Even the most motivated & experienced gym-goer can lose their way with an exercise program. Routine might well be the key to consistency but it’s almost inevitable that some sort of change will come along to spoil your perfectly manicured daily/weekly regime. Enthusiasm quickly fades into complacency. And heaven forbid a relief in symptoms is experienced, conveniently rooting even the most desperate initial desire to solve your (chronic) problem/pain to the hippocampus and short term memory. Having you question what all the fuss was about and allowing you to return to the comfort of life as it was before you decided you needed to embark on an exercise regime or make a change to it.
So, before launching into a “Movement Plan for Action“, we create a plan. We start by gathering information; gain understanding of your history, learn about your current pain/injury, and to ensure success, a good plan involves the setting of goals.
The Joy of Exercise
For the purposes of making relevant this freaking awesome pic a friend snapped upon the completion of a tough workout whilst I was unawares some 10 years ago, I’ll preface my history & current presentation with one of my long term goals: “To find & keep the joy I used to experience with exercise & a more balanced life”. This image was ironically taken straight after a CrossFit workout which involved a significant amount of running. I think it perfectly represents this goal I’m driven to achieve.
MY HISTORY:
1990: Right 1st metacarpal head fracture:
Being the clutz I am, I tripped on my own big toe performing a series of leaps in Ballet class whilst a gymnast at the AIS. I not only stubbed my toe, I broke it. It hurt a lot. I remember my Chinese coaches using all sorts of weird, unpleasant smelling treatments to get me back training as soon as possible. It remains stiff at the joint and somewhat deformed, my sister openly disgusted by the sight of it. Looking back, with the knowledge I’ve accumulated in my nearly 25 years of practice, this minor injury at age 12 set me up for the injuries that followed and limitations I currently experience.
1998: Left knee arthroscope
A funny landing from a tumbling pass (think flips & twists & somersaults) mangled the cartilage in my left knee. Sending me to the operating theatre for a clean out. Though upon retrospect, again with learned experience in consequent years, it was likely an accident waiting to happen.
2010: Left Achilles tendon rupture & repair
No stories of flips, twists or ballet leaps here. Just a boring story of me exercising in a park. I was performing some pretty powerful hops however. And the park was in Stolkholm, Sweden.
MY CURRENT PRESENTATION:
LEFT KNEE: No pain, except for when it locks/gets stuck in flexion= VERY PAINFUL!
This happens mostly when I cross my legs and sit on the floor. At the time of my SUPER SESSION, it was happening quite frequently.
THE CURRENT PRESENTATION- AKA
- the problem or pain that I want to get to the bottom of
- the straw that broke the camels back
- the ailment that’s stopping me from doing what I love
- the reason you decide to embark on “The 10wk Movement Plan for Action”
Twenty five years into Myotherapy practice I’ve come to learn, (admittedly also through personal experience) that it’s a far easier and preferable choice to attend appointments to your Myo, Chiro, Physio or whomever on repeat than to delve into the bigger picture and undertake the required work to create actual change. You know it’s not a solution to your pain or injury but it affords you relief and allows you to keep chugging along your path, with minimal interruption. Whether it’s a beloved exercise regime you can’t imagine having to alter or an exercise regime you can’t stand the thought of commencing!?! You’ve found something that works and that’s good enough…. Until it’s not.
Maybe you’re fed up and look to “The 10wk (Movement) Plan for Action proactively, seeking resolution to a recurrent problem. Maybe you’re without option, the aforementioned approach no longer effective. Maybe you recognise life could be better, realise that you’ve come to accept pain and have settled into a life of limitations. You’ve now decided you desire (& deserve) more.
Whatever the reason, the journey starts by looking into your history and to your current presentation. We determine what tests to undertake that will provide us the best information, the critical pieces of the puzzle to your problem. We organise a session to perform those tests and when we meet to go through the results, we sit down and talk about your WHYs. What brought you here? What do you want to get out of the program?
Together we write short & long term goals, both subjective (goals based on feelings, opinions & emotions) and objective (goals based on facts). By creating achievable goals, we’re more likely to maintain focus and drive. To honour our initial desire to break the cycle of pain, even if said pain becomes far less of a motivator for change.
A LIST OF MY CURRENT SUBJECTIVE GOALS- mid & long term:
- to be able to sit on the floor & to cross my legs without my knee painfully locking
- to find & keep the joy I used to experience with exercise & a more balanced life
- Feel strong again, be able to safely lift heavy things again
- Correct/improve my back squat technique
- Be strong and safe enough to return to CrossFit style training- inc. snatches, clean & jerk’s, gymnastic movements
- Be strong and safe enough to train in a Ninja gym
HOMEWORK:
Take a moment to ponder YOUR WHYs. If you had a 10wk plan for action, what would your goals be? What’s important to you? What brings you joy? Is there something you love that you no longer do? What’s the barrier?
Follow me on Facebook and Instagram for regular updates on “Tracey’s personal movement plan for action’. Where I’ll be sharing all the ugly results from my MASSIVE 2.5hr long Super Session, video analysed images of MY poor movement patterns, musings on my training experiences and more!
And if you’re interested in learning more about your body and how it moves, you can book an appointment below.