concentrate on raising these numbers, then our main focus is more so on the outcomes rather than the game, yet we work diligently to ensure that the details of your care are covered every quarter of the game.

This game our amazing staff and myself are playing is “creating energy in people’s lives”. We do this through chiropractic adjustments, compliments, quality customer service, new facilities, best technology, advanced workshops, weekly newsletters, functional nutrition consultations, and even high fives. Our game is to create a healthier energy for you, so you can live the best version of yourself.

One of the other reasons I loved visiting the farm is because of the game they are playing and how well they care for their employees. Here are some of the employee benefits (even with a staff of over 300 people):

1) Free chiropractic care on-site
2) Massages for only $6/20 minutes on-site
3) Discounted acupuncture on-site
4) $450 worth of supplements each month
5) Free gym membership with classes and challenges
6) Subsidized daycare by the company

Standard Process highly values its employees and their personal fulfillment and health. After all, the better the workers play the game and become part of the company’s vision, the better the outcome for everyone involved.  photo 5

My hope for you is that you look at your life (not judging it good or bad) and determine whether you are hanging out in the comfort zone or playing a bigger game for humanity. At times, we have a tendency to stay in this comfort zone, and I am guilty of doing so, as well. However, if you let yourself venture into the experience of playing a bigger game, you might just find that you get uncomfortable in the comfort zone very quickly because your life is set on a different (and oftentimes more exciting) path.

When John F Kennedy told our country, he is going to put a man on the moon in 10 years, he did not know the “HOW”. He was a visionary willing to play a big game and lo and behold, a man gets to the moon. If you know the “HOW” behind your game in life then your game may not big enough.

I would love to hear any feedback and help you find out if you are playing a bigger game in life.

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How to Choose A Sports Chiropractor
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How to Choose A Sports Chiropractor

 

If you play sports and are looking for how to choose a sports chiropractor, this article is for you! If you’re looking for a chiropractor who specializes in sports then it is important to think about your goals. Most of the athletes we care for have 2 goals:

  1. Not get hurt and be able to play sports forever
  2. Perform at their optimum potential and be their best athlete

We take these goals into consideration and use our resources to help each patient achieve those goals.

The first thing to look for in a chiropractor who specializes in sports is one who plays sports and is fit themselves. Personally, I have been an athlete my whole life competing in marathons, Ironman’s, crossfit competitions, and other local weightlifting events. The worst advice someone can take is from someone who is not athletic and has no idea on how athletes function.

One of our best athletes Emily Bridgers, top female crossfitter in the Southeast, says “I don’t know how someone who works out regularly does not get adjusted”.

Emily came in feeling great but, upon further review of her hips, she had imbalances and one hip was higher than the other. Through our specialized corrective techniques she was able to balance her hips naturally and is now competing at her highest level while feeling her best.

On July 25th – July 27th she will compute on ESPN in the Crossfit Games in California.

We tell all of our athletes: “If you want to train at an elite level then you must take care of yourself at an elite level.”

This is why chiropractic is a staple for a healthy body as well as adding in other tool such as massage, foam rolling, yoga, and acupuncture. The key to sustained health and longevity is being proactive and taking steps to betterment BEFORE pain shows up.

Your Turn

What are some of your favorite sports to play? Leave comments below!

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