Transformations

Alexandria Pavelic

My acute injury in Spring 2018 (three herniated discs, degenerative disc disease, SIJ impingement, scoliosis, uneven hips/supposed shorter leg, blah blah blah useless diagnoses) was a rude awakening for a “healthy” 28-year-old and revealed ALL the unaddressed problems I’ve been having for years. Many many sleepless nights, extreme sciatica, days where I couldn’t put on my own socks/pants, a lot of crying/feeling hopelessness, immense frustration with the medical system, and thousands of dollars wasted on “rehab.”

Two orthopaedic spinal surgeons told me I needed surgery to “fix my shit” and they could do up to three procedures to help my sciatica (lol). My mom, who is a nurse, was constantly pissed at me for refusing shots and pain meds. Everyone was pressuring me into taking meds or trying some new treatment. I had a physiotherapist and chiropractor tell me I should never have children because the pain would be horrible and would likely involve many complications… this new spinal curve and chronic pain was something I would just have to “learn to live with” if I refused surgery. After 4 months of people telling me I just had to sit around and let the experts do all the healing, I was fed up. Very much inspired by Andrew Dettelbach’s own story… I signed up for MoveU on August 15th.

You can see the day I started the program on the left, with my December 15th update on the right. Some of you probably saw this on the Instagram page. MoveU has not only been incredible for my healing journey physically, but also mentally in increasing my patience, remaining calm in the face of hardship and setbacks, and knowing that following the process of the program will enable me to stay in tune with my body; this has become the key to “keeping my shit together” when a lot of other things in life were getting messy. Someone made a post a few weeks ago about how MoveU is very meditative and it 100% is – it is the part of my day I enjoy more than anything, even when I don’t want to do it. Of 120 days worth of back to back Pete 30 Day Challenges, I have missed two.

I got a call from my GP yesterday saying it is time to book in for my follow-up MRI and Xray. I said no thanks because I know I don’t need it; I have realized that no imaging or diagnosis can help me “heal” my back pain because everything I personally need I have learned in this program. This is still hilarious to me as the first day I started, I couldn’t move my pelvis into a 5cm tilt without crying. Now I am doing pelvic circles like a fricken windmill. I have a lot of work to do, but I feel so much better now and I know that living the program daily will enable long-term healing and prevent future major damage.

Tip for New Folks:

MOVE. Even when you don’t want to, even if it hurts, even if you feel like it’s not doing anything. I didn’t notice a single change for the first four weeks of MoveU, then all of a sudden something clicked and the healing began.

Love you all and happy Muving!

Written by Alexandria Pavelic

#MoveU

Rani Bush

Two simple words: MIND BLