The Unexpected Cure: How Chinese Martial Arts Healed My Chronic Pain
Ever felt like your body's in a constant state of struggle?
That was me with my chronic wrist and back pain. It felt like a relentless shadow over my shoulders, day after day - for almost a decade.
But then, I stumbled upon an unlikely hero: Chinese martial arts.
Pain, as I learned, is like a beaver dam blocking a creek—Chinese medicine sees it as an obstruction.
Clearing this blockage isn't always straightforward though, especially with chronic conditions. It's not just about removing the obstruction; it's about understanding and addressing the underlying issues.
My journey into martial arts wasn't just about learning to punch or kick; it was about mastering the basics: body mechanics, balance, alignment, rotation, and shifting.
These fundamentals brought my imbalances and dysfunctional patterns front and center.
I've been honing these skills for 14 years, starting every session with the same basics. Because without them, my movements lacked power and opened me up to injury and more pain.
Slowing down and focusing on each movement taught me to calm my nervous system on demand, reducing inflammation and promoting healthy blood flow and energy circulation—especially beneficial for my wrist and back.
These practices didn't just support my physical health; they prepared me mentally to stay present and composed during stress.
It was seriously a revelation: movement, balance, alignment, and stress were intertwined, fueling a cycle of pain I couldn't get out from under.
My 2 wrist surgeries failed because they never tackled these root causes.
Martial arts have become my self-applied rehab and therapy, teaching me daily how to realign and rebalance.
I'm still a work in progress, but I'm leagues ahead of where I started, and my wrist and back?
They've never felt better!
This journey has taught me that healing is about more than just treating symptoms.
It's about understanding and adjusting the fundamentals of how we move and live. And for me, Chinese martial arts and Eastern medicine was the key to unlocking that door.
How To Do What You Want For As Long As Your Want
I have friends and colleagues in their 50's and 60's who move and feel better than some of my clients in their 20's and 30's. Here’s what they do different.
In fitness these days most people think exercise means going as hard, fast and intense as possible.
The "No Pain, No Gain!" mentality.
The fixation on burning calories or pushing yourself beyond measure tends to damage and deplete the body and organs in ways that aren’t always so obvious.
And most think that feeling sore, tight and achy is “normal” - it’s what it takes to be “healthy”.
But unless you’re a competitive athlete, it’s a short sighted way of staying fit for most adults.
You really need to ask yourself what’s your end goal?
Is it simply to live in a state of pain and discomfort just to look good, or is it to be able to do what you want, when you want for as long as you want?
The older people I train with who display power, control, balance and agility work out hard sometimes, but mostly they focus on refined strength that’s built over time.
They’re training for today but considering how they’ll feel tomorrow and decades from now.
Refined strength and freedom of movement is something that’s cultivated using focus, patience and consistency.
They’re not just focused on their body and how it looks but how it’s connected to every other aspect of their life experience.
They’re aware that how they move is a reflection of their mental state, and how their mental state also reflects how they move.
They study the relationship and harmony of their body mind & spirit, everyday.
The latest and greatest exercise routines out there are oftentimes not a recipe for longevity and true health and fitness.
Taking some time out to consider what you truly want for your future self is worthwhile investment of your time.
Because having a body mind that functions and performs well, and with more control and freedom into your 60's, 70's, 80's and beyond is done in a nurturing way, not a violent and aggressive way.
Here are a few things to consider as you go into your next workout or activity:
Can you feel your whole body contribute to the movement/exercise you’re performing. (This will require focus and global awareness of your body)
See if you can perform the movement while keeping the breath slow, deep, even and without force.
Look for quality and precision over quantity and intensity.
If you apply these ideas consistently, and observe your results, you’ll find clarity on how to make the movement better, and you’ll experience more longevity and comfort as you continue to move forward in your life!
The path to true health and vitality lies not in pushing our bodies to the limit, but in nurturing them with mindful, balanced practices that serve us today and preserve our well-being for the years to come.
Qi Gong: A Vital Practice for Professionals Who Depend on Their Bodies
As someone who worked in a physically demanding job for years as an electrician, I get it. Over time, your body begins to protest. You wonder - is this just a function of aging?
I thought so too, until my own journey led me to discover a unique practice known as Qi Gong (pronounced 'chee gong').
If aging were the only culprit, everyone growing older would be in constant pain, right? But that's not the case. Not everyone in a physically demanding job lives with pain. A secret to this? Good body mechanics combined with a balanced and aligned skeleton.
A few years ago, I was introduced to Qi Gong, a practice that forever changed my understanding of the body and my approach to physical well-being.
This practice not only gave me a unique perspective on how I was holding and moving myself throughout the day but also helped me suss out the root of my chronic wrist pain.
Qi Gong creates a new level of awareness that helps you identify what's misaligned before it turns into pain.
And if you're already struggling with unresolved pain - be it back pain, neck pain, shoulder pain, or wrist pain like me - it can be a game-changer.
Most people living with chronic pain don't get the lasting relief they hope for from conventional therapies like physical therapy, cortisone injections, chiropractic adjustments or even surgery. It's because these modalities don't always educate the person about the origin of the issue.
Building strength and creating space are essential, sure, but without understanding why things have become weak or imbalanced in the first place, it's a band-aid solution.
This is where Qi Gong shines.
It's not just a practice; it's a daily ritual for self-calibration and rebalancing. A timeless technique that's been evolving for thousands of years, Qi Gong brings your body back to a state that feels familiar, one you might have lost due to years of injury, bad habits, and lack of awareness.
Qi Gong shows you how to move in accordance with your body's natural design.
Most tension and pain result from muscles not firing sequentially in the right order. Qi Gong helps you reconnect with the different areas of your body and understand how they should connect.
It's as simple as it sounds and feels like a massage from the inside out. It doesn't need to take long. I noticed significant improvements in a few weeks, and you could too.
If you're like me, having tried everything but still not where you want to be, Qi Gong could be your missing link.
As a professional instructor and coach now, my greatest joy is empowering others to take control of their physical well-being, just like Qi Gong did for me.