Hi everyone, I’m Dr. Matt Heisig. I am the new doctor here at Back To Function. I am originally from Arizona but I found my way out to southern California through chiropractic school and now employed as a Chiropractor at BTF. I grew up playing hockey in Arizona since I was 5 years old and played at the ACHA level in college at Northern Arizona University for 2 years. Through playing higher levels of hockey I found myself in the chiropractor’s office on occasion. This is where the passion began. As soon as I realized the NHL scouts weren’t rushing to small schools like NAU, I decided to do the next best thing and pursue becoming a chiropractor. My passion for hockey and sports alike led me down the path of becoming a sports chiropractor. Getting back into the game after injuries thanks to my chiropractor, I was inspired to do the same for other athletes, as I am very aware of how devastating it is to miss time from your sport. My dream of treating athletes is finally coming to fruition here at BTF.
In my free time, I still love to go out and play adult league hockey after work once a week. I have also taken up running as a hobby when my competitive hockey career ended. I am a dog owner of two crazy but lovable Australian Shepherd/Queensland Heeler mixes. I’ve had them since they were 5 weeks old and they are now turning 9 years old in November. So they have graduated high school, college, and chiropractic school with me! Pretty smart pups! Not only have they helped me study through school but we often like to go for runs and hikes to keep active in different ways too. I have successfully run 2 half marathons so far (one in Zion National Park and one in Yosemite National Park)! My dogs have definitely been there to help me train as my running buddies. We plan on signing up for more in the future as well! Staying active with running, hockey, and hiking with the pups, I make sure I warm up sufficiently before I exercise to ensure I’m moving well and ready for whatever comes at me. Here is a list of a few favorite stretches I like to do to warm up my hips before I play hockey or go for runs with the dogs.
Lying figure 4 stretch
– Lie down with one leg 90/90 against the wall and cross the other leg over with that ankle resting on other knee. Hold for 60s per side.
Lying V stretch
– Lie down with your hips as close to the wall as you can get, put your legs up the wall and just let both legs drop to the side. Hold for 60s.
½-Kneeling hip flexor stretch
– Have one leg bent behind you on the wall or couch and lunge forward with your other leg trying to stay up right. Hold for 60s per side.
Spider-man stretch w/ rotation
– Lunge out far with your back leg stretched out behind you, with your same side arm as your front leg reach down and toward your opposite hand then rotate out and open into a T. Perform 8 times per side.
Sumo squat to hip raise
– Squat down deep trying to grab your toes, raise your hips up keeping the knees straight, walk yourself out into a down dog position keeping your heels down as best you can, then walk yourself back to your toes and squat back down. Perform 5 times fully through.
If you are active and want to learn an effective warm up to make yourself injury-proof during your activities, give us a call at 310-534-1900 to schedule a session today!
