Pain CAN go away!

Just last week, I got a call from my Big Brother, Bill, who was complaining of back pain. "Heidi", he said, "it hurts when I breathe." My reply, " Well, Bill, I haven't seen you in the Pilates studio in about 2 weeks." "Well, " he said, " I don't know what I could have done? I only slept on the coach one night." I asked him, " Have you done any rolling bridges or stretched your legs like you know you should?" ......, with a strike to the ego, I hear a deflated, "oh, no..... so I should do that." I said, " ok, let me know when you can come in this afternoon and I will see you then."

Luckily, I don't get too many phone calls like this, put I do get people coming to me in pain, who desperately want to get out of pain. I clearly understand. I myself have been in pain, which I will I will save for another blog time. Today, I want Carol, to tell her story. Carol came to me, and wanted to do a mat class series. Not knowing what all she been through, I put her in a Thera-band Mat class. She did alright, but I could just see that she really needed more. So, finally, I asked her what her history is all about. I knew right away she needed way more then just a Mat class. She needed some one on one time and she needed rebuilding of her Muscles of her whole body. My heart went out to her. I wanted to help her, and with that I came up with the injury plan. With Carol, I mostly work on her core, balance and leg strength. Here is Carol, to tell you her story in her own words.

I used to be an active healthy person until a spinal fusion set me back. Nerve damage caused loss of signals to my abdominal and leg muscles. My muscles atrophied or shriveled up at a rapid rate. I was as weak as an old woman in a nursing home. Yet I needed to go back to work as a nurse! I knew it was important to not only get back in shape but strengthen my muscles to prevent future back injuries. My surgeon suggested pilates.

Heidi is a life saver for me. I was weak and extremely frightened of injury. Even though I knew I needed to exercise, I was very fearful. Heidi reassured me that she could help me and would not cause harm. Her extensive educational and practical background helped me trust her.

What worked for me was signing up for Heidi's one on one series of floor and mechanical exercise. She could watch my every move and make sure I was doing it correctly. Why go through the motions and not have results? It is important to do it correctly. When your muscles are extremely weak, it is difficult to exercise properly without one on one attention.

I can not believe how much stronger I am now, and only after 6 week mat series and ten 1 on 1 sessions. And I am shocked that I returned to work in such pitiful condition. I should have started working with Heidi long before I did!

I intend to continue training with Heidi. Strong core muscles are needed to prevent future injuries and I do not wish to ever be injured to such a severity again.

I highly recommend pilates with Heidi as your trainer.

Carol Cherico RN BSN