I often have a conversation with a client that causes me to think – “Wow, I didn’t do a very good job of covering all the information I wanted to!” There is a lot of information we share with clients and it’s a lot to absorb, especially in the beginning. We also have such a smart group of people who come to Pain Free Performance, we sometimes assume people know things that they don’t.
Here is a smattering of random questions and topics that come up often and might be helpful as you continue your Egoscue journey toward a pain free body! Clients often ask or say….
Can I resume weightlifting?
At first, NO. We don’t want to strengthen any misalignments. When your body is ready, we will give you some pointers on how to start with weights again. You will be surprised at the “work-out” you will get from your Egoscue!
Can I go to Yoga class? Pilates? Tai Chi? Can I jog?
We are all about getting you back to your fullest most pain free life – whatever you love to do! The easy answer is yes, of course. Talk with your Egoscue therapist regarding your particular issues and your favorite class or activity to make the most of it!
I twisted my ankle (bruised my elbow, tweaked my back) so I’m just going to cancel my appointment.
No, just the opposite! That’s the perfect time for you to come in – this is what we do – treat people in pain! So, keep your appointment and have your therapist assess the injury and create a program that will enable you to heal faster and keep your newly aligned body on track!
I may not be doing my E-cises correctly and it made my leg hurt so I just stopped doing the program.
Contact us immediately if you feel that your program is causing any pain. We want to know, ask you a few questions and tweak the program if necessary.
I do my e-cises when I get home in the afternoon ……
Do your program in the morning! I know, I know sometimes it’s just not possible but here’s the thing…if you do your E-cises in the morning, you are setting yourself up to have your most aligned body possible to carry out all of the living you have to do during the day! This means better function, less pain and less possible injury. Talk with your therapist about how to adjust your program to fit your schedule.
Don’t cherry-pick from your program – do all of the E-cises in the order only!
The order of your Egoscue program is key. The e-cises are prescribed to either wake up certain muscles that are not doing their job or quiet muscles that are overdoing which creates that pesky misalignment, poor function and pain! Depending on your specific issues, there is an important chain of events that must occur by doing the e-cises in order to get you to the best outcome….which is a pain free body!
Do I have to do everything on both sides?
Occasionally, I have a client who ran out of time, or thought because her pain was on the right side that she’d just do the e-cises on the right side. Not with Egoscue. We are trying to get the two halves of the body to work together as intended. What you do to one side, you must do to the other. It is important for regaining muscle balance, symmetry and healing to do the complete program on both sides. If you’re often running late, talk to us and we can tweak your program to fit those days that are just too busy!
Do I have to do Egoscue the rest of my life?
Yes, but a very doable, shorter version of your program. It will be as easy as brushing your teeth or bathing…a necessary and desirable habit to maintain your pain free functional body! When you’re ready, your Egoscue therapist will instruct you on how to continue with abbreviated and rotating programs that will keep you aligned and living life to the fullest!
Speaking of function….
One of the most important things I want our clients to understand is that our job is to improve the way your body functions. Pain relief is the amazing benefit of having a functional body. Pain is the symptom, not the cause. When the joints in the body are in the proper position and the muscles are balanced – the pain goes away!
