Low Back Pain? Join me at the January 27th Workshop!
Hello, there! Dr. Rob with Paragon Performance Physical Therapy here!
Let me tell you a story before I tell you about the Low Back Pain Self-Management Workshop I'll be offering at The Athleticus on Saturday January 27th.
But first, let me just say I'm sorry if your low back is causing you pain: I know that struggle all too well.
I had my first disc herniation during undergrad, back at Marquette University, in Milwaukee Wisconsin. Freshman year, 2002, as I recall. Back in the "good ol' days".
I woke up to go to class, and was immediately sledge-hammered with the worst pain of my life, like white-hot lightning flowing from my low back and down my leg.
I was tougher than I was wise, though, and somehow still got to class, walking hunched over like a bell-ringing pariah, moaning in agony. Was this a foolish move? Did this make things worse? Which class was it? What did I learn?
My friend, I couldn't tell you. Pain like that tends to wipe the mind.
For the next year I dealt with the pain, on and off again, but the disc symptoms subsided and eventually I got back to one of my favorite activities: strength training.
Years passed, low back pain nagging, sometimes screaming, but always lurking in the background, waiting to pounce. I moved to Seattle, Washington and earned my doctorate in Physical Therapy, spent time in the mountains and near the sea…
But I was called back to the Midwest to be closer to my parents, siblings, and my growing mongrel horde of nephews and nieces.
In 2021 I was working with a client, and was stronger than I've ever been. I was demonstrating a kettlebell swing to him, an excellent exercise for getting someone back to chopping wood, which was my client's goal.
I grabbed the biggest kettlebell in the gym, a 132lb chunk of steel, and I remember it as vividly as if it happened yesterday.
I hoisted the steel, drove the hips, and swung the bell into the air in front of me, elation in my mind.
The first swing: "I cant believe how strong I've gotten!"
The second swing: "This feels amazing! I may literally be the strongest man on planet earth"
The third swing: "Oh F***!"
I had felt something shift in my back, a gristly pop. There was no immediate pain, but the alarms were screaming that something was wrong. I set the bell down, played it cool as a cucumber, and carried on with my client.
I missed the next two weeks of work thanks to the massive lumbar disc herniation I had suffered. I couldn't even sit down without mind-shattering pain. Tying my shoes, going to the bathroom, driving, walking…
AGONY.
The good news here, however, is this: in 2021 I wasn't just a physical therapist, I was a highly experienced and expertly trained spine specialist. I had helped hundreds, maybe thousands of people manage their own low back pain, and now it was time to look in the mirror.
Physical therapist, heal thyself.
And you know what?
I did.
And I didn't need chiropractic adjustments or needles. I didn't need pills or imaging or surgery. I didn't use secret techniques or mystical energy work.
All I needed was the pragmatic knowledge already in my head, a healthy mindset, and patience.
After ten days of rehabbing myself, I was good to go.
Back to work.
No problem.
The injury was a blessing, really. Learning to manage a lumbar disc herniation from the inside was a gift. It was a painful gift. It wasn't the kind of gift that anyone is particularly stoked about getting. It was a bit like if grandma gave me a 10,000 piece puzzle featuring the visual history of Western Civilization's greatest achievements: rehabbing my disc was not a ton of fun to get through, but I sure did learn a lot.
And here I stand (I'm sitting typing actually, but you get it) with literally zero low back pain, something I never would have imagined possible at the height of my injury.
Not only that, but I am stronger than I have ever been.
In fact, the second I finish writing this I'm going to the gym to deadlift and squat (leg day is best day!) and to continue building strength.
This is a pathway that is available to almost every person that suffers a back injury.
And this is a pathway that I can teach you to identify and follow, from injury to strength, from pain to living your best life.
Which is why I want you to sign up, come out to the workshop, and learn how you can master your lumbar spine, how you can take control of your pain and injuries, and you can transform yourself into a stronger, more resilient, and more effective version of yourself.
Looking forward to seeing you there!
-Rob Jensen, DPT
Spots are limited, so get ‘em while you can!
