Testimonial from a Runner

This is from one of my clients who has struggled with pain for quite some time now.  She is an avid runner and has raced over 10 marathons.  This is her story:

I have struggled with Achilles tendon pain and swelling for almost 2 years now. In addition to this, I have periodically suffered SI joint pain, hip pain and stiffness in my upper and lower back.  The main complaint was really always my Achilles though as it remained constantly painful and was affecting my running.  The bursitis was red and swollen all the time and I could not wait to get my shoe off after a run.  Even the sock laying on the tendon was excruciating.

I kept believing it was a stretching “issue” and did stretches constantly to correct the problem.  I sought care from Rolfers, chiropractors, massage therapist, special socks to hold my foot flexed, stretching devises, lifts in my shoes, anti-inflammatory creams and was going to get a cortisone shot to get through my next marathon.

All these treatments felt like trying to put a band-aide on a greater problem.  By luck, I posted a question on a local running club’s website and had a response from John Elder about Egoscue.  I liked that Egoscue dealt with whole body imbalances.  It made foundational sense to me that the whole body is connected.  In addition, John’s explanation of how my tight upper back, painful lower back, tight hip and ultimately Achilles are all dependent on them working as a unit and in balance.  If one is off, the whole body compensates.  Finally someone to take and look at my whole mechanical person.

Naturally, I was skeptical.  I had many give me promises of how they could cure my Achilles pain.  Most of them focused on the calf and Achilles tendon and their tightness.  So, I was shocked when week after week, John did not address the calf or Achilles.  My “menus” focused on my shoulders, my hips, arching my back and spending time in “the tower” flat on my back with one leg suspended on a board.

Things did not happen over night.  I went 6 weeks doing my menus and continuing to hurt, complain and deep down thinking that scar tissue in my calf was causing this problem.  I could even feel the dang knot!  I decided to give it all I had through the 8 weeks and then see where I was.  I had friends tell me my posture looked straighter so that was a benefit.

Then, it happened.  On the Thursday of my 7th week, I did a threshold run.  Usually speed and hills would tear up my Achilles tendon.  I was surprised that it didn’t really hurt very much.  The next day I ran an easy 4 miles as a recovery run.  I was shocked that there was no pain at all.  On Saturday I ran 20 miles for my marathon training.  Again, I had no pain and throughout the day my Achilles never flared up.

I have not run pain free for almost 2 years.  Each run since has been pain free and my shoe resting on the Achilles does not cause discomfort.  I remembered when even my socks resting on that area was unbearable!

There is only one explanation.  Egoscue has brought balance to my body and I am functioning symbiotically with all my joints.  My running is back to pain free.   I now look forward to trying to regain my speed that I lost during these years nursing my Achilles and believe that my stride will be more efficient which will help me gain strength and speed.

I can’t tell you what a miracle this seems to be.  I had resigned that this was a part of aging and am thrilled it is not so.

Sincerely,

Denise P.

Another Patch Fitness Donation

Florida is the latest recipient of the Indoor “O” Course!  Congratulations to Treasure Coast Christian Academy!

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PATCH FITNESS PROGRAM

TCCA is the FIRST in the area to offer this amazing indoor fitness program!!!

Kids are just not playing anymore, and that is why PatchFitness was created. PatchFitness is motivating and exciting children to have fun while working out at the same time.

As Florida’s first Patch Indoor “O” Course and curriculum were donated Tuesday to the Treasure Coast Christian Academy in Port St Lucie, this school began a new journey dedicated to student’s health and wellness. Prior to PatchFitness the school had no organized gym, it was just a time of letting loose and playing. Now the school’s physical education teacher will be implementing PatchFitness. The children at Treasure Coast Christian Academy will be creating a new story for the school about fun, functional fitness for everyone.

The best way to describe PatchFitness is for you to close you eyes, and while they’re closed, transport yourself back to when you were 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 or 10 years old. You are playing on the Jungle Gym, monkey bars, a pile of rocks, mound of dirt, on a log or some old tires. Can you see it? You have no inhibitions or restrictions, you duck, jump, crawl, climb, leap, and roll around on whatever it is, your creativity allows you to make up each move as the challenge presents itself. You don’t know you’re not supposed to be able to do these things, you just do them. I’ll bet this has brought a smile to your face, hasn’t it? That’s PatchFitness.PatchFitness is for children ages 5 to 105, and everyone who engages in this unique, tried and true exercise program will reap the extraordinary benefits. The movements you used for physical play as a child are the same movements that, when executed as illustrated in the PatchFitness manual, provide the superior results of PatchFitness. These exercises have been used by man throughout history. Prehistoric man and our relatives who followed, ran, jumped, crawled, climbed and leaped as a necessity of daily life. Their ability to utilize these talents allowed them to survive their physically demanding and dangerous environments. Luckily, we don’t have to outrun predators today for survival however, the philosophy of the movement remains the same; a strong, flexible body will give you the ability to traverse your world today in a much more fluid, prepared state of being and wellness.These exercises have been used by athletes throughout history, and now you can utilize this remarkable, 100% natural program to prepare yourself for life’s adventures, whether they are in a sporting endeavor, your work environment, or simply walking your dog.

Patch Donation Update

Some of you may not have heard, but The Egoscue Foundation is donating Patch Indoor “O” Courses to schools all across the nation.  If you would like to know more about The Egoscue Foundation, Patch Fitness or if you’d like to donate to this cause, please check out the Egoscue Foundation site.

Here’s an article on the latest donation in Oregon.

http://www.beavertonvalleytimes.com/news/story.php?story_id=122049100804005700

Great Testimony from Egoscue Atlanta

This is a great story coming out of our Atlanta Clinic.  Great job by Kathy and Sally!

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Pete,

I just finished my 6th week of Egoscue with Kathy in Atlanta and your first
book of Healing Through Motion.  The combination of your words and Kathy’s
instruction has given my life a new direction, a direction refilled with
pain-free motion that I have not enjoyed in fifteen years.

I am only forty, but I “lost” my lower back in Air Force pilot training
during some maneuvering in the early 90s.  I was still functional (and
flying) after the first episode of back pain, but I slowly began eliminating
twisting, bending and running activities as the pain cycled through my life.
Out went golf, skiing and softball, my three favorite physical activities,
and in their place I substituted restricted movement, back pain anxiety and
an attitude of capitulation to “bad genetics”.

It took just one day with Kathy and two pages of your book to realize that I
had it backwards:  My back didn’t give up on me, I gave up on my back..and
my body.  I learned that muscles move bones, an almost “the world is flat”
concept for me, and that strength is derived from position and coordination.
I learned that the body is a connectivity prism through which health is
derived and that what I do today to make myself functional will dictate the
quality and longevity of my life in the future.  And I learned that
sometimes simple concepts – and simple movements – can change a universe of
experience and bad assumptions.

Thank you for your book and your truly inspiring clinical director in Kathy.
You two have given me the most valuable gift I think I will ever receive in
this lifetime – the confidence to heal myself.

Jay