Posts Tagged ‘massage therapist’
I’m BAAACK! The Next Phase Plan and a Half-marathon!
Posted by admin in Appointments, Try This! on February 1st, 2015
It has been a while since that second triathlon (a.k.a. my last post). In that time, I have finished 4 sprint triathlons, one 10K and two 200 mile bicycle rides (Seattle to Portland (STP) and Ride from Seattle to Vancouver and Party (RSVP))! The reason that all of my triathlons have been sprint distance is in large part due to my run. Specifically, my Posterior Tibial Tendon (PTT) continues to give me pain in distances longer than 4 miles.
Here’s the puzzle: last year in May of 2014, I trained up to and ran a 9 mile training run, which is the longest distance I have ever completed, and I did it without pain. How? I have no idea, and it didn’t last long because quickly after that run, I upped my training with a sprint focused run group with the goal of speeding up my runs and increased mileage on the bicycle rides to accommodate the upcoming STP. Thus, I ended up in the Physical Therapists office with inflamed PTT. Needless to say, I did not complete the sprint speed training nor have I run 9 miles since.
So, why start the blog again? Because on my last visit to Brian Crosier, my Physical Therapist, he unlocked two final pieces to my puzzle, I think, and I want to document this next part of my journey.
In December 2014, I had started training up to a half-marathon, the Whidbey Island Half-Marathon on April 19, 2015, from 2 mile runs. All was great until I started running 3.5 miles and my PTT got inflamed. I also started to feel my tight right hip tighten even more. Hip tightness is a new thing that started over the summer after my STP ride with my untried new awesome carbon fiber frame bicycle, but I can tell you that story another time.
S0, I entered Brian’s office with mildly achy PTT and a fairly tight hip. As he was trying to figure out how to help me since I had already been through PTT treatment, and I was already applying the techniques he had taught me over the summer, he discovered an immobility that he had not considered treating before: my mid-foot.
So, after Brian got the foot model, much like the picture above, he began by telling me about the three arches in the foot. There is the major arch that everyone knows about, then there is an arch on the outside of your foot between your heel and your midfoot, and finally, your toe knuckles are supposed to be an arch, but most people’s are flat and not arched at all. Hmm – I’m definitely in the flat toe knuckles camp: no surprise there.
He then added that my left big toe knuckle cannot touch the ground. I laughed and told him that my left big toe knuckle touches the ground every day 🙂 He responded by using the foot model to explain that on my left foot, my main arch compensates a lot for immobility though the mid foot or the navicular bone and the cuneiform bones, meaning it flexes or “falls” in order to allow my left big toe knuckle to touch the ground because those bones do not flex enough on their own. Consequently, the Posterior Tibial Tendon attaches to the navicular bone, which means that my PTT is already being stretched out everytime I flex my arch.
Whoa! What? When Brian told me this, so many issues that I have been having my ENTIRE life began to fall into place. I have always felt like I walk on the outside of my feet, and I have these weird outer foot calluses to prove it. Also, Brian had been coaching me to land “flat” with my feet (i.e. land mid foot with by toe and outer foot touching at the same time) because I land on the outside of my feet then roll in, which puts a lot of pressure on the PTT since it is in charge of the downward/flex motion of the big arch. Well, I have been trying to land “flat” since summer 2014, and I was not feeling very successful. Guess why – I can’t. I physically cannot get that big toe on either foot (the left is worse, but the right foot suffers as well). Finally, when I ride my bicycle, even after a fancy fitting with the spacers placed to help get my knee in the correct place, I always felt that I could not get my big toes down inside the shoes. Of course NOT! I felt so much better knowing that despite my trying and failing, it was a mechanical restraint.
But with me, I’m not satisfied with just the why. I want to know the next step – how do I correct this? Of course, Brian did not disappoint! He had invented a stretch for those small, largely immobile bones of the midfoot. Â I will post a video soon with details on how to do this stretch. For now, know that after the first stretch with Brian, the tops of my feet were sore (both left and right) for two days, and the stretch is not very big. It is just that that part of my foot had never really been stretched.
