I asked my physical therapist what he thought, he said “you will feel immediate relief from the pain. However, anytime you cut into the body it takes years off your life.” That statement changed my life. I went on a mission to find a way to relieve my back pain and become strong stronger. 

The following things, have helped me. 

My Low-back Arsenal

• Foam Roller & Core Exercises – https://share.evernote.com/note/f9e22313-56e6-4c4a-9adc-f88a6fae287b
• Pilates on the Reformer
  • Recommendations:
    • Awaken Studio
    • Bianca Martin – https://www.instagram.com/alchemizepilatesbybianca/ — she works out at Vasa.
• Yoga
  • Vasa flow classes – I love Sarah B’s classes, she teaches 6am on Wednesdays, and on some Saturdays at 9am
  • Deep Stretch – they are slow, but the stretching helps me
• Relieve psoas muscles:
  • Pso-rite device – https://amzn.to/4o9Y9GS 
• “Pain Free” by Pete Egoscue – https://amzn.to/49wxh0g
  • This book has a lot of great methods for relieving pain.
• Core Strength
  • Build Transversus Abdominis muscles
    • https://www.healthline.com/health/fitness-exercise/transverse-abdominal-exercises#what-it-is
    • Exercises:
      • Pelvic tilts with Pilates Small Exercise Ball – in this exercise, lay on your back, legs bent, feet flat. Place the ball under your low back and perform 20-30 pelvic tilts (Kegel exercises) for 2-3 sets. This starts to build the TVA and will create a natural fusion around your spine for protection.
      • Dead bug exercise
      • Planks 
      • Glute bridges
      • Clam shells with a band
• Massage
  • Muscle Precision Therapy in South Jordan – Holland and Julianne are the owners and they are amazing! Ask for Holland, but he also has other therapists that are trained in his method. Emma is great too!

• • Best massage gun that I have personally found and I have tried a lot of them! Bob and Brad Mini Massage Gun

As many of you already know, I am very passionate about personal fitness and health. I also spend a lot of time working at the desk to manage and design websites. This type of lifestyle becomes taxing on the body, and without physical activity I would go crazy! That is why I love cycling so much and other fitness activities like yoga, pilates, running (not so much anymore due to knee stuff), etc.

I believe that in order to take care of our responsibilities, be it work, family, or other pursuits, we must take care of ourselves first. Why else do the airlines instruct putting on your own oxygen mask first before helping your child?

Fit people are more fit to help others. Happy people want to serve others. And when we take care of our personal needs we are more capable of building those around us.

So in my “Finding A Balance” presentation I cover the following:

• Why it’s important to focus on “you”
• Work life & related problems
• Solutions to stay fit in a sedentary environment

Resources:

• Core therapy exercises
• Powerpoint presentation with references & resources

Two years after that accident, I crashed snow skiing and received a spiral fracture on the same tibia. A double whammy! The doctor put in a plate and 7 screws to support the spiral fractured tibia – surgery #2.

For more than a decade I favored my bad leg and avoided any major physical activity much more than hiking and some rock climbing… But running was definitely out. I got on an occasional ski slope, but the pain on the plate in the tibia was excruciating! So, about 8 years after getting the plate put in, I decided to have Dr Tom Bauman remove it – surgery #3.

This was a great decision. My pain reduced immensely and I was able to start new exercises such as running and cycling. From age 29 to 37 I’ve competed in more than a half dozen triathlons, finished two marathons, several trail running races, completed several 100 mile century rides, LOTOJA, and several other competitive cycle races. For the first time in my life I was able to become a very amateur endurance athlete.

In 2013 I started to experience some intense back pain and was diagnosed with spinal stenosis. This led me to reduce my running and to focus more on cycling. After several months of rehab I was able to forego a major surgery on my back. This was possible through lots of core exercises, massage therapy, chiropractor, and hours of yoga and pilates. I’m pretty sure this back problem is a result from my rock climbing fall I had 22 years before. Nonetheless, I had a great 2014 cycling season, and racing with the AtTask Canyon bicycle team has been a great experience.

Sometime around June or July of 2014 my left knee started to ache after long intensive rides and there was a strange grinding in my left knee. I went to the physical therapist and chiropractor and tried several homeopathic remedies to see if it could help with the pain in the knee. However, the pain continued, and so I succumbed to going to a doctor to get an Xray and an MRI. To my surprise, the x-ray showed that one of the screws was protruding through my knee cap had been grinding in my femoral knee joint – for 22 years! My response was laughter, I think as a mask of the anger I felt deep inside. After so many years this one accident in my life was coming back to plague me one more time.

I was referred to a Dr. Cooley who works out of the Park City IHC clinic and is at Tosh in Salt Lake City. He is an incredible doctor and came highly recommended by several athletic people and physical therapists. Upon his suggestion we decided to operate again to do in his words  “extensive hardware removal” from the left patella. surgery #4.

And Here I am today lying in bed in a straight leg brace and a super nice ice cooling system, and popping the occasional Percocet because the pain is so intense. I only hope that I can rehab and regain my mobility and perhaps even be a little bit stronger than I was before.

If there’s one thing I’ve learned through all this, it’s a lot of humility. I keep having to remind myself that this pain I feel, and these trials I have are to build better character and to make me stronger.

‘Creating desire in the audience, and then showing how your ideas fill that desire, moves people to adopt your perspective. This is the heart of a story.’

Nancy Duarte, “Resonate”

Text: Glen Gunnell
Photo: Tyler Toone
Chinese Writing: Tyler Toone

Collaboration with Glen Gunnell
Text by Tyler Toone
Art by Glen Gunnell

Here’s my free-writing from September 30, 2014:
“I’m sitting in my car gazing over the valley as black clouds and streaming rain pours down upon the bustling city. Beyond the wall of rain the sun is brilliant white and yellow, and rays of sunshine pierce through giving a pristine, celestial glow to the world. I am in awe of this most magical site, and I’m glad to be sitting upon this hillside watching God’s creations and powerful weather patterns in action. Pausing you think, to take in such beauties is too often overlooked. I’m often guilty of this, but not today. Not today.”

“And so rock bottom became the solid foundation on which I rebuilt my life.” – J.K. Rowlings

I got some inspiration this morning listening to J.K. Rowlings commencement speech at Harvard 5 years ago.

Take a few minutes to watch or listen to this amazing speech.

J.K. Rowling Speaks at Harvard Commencement from Harvard Magazine on Vimeo.

“While I love my computer, I think computers have robbed us of the feeling that we’re actually making things.” – Austin Kleon

My Dad always told us to have a hobby or something that we can do with our hands. He always had his pocket knife or drawing pen, and during the years he suffered with cancer it was the drawing, sculpting, and carving that gave him the joy for life to keep a smile on his face in spite of the pain he had to endure.

Thanks for this life lesson Dad. I miss you, but every time I pick up a pen or my carving knife I think of the fun times we had.

You were a true artist Dad.