Chiropractic Care For Athletes: How Chiropractic Fits Into Kennedi Bielenberg-Howarth’s Hockey Journey
When young athletes begin a sport, much of the focus naturally goes toward developing their skills—more practices, better technique, stronger conditioning, and more time competing. But as athletes progress, another lesson becomes increasingly important: how you take care of your health matters, too. Chiropractic care for athletes can be one part of building a consistent, proactive approach to health throughout a season.
For Kennedi Bielenberg-Howarth, a senior defenseman for the University of Wisconsin-River Falls women’s ice hockey team, that lesson has become part of her life as a collegiate athlete.
Kennedi has competed at one of the highest levels of college hockey, winning three consecutive national championships with her teammates. Along the way, she has learned that consistency extends far beyond what happens on the ice.
It includes how she manages her schedule, how she approaches recovery, how she responds to the changing demands of a season, and how she takes care of her body throughout it all.
For more than a year, regular chiropractic care at ChiroWay of River Falls has been one part of that routine.
More Than Winning
Kennedi has accomplished something few athletes ever experience: winning three national championships in a row.
Yet when she talks about what hockey has given her, championships are only part of the story.
“What I love most about hockey is the relationships and memories that come with it. Being part of a team and working toward something bigger than yourself is really special. I’m most proud of winning three national championships in a row with my teammates.”
That perspective is an important reminder for parents of young athletes.
Sports can create incredible opportunities to compete and accomplish goals, but they also teach habits and lessons athletes carry with them long after a season ends.
Kennedi has learned about discipline, responsibility, teamwork, consistency, and managing her time—all while balancing the demands of being a college student and athlete.
“I’ve learned that staying organized and managing my time is really important. I try to plan ahead and prioritize what needs to get done while still making time for the people and things I enjoy. It can definitely get busy, but being a student-athlete has taught me a lot about discipline, responsibility, and making the most of the time I have.”
Those same ideas apply to health.
Rather than thinking about health only when something goes wrong, athletes can begin learning early that taking care of themselves can be another consistent part of their routine.
Taking Care of the Athlete Behind the Performance
Every sport asks something different of the body.
For Kennedi, hockey means skating nearly every day along with practices, workouts, games, travel, and the repetitive movements that come with playing defense at the collegiate level.
That makes caring for her health a priority, not simply because she is an athlete, but because her body allows her to continue doing something she loves.
“I think taking care of your health is extremely important as an athlete because your body is what allows you to perform at your best. Prioritizing recovery, nutrition, movement, and overall wellness helps prevent injuries, improves performance, and allows me to keep doing the sport I love at a high level.”
Kennedi’s answer reflects something valuable for athletes at every age: there is rarely one single thing responsible for health or athletic success.
Training matters. Nutrition matters. Recovery matters. Movement matters. Sleep matters. Consistency matters.
And for Kennedi, chiropractic care has become part of that bigger picture.
Where Chiropractic Fits Into Kennedi’s Routine
Kennedi’s connection with ChiroWay of River Falls originally began through shadowing opportunities. Over time, she began receiving regular chiropractic care herself and has now been under care for more than a year.
She has also seen her teammates experience care with Dr. Cassy.
“Shadowing opportunities and now Dr. Cassy has helped not only myself but my teammates feel incredible, have great recovery, and have overall really good health and wellness which is super important as student athletes.”
Today, Kennedi visits Dr. Cassy weekly.
For an athlete spending so much time on skates, she has particularly noticed the difference in how her hips and body feel throughout her routine.
“I have great recovery and movement especially with skating every day, going to Dr. Cassy weekly has helped my hips recover and feel better along with the rest of my body.”
Her experience is one example of why families may choose to introduce chiropractic as part of an athlete’s broader approach to health.
At ChiroWay, chiropractic care focuses on neurological function and adaptability through consistent chiropractic adjustments. For athletes whose bodies are regularly responding to training, practices, competition, growth, travel, school, and everyday stress, adaptability is especially relevant.
The goal is not to replace training, recovery, nutrition, or the other healthy habits an athlete needs.
It is to make chiropractic one more proactive part of taking care of the person who is doing all of that training.
The Advantage of Learning Healthy Habits Early
Parents spend years helping young athletes learn the fundamentals of their sport.
How to skate. How to shoot. How to swing. How to run. How to lift. How to practice.
But there is another skill worth teaching: how to take care of yourself while doing it.
An athlete who learns early to pay attention to movement, recovery, nutrition, sleep, neurological health, and overall well-being is developing habits that can continue well beyond youth sports.
Kennedi’s story demonstrates what that can look like as an athlete progresses from younger competition into collegiate athletics.
Her health routine is not something separate from hockey. It exists alongside hockey.
And just like becoming a better athlete requires consistency, taking care of your health is something that can become more valuable when it is approached consistently, too.
Adaptability Is Part of Being an Athlete
One of the biggest lessons sport teaches is that athletes cannot control everything.
A season brings different opponents, changing roles, difficult practices, unexpected setbacks, close wins, disappointing losses, and constant opportunities to adjust.
Kennedi has learned to approach those changes by focusing on what she can control.
“I try to focus on what I can control and take things one day at a time. Not every game, practice, or situation is going to go the way you want it to, so I try to learn from both the good and the bad and move forward. Staying positive, trusting my teammates, and being willing to adjust helps me handle whatever the season brings.”
That ability to adapt is valuable on the ice, but it reaches much further than athletics.
Athletes are constantly asking themselves to respond—to training, competition, changing schedules, physical demands, pressure, and life outside their sport.
Supporting adaptability is one of the reasons ChiroWay believes chiropractic can be a valuable part of a proactive approach to health for athletes and families.
One Final Season—and a Lesson for Younger Athletes
Kennedi is now entering the final season of her collegiate hockey career.
After three national championships, her focus is not simply on adding another accomplishment. She wants to continue becoming a better teammate and leader while appreciating the experience she still has in front of her.
“My biggest goal this season is to continue growing as both a player and a leader and to help our team compete to be the best we team we can possibly be. I’m most excited to make the most of my final season, enjoy every moment with my teammates, and make many core memories!”
And after years of hockey, her advice for the athletes coming behind her is remarkably simple:
“Enjoy every stage of it and don’t wish the time away. The wins and accomplishments are amazing, but the people you meet and the memories you make along the way are what you’ll remember most. Work hard, believe in yourself, and have fun with it because it goes by faster than you think.”
For parents, it may be an equally valuable reminder.
The years of practices, tournaments, early mornings, carpools, games, and sidelines move quickly.
While you are helping your athlete develop their skills, you also have an opportunity to help them develop habits that can support their health for years to come.
Give Your Athlete Another Advantage — Chiropractic Care for Athletes
Whether your child is stepping onto the field for the first time, competing throughout high school, or pursuing athletics at the collegiate level, their health is the foundation that supports everything they ask their body to do.
Chiropractic can be one part of a proactive approach that also includes movement, nutrition, recovery, sleep, training, and healthy routines.
Kennedi’s experience at ChiroWay of River Falls is a great example of what happens when taking care of your health becomes part of the routine, not just something you think about when competition gets difficult.
If there is an athlete in your family, consider giving them another healthy habit to carry with them throughout their season and beyond.
Connect with your local ChiroWay center to learn more about chiropractic care for athletes, student-athletes, and active families.