Another component of the foot issue is how to get the big toes on each foot to touch the ground while still maintaining as much subtalar neutral (ankle being neutral and arch not fallen) as possible? This took convincing – Brian suggested ProKinetics® insoles that have 3mm build-up under the big toe area on each foot (see red part on the photo below). As most of you know, if you have read very much of my blog, I do NOT like inserts of any kind. After working for over a year to get out of prescription orthotics, I am not very enthused about having to use any kind of inserts again. However, Brian made a compelling point: with these inserts, my feet could possibly be placed into a better position that would allow more natural functioning with less pressure on the PTT. Hmmmmm….why does he always make such good arguments?
So, I got the ProKinetics® Insoles. They have a 3mm build-up (in red) under the big toe as well as a removeable (yell0w) arch support. In addition, they come with an extra set of 3mm build ups (orange) in case you would like a 6mm build up.
ProKinetics Insoles
Since lots of my shoes are more minimal (Five Fingers and Luna Sandals), I also purchased a really cool adhesive lift that you stick directly to the ball of your big toes called SoleMateâ„¢ Comfort MicroLiftsâ„¢. Very cool products.
I am still in the test phase of running with full insoles, but so far the first run has been good, and I wore theSoleMateâ„¢ Comfort MicroLiftsâ„¢ with my cycling shoes today and what a difference! I know what the bike fitters have been telling me about using my whole foot – I could actually do it! My inner thighs are going to be very sore since I can access their power now, too!
The picture shows how the SoleMateâ„¢ Comfort MicroLiftsâ„¢ look and adhere to your foot. Weird, but very effective. I will say that I wore them for my trainer ride on my bicycle, and I put them back on my feet after my shower and wore them for approximately 8 more hours. Around hour six, I could tell that the skin under the adhesive was getting  a little irritated. However, when I removed it I did not have any lasting redness or raw places. The website says that these can be stuck directly to the inside of the shoes, too. So, I’m going to try that to see how it works. Definitely adding the additional 3mm orange pieces to the bicycle shoes, though!
Part two: tight hip
The why – my Sacroiliac (SI) joint on the right side, as seen in the photo below, was tight, which was impeding my ability to do some rotation and other movements, and my hip muscles, specifically the gluteus minimus, were taking up the slack and ending up overworked and tight.Â
Once again, bells were going off all over the place! YES! The SI joint was tight on the right side! Of course, a few years ago I had spent an entire summer using a lacrosse ball on the right SI joint when Brian had suggested that I tuck my tail bone when I run in order to use more core muscles and attain a more efficient running form. I had not really thought much about my tail bone once it had stopped hurting, but I had never really treated it. Well, SI joint, those days are done. I am not going to neglect you anymore.
The how on treating the SI joint? To have Dr. Larry, my wonderful Chiropractor, do his magic on the SI joint when I visit him and to re-start some tennis ball massages on the SI joint. Also, I have a massage therapist, Brad, who has been working on my right hip. He will be better able to attack the problem with the new information as well. Gotta love having a village to keep it all working smoothly!
So, this is the next phase – unlock mobility in my midfoot and loosen up the SI joint on the right side. I’m still signed up for that half-marathon in April, and I’m looking forward to the training! If I can find the right combo of mechanical advantage and training pace, I may just make that race! Stay tuned!
1/20/12 – Car Wreck
So, I am from the South. This means that I do not have extensive experience driving in snow in and ice, which were the conditions of the road on Friday, January 20, 2018. Long story short, I lost control, drifted into the next lane and a car hit my driver’s side back door. No one was seriously injured, and only one car collided with me that day, which was lucky seeing as how I ended up perpendicular to oncoming traffic with my front bumper against the middle metal railing and stuck on the large pile of snow put there by the snow plows. The driver of the other car helped me to get to the side of the interstate, and the drive home was, thankfully, not very exciting.
