Exercising has come into our minds as a healthy activity. And because we are responsible adults, we exercise because we feel we need it. It is marketed in different forms, such as “strong”, “flexible”, “balanced”, and so on. etc. etc. And all of those things sound good, so we join different activities, gyms and classes that tell us they will get us there.
But very often, we are left wanting without really feeling that we want or hurt ourselves, and the aches and pains don’t go away. It’s frustrating because now you feel a little helpless as to what the next step is. This is definitely the feeling I had when I hurt my back. Yes, the pain was terrible, but it was the frustration that I was doing what I thought I was supposed to do and it still hurt a lot, I was not exercising less. And that feeling of helplessness was compounded when all the different accepted popular modalities did not work.
I felt like I did something wrong (I did it) and that it was my fault (not entirely). I fooled myself, like most people, into thinking that if I exercised / exercised “X”, it gave me a “Y” result that I would be fine. But what I didn’t know was that they were cheating on me during those years. And because I was performing at a high level and looking the way I wanted (another problem in hindsight), I had no reason to doubt that what I was doing was not good for me.
It wasn’t until what was supposed to work broke my perspective and my paradigm. That “crack” led to feelings of helplessness and frustration, but also to a deep search to find out why it didn’t work and what to do about it. This is how I found the science and philosophy of osteopathy and how to honestly train / treat your body holistically.
Because unless you are an athlete whose only goal is to win and improve your sport, you exercise because you want a good and fulfilling life. Whatever your goals in life are, they will only be accessible if you put yourself in the best possible position to achieve them. It doesn’t matter if it’s just to be there for your friends and family or to save the world, ???? how balanced, strong and functional your body is will enhance or detract from your desired life.