We were delighted to receive this testimonial from one of our rock star clients, Steve Arendt. Steve came to us with a litany of injuries, and a spiraling downward trajectory in terms of running performance and training consistency. Instead of continuing to try and cram fitness on top of injury and dysfunction, he put his head down, did the work to get strong, stable, balanced and mobile. He is now seeing the benefit of his dedication, and it’s just the beginning of an athlete unleashed!
Thanks, Steve! We know there are great things in store for your training and racing!
From Steve:
I’m a runner and triathlete — I love the lifestyle and the feeling of being strong and fast. About two years ago I started on a downward spiral of running injuries: SI joint, piriformis, calves, and Achilles tendons. I grew to fear running — even when I took time off, it seemed like yet another injury would crop up as soon as I started running again. It was ruining my races because I couldn’t train with consistency. I tried all the usual things: massage, compression, stretching, icing, but the injuries just kept coming. I knew something bigger was wrong, but I didn’t know what.
So I flew out to Al and Kurt for a gait analysis. What a revelation! The Functional Movement Screen was eye-opening — I couldn’t believe how weak I was in some areas. I’ve been following Al and Kurt’s program for about 3 months now, and the results are amazing. I’ve been able to restart running and am slowly building back up (without injury). Running feels completely different now — I used to feel like I was plodding, but now I feel like I’m gliding along, light and easy. And my pace is about 30 to 45 seconds per mile faster with the same effort. The program is a lot of work, but its worth it.
Most importantly, with Al and Kurt’s explanations, I understand what I am trying to accomplish, so I know what to focus on. No more random exercises that might help or hurt the problem. And since I know what I’m trying to do, I can feel when I start losing form due to fatigue or lack of focus, and I can correct it.
Oh yeah, the swim. I went to Al and Kurt for help with running, but their program had an immediate effect on my swimming. I gained a nice bump in speed just from the improved core stability and strength. That was an unexpected, but very welcome, benefit.
I’m VERY excited for the coming race season, when I can try out my new run on the competition!
RSS