The aftermath:
Whiplash. It has been 9 days since the wreck. The day after the wreck my neck was sore; followed by two more days with a sore neck. Then, on Monday I happened to already have an appointment with Dr. Larry followed by a massage from Lynda. This appointment was by far the most important in starting the healing process. Dr. Larry did not treat me that day. Instead he did an examination of my neck and back where he found some very sore places. Lynda then did an intense massage of just my shoulders and back to help get everything moving (i.e. blood flowing, muscles relaxing, which was a feat that we didn’t really fully accomplish due to the injuries to the muscles). Over the course of this past week, the pain has traveled from my neck to my low back to my hips to sciatica in my left leg behind my knee and back up again to the neck. What a mystical thing whiplash is – to me, anyway.
I also went to my acupuncturist, who immediately gave me the whiplash treatment where she tapped into a strong web of energy to funnel that energy back into my spine and neck. I know it sounds hokey, but, I think it’s really helping me heal quickly. I do believe that the body is surrounded by energy that can be channeled to help heal areas of need. I also believe that the energy can be stuck or stagnate when we have injuries or scar tissue that have been left to get hard and immobile.
Anyway, the quick responses that all of these professionals have had to my injuries is really helping me get better quickly. I have not lost much range of motion in my neck, which was starting to happen by Monday after the wreck.
My Chiropractor has been spot on in having me come in often because each time I make an appointment so close to the next, I think, “Well, I might not need that next one….” only to find that my neck or some other part of my back is completely out of whack and in need of some help by the day of the appointment.
Needless to say, I highly recommend having injuries treated promptly. I am looking forward to a speedy, full recovery!
p.s. I think my posts will likely be about the recovery process rather than my feet for a while….it’s all related, you know 🙂
1/17/12 – Meet Acupuncture, the Newest Member of the Village!
When I first went to the Chiropractor, it was after several recommendations and a 3,000 mile car ride across our great and really big country that finally led me to that office. Yesterday, I visited an acupuncturists office after many of the same recommendations. My friend Ollie enthusiastically suggested it first, but I must admit it was not until my massage therapist, Lynda, told me that it would be a great idea to get any “stuck” energy moving.
Per my last post, I have been feeling really stuck lately: My right shoulder, my right knee, my left foot – all stuck in the same place. Each still hurting despite the endless physical therapy that Melissa, my personal trainer, continues to thoughtfully direct me to do. What have I done to unstick it? So far, physical therapy, massage and chiropractics. None are working. I felt like they have taken me as far as they can. What next? How do I heal?
Acupuncture.
After Lynda’s recommendation, I hastily texted Ollie for the contact information on the acupuncturist she recommended: Jenna Beem, Health Discovery Acupuncture and Herbs. After all of the first visit paperwork, I headed back with Jenna to the treatment room. She and I talked about my history, and she was really interested in the car wreck in 2007 when I hit a bus. The whole incident was not my fault – he ran his left turn arrow, turned in front of me, and got stuck in the middle of the intersection I was approaching downhill in the Atlanta pouring rain. I did not have anti-lock brakes, and I slid right into the bus. It won; my poor small car lost. The air bags were wonderful, though! No broken bones, but a lot of bruises and a really upset right shoulder to show for it.
Jenna asked about my Raynaud’s – when did it first show up? You know what? It showed up the winter immediately following my car wreck! Eureka! Connection? She seemed to think so 🙂 I might not only heal my shoulder, I might also heal my cold-numbing fingers and toes! I cannot express eloquently enough or at all how much having regular circulation in my hands and toes again would mean to me.
Ok. So, she decided that we needed to start face down so she could work on my shoulders, back and feet. She also said that she was going to do some cupping to remove some of the “stuck blood”, which she thought might be causing a lot of the problems.
I know I had more than 40 needles in me at one point. Also, she told me to tell her if any of the needles hurt, and when I mentioned the one in my left foot was uncomfortable in a dull way, she said that was good and meant that we had found an area that really needed to be opened up. Ok – now, I’m listening. My left foot is definitely needing to be opened up. She further explained that sharp, acute pains were bad, but dull, annoying ones were fine.
After she removed the needles, she did the cupping using two small glass globes. She moved them all along my back stopping in certain places and moving again. She explained that when the area was purple after the cupping, that meant that there was a lot of “stuck blood” in that location, i.e. that’s where the scar tissue is, or it is where the energy is stuck. I was skeptical at this point b/c the cup is basically making a hickey on my back. I mean it could be that she is just going to leave it longer in the areas I say are hurting so that they appear more purple. Ok. NOT what happened at all! She moved the cups equally along my back. The low back is just pink, while the upper back is purple. My right shoulder is very purple. VERY PURPLE.
After all of this, she massaged mint oil into my back, which was therapeutic in and of itself for the rest of the day. I left with a lot more mobility in my neck and my shoulders felt more open. I felt lighter in my shoulders and neck than I usually do.
After two days, my shoulders are definitely still more mobile, but they are beginning to get tighter. This is a process, like all things involving the body. It is going to take 4-6 weeks to see consistent change. When you go to build muscle, it takes 4 weeks to actually begin making new muscle. Likewise, it will take that long for my body to realize that it can rebuild those areas and be less tight. Open up old passageways, so to speak.
I am also doing two meditations several times each day. They are going really well. I am so excited about the prospects of finally continuing to heal. Hooray! Is this the missing link? It’s an adventure, and we shall see 🙂
EDIT: According to Jenna, I had around 20 needles, not 40 🙂
12/28/11 – Am I Treating the Symptoms or the Problem? TMJ Related?
Posted by admin in Reflections on December 28th, 2011
I felt it. I knew it would happen, and it did. I am now all about the workouts! I don’t know what it is about me, but I have a very difficult time doing something until I feel like it is right. Well, folks, the time is right.
I have been to the gym more times in December than October and November combined, and I hope to continue this trend through the whole of next year.
Once again, I am rehab-ing my knee – myself this time. It was not getting better with just the strengthening of the multifidi or hip muscles. So, I have brought out the tiger tail, specific area massage with my own hands, icing and the foam roller. It is responding well, but I have to stay on top of it.
Due to the relapse in the right knee as well as the right shoulder, my thoughts this week have been largely wondering around the question of “Am I treating symptoms or the problems?” The shoulder is less of an injury than the knee, but still, why do they keep walking the line of injury? Does this mean that there is another underlying problem that I really need to look into? Am I just treating symptoms?
I am also wondering about my TMJ. Is TMJ the actual problem to almost everything else?
I have been working on relaxing my jaw at all times in combination with making sure my shoulders are pulled down and back (which has gotten easier with the strength building!). The only time I cannot for sure control the jaw clenching is during my sleep. For sleep, I was wearing a night guard, but I lost it about two months ago. I decided to try it without the guard by relaxing before sleep and reminding myself not to clench or grind when I sleep. I think some of it has been getting through as I am feeling more relaxed in my neck and shoulders, but I have a LONG way to go as more relaxed is all relative. My neck and shoulder muscles still feel like rocks, just more like sandstone rather than granite.
Over the last month, I have also been incorporating a line from a short play I saw years ago, the name of which is lost in time. The line is, “Just stop it!” In the play a psychologist tells her patient to “Just stop it!” whenever the patient brings up the crazy actions in her life. I couldn’t help but think that was so brilliant at the time, and then just last week I was talking to my massage therapist who was telling me about a man who got a massage as a gift. When he showed up, he didn’t have any knots. How is this possible? No knots, not even in his shoulders? What’s his secret? Then, the line from the play popped in my head, “Just stop having knots!” Really brain? Wait. Is it possible to just stop having knots by sheer force of will?
As a side note, my husband also has zero knots. None. Zip. Nadda. No knots. Not ever. He also has a stressful job, and works out a lot. No knots. I’ve asked him about it. Of course he has no idea. I do know that he does not ever clench his jaw. Never. How is this possible? Why do I clench and he does not?
Then, I started thinking about my TMJ. I clench and grind, and I have tight shoulder and neck muscles with tons of knots. Could this be the problem that causes my symptoms?
According to emedicine health (http://www.emedicinehealth.com/temporomandibular_joint_tmj_syndrome/page2_em.htm), TMJ can be caused by clenching of the jaw and grinding of the teeth, or bruxism (check and check). People who clench might also chew pencils, gum or other objects when not eating. The chewing reinforces the clenching at all times, and can cause TMJ because the jaw muscles are not getting a chance to relax between meals like they are supposed to. Bruxism on the other hand is grinding of teeth, which largely happens at night when someone’s bite is off; when he/she is missing a tooth; or if someone has a lot of stress or anxiety.
Now, I find this reinforcing to me as I used to be a chronic gum chewer. I would not be found dead without gum on my person and in my mouth, unless food was in my mouth. I quit chewing gum over a year ago because of the other effects chewing gum has on your esophagus and digestive tract in general (Chewing gum signals the start of the digestive process by causing the mouth to produce saliva. Then, the stomach responds by producing acid that would be necessary if food were to hit it. However, with gum, there is no food that ever hits the stomach, and then the extra acid is just sitting around causing trouble.). To find that not chewing gum also helps reduce the clenching is phenomenal! Two benefits in one!
Ok. The treatment for bruxism? Medicine Net (http://www.medicinenet.com/teeth_grinding_bruxism/article.htm) says that for teeth grinding do one or more of the following:
– Mouth guard
– Stress reduction (either by counseling or medication)
– Reduce or avoid caffeine and alcohol
– Train yourself to not clench or grind (“JUST STOP IT!”)
Well, there it is! Just stop grinding your teeth, silly. Why didn’t I think of this before?
What it turns out to be with feet (sans orthotics for nearly two whole years!) and jaws is that you have to do all the work. Sure a mouth guard will help, but what about when you lose it or forget it on a long trip? The real solution is to do the leg work yourself. Figure out how to train yourself to stop. Then, “JUST STOP IT!”
Now for my continuing experiment to meet my goal of not needing any external structures to live my life to its fullest, I will continue to work toward relaxing my jaw at all waking hours. During workouts, I press my tongue against the top of my mouth, which does two things: 1. stops me from clenching my jaws 2. activates the multifidous muscles next to the c1-4 vertebrae, which need to work some anyway. So far so good 🙂
2/4/11 – Some Sad News
Last week I went for my massage, and I found out that it would be my last massage with Lynda 🙁
Yes, she has left the continent to go and live in Hawaii. Those lucky folks in that state have gained a very talented woman. So, one of the members of The Village has taken a big move on their part. I wish her all the luck in the world, and I hope to meet her again sometime.
In the mean time, I will try more massage therapists and hope that I can find someone as awesome as Lynda.
1/12/11 – New Year and Almost One Whole Year!
Posted by admin in Reflections on January 12th, 2011
I’m BAAAAACK!!!
Yes, I found a big rock and hid for the fall, but now it’s time to get back down to work since the one year anniversary of my adventure to become a barefoot runner started. I still have the Village – Dr. Larry – Chiropractor, Lynda – Massage Therapist, and Melissa – Personal Trainer. I really do believe that I have the best people keeping me functioning in a healthy way, and Dr. Larry keeps saying he’s really impressed with Melissa, which is a big vote of confidence for a Chiropractor to respect a Personal Trainer! Apparently, some Personal Trainers have been known to have their clients do exercises that are very hard and not good for your back, but NOT Melissa! She’s awesome! and good for your back 🙂
Here’s what’s up: the feet are growing some really nice veins. In case you have never looked at a pair of really healthy feet, they have some excellent thick, blue veins running along the arches and the outside of the foot. I had never really considered veins as beautiful, until I started getting a nice popping set of my own! They are fantastic! Plus, they indicate active feet in need of more blood. It just doesn’t get much better….
Except when you consider that I have progressed in my workouts to the point where I can squat 75 lbs! Yes, 75 lbs!!! It is quite an accomplishment, if I do say so myself.
My shoulder continues to get better, and then flair up with regularity. This is something that I find quite disappointing.
Important TRUTH:
When you injure a major joint, the real healing of your wound will most likely take MONTHS!!! Think 6 months or more. Be careful with your body during times of healing and above all be patient.
These are points that I try to make to myself each day that my shoulder flairs up again because I did too many shoulder protraction/retraction moves. I give it a few days of rest and ice, then try again once it feels normal.
I’m going to begin a new running routine this weekend or tomorrow, whichever day I get out and start. It’s cold and rainy. Running in the rain when it is cold is just plain nasty. So, I’ll start when I start.
I’m aiming for running the 5k at Whidbey Island in April. That gives me plenty of time to get the body going in that direction. Also, it’s good to have a goal – especially a race where the energy is high, and you get a medal at the end 😉
Here’s to being spry at 70! Yeehaw!
10/8/10 – Thank Goodness for Massage Therapists.
So, after just about the crappiest week in history, I had a wonderful hour-long massage from my favorite therapist, the one, the only, Lynda, the muscle whisperer. She spent time really working on both of my crunchy ankles, and I am happy to say that they are less crunchy and much more mobile! Not to mention that she said my right shoulder was very much improved over the last time.
I am still experiencing some mysterious inflammation in my right ankle, and I was wondering out loud how it could have happened. Lynda started asked questions about my workout, and when I was talking about the new static lunges, she says – “That’s it!” And I think she may be right.
The lunges, although static and, thus, low-impact, are still putting major stress on the ankle that lies behind my body on the step. Plus, that foot is balanced on the toes, which is even more unstable. Put this together with the fact that the front foot is out there on it’s own, and I think we’ve got an over-worked ankle.
Ok, we’ve found the aggravating exercise, now what?
I continue to ice and self-massage the area (so difficult to do the self-massage b/c it hurts!), but I’m not feeling much improvement. This could also be b/c I wore cute shoes on Saturday to a wedding and danced with my husband. Oops….
All that aside, I’m going to give it one more week. I’m beginning to feel like a slug, and I’ve got a stuffed up nose. So, I’m going to head to the gym on Wednesday for some needed workout time. Nothing high impact, but I’ve got to get moving again before everything decides to get “all stove up”.
I hope that the icing and massage gets that inflammation going in the opposite direction. We’ll see.
No running 🙁
I’m going to try swimming to see if I can remember how – hahaha!
Quick and Dirty Update on Last 3 Weeks, Then Back to Regularly Scheduled Blog!
So, these past three weeks have been a whirlwind of excitement and exhaustion. The school year began with full force; at the same time I was house/dogs/cat/fish/newts sitting for friends who go to go to Burning Man; and I was trying to maintain a workout schedule. Whew!
Well, the house/dogs/cat/fish/newts survived; my students are awesome this year (so far); my workout limped along.
I also had several appointments with Travis, my physical therapist, who is currently treating my right shoulder, which I am calling the last of my old injuries. It is well on the road to recovery, and next week I should be released from physical therapy for good 🙂 That is barring any new weird things that might happen. So, Yay!!!
Melissa, my personal trainer, has been awesome! She has been supplementing my physical therapy on my shoulder with more specific and difficult serratus anterior exercises. I really do have a great team!
On the chiropractic front, Dr. Larry has been keeping everything in line – hahaha! While Lynda, my massage therapist, aka the muscle whisperer, has been working with my right shoulder mainly to keep it functioning without all that tightness.
All together, these past three weeks have been challenging and rewarding. I’m looking forward to a more normal routine where I can workout regularly and begin running training again.
8/4/10 – Chiropractor and Massage, Finally
What a banner day! I wake up with my nerve in my right arm raging, my quads screaming at me with every movement, and my ankle feeling fine.
So, I arrive at Dr. Larry’s office EARLY, which I never do. As a matter of fact, I think I’m 20 minutes early! Do ya think I’m really looking forward to this visit?
Anyway, when I get to the room, I launch into the shoulder explanation:
Me: “You need to adjust my shoulder b/c my nerve is shooting pain down to my elbow.”
Dr. Larry: “Let me test it first.”
Me: “You really need to adjust my shoulder….”
Dr. Larry: “Just let me test it. Hmmm. Ok. I’ll adjust your shoulder.”
My Shoulder: “CRACK!”
Me: “Ahhh.”
Dr. Larry: “That’s amazing! Have you thought about becoming a chiropractor?”
Ok, so maybe we said slightly different things, but it was something to that extent. I really think that my chiropractor is awesome. His shoulder adjustments are actually a special move that he kind of invented, which as he has said is a combination of two moves to make one super move – “The Macarena”. This is my favorite shoulder adjustment. It always does the trick.
He also did the standard pulling my leg, adjusting my ankle and of course the L5 for the sciatica.
Next, the massage 🙂
Lynda was back from her awesome bike ride across Ohio (correct me if I’m wrong, I think it is Ohio). So cool! She stayed with people she knew all across the state and ate homemade cookies that a family was simply GIVING away to the bike riders. She slogged through thunderstorms and finished with a family wedding. She is awesome!
Then, on her first day back in the office, she has to deal with me – muwahahahaha!
So, she gets to the right shoulder first. Turns out that b/c I have not been wearing my night guard, I have been clenching my jaw, which is not causing issues with my jaw. Instead, the clenching is completely screwing up my right shoulder! It’s all connected, baby.
So, she works some magic on my shoulder muscles (she’s like the muscle whisperer – they release when she tells them to). Then, down to my oh-so-sore quads. I was so not looking forward to this as I knew it was going to hurt.
And it did, but she was able to get the muscles and tendons to relax, which did quicken the recovery time.
My left foot was really crunchy, too. It did decide to relax a bit. She also released my hip flexors.
Overall, a really wonderful and very needed afternoon.
7/9/10 Chiropractor and Massage for my Feet Only!
Did you know that a massage therapist can spend a whole hour on just your feet? Well, I was a little skeptical, but it is true! However, before I go there, I want to talk about my adjustment last week.
I started with just the massage and no adjustment, but when I got there I was informed that if I wanted an adjustment they could squeeze me in. So, I thought about it, and I noticed that my neck hurt, my hips felt a little stiff, and the L5 felt that it could use a little movement. Ok, I’m in – I need an adjustment!
So, I go back and Dr. Larry gets some awesome pops on the neck. Then, the mid back was not so mobile. My hips were normal, my ankle was really a big movement, but my low back was not a much as I had expected.
I then decided to take this time to brag about how my multifidus muscles felt much stronger when I was doing my PT exercises. Dr. Larry then tells me that my back does, in fact, feel more “balanced” 🙂 Hooray! It’s working!
Of course, after the whole session I am really feeling flexible and awesome. Then comes the massage on my feet.
I did get a tiny bit on my right shoulder because there was this knot right over the shoulder blade….oh, nevermind.
Anyway, Lynda actually spent one whole hour on my feet. She massaged the back of the heel (I keep meaning to look up what is back there anyway), and it was amazing the kinks that were there – I mean, who knew the back of the heel had issues?
Then, she worked on the top of the feet: the band that holds your ankle together (that’s a doozie); the posterior tibial tendon (all the way up the tibia) – it did a really nice release; the muslces on the outside (anterior) of the tibia; and, finally, the underside of the foot. Wow! That underside of my left foot was all kinds of messed up. That sucker was painful, but when she finished I had excellent range of motion and mobility in general.
Yes, folks, one whole hour on the feet (ok, maybe minus 10 mins on the shoulder). I highly recommend having an hour long foot massage. I highly recommend Lynda. However, you will have to wait until she has finished her bike ride across the entire state of Ohio.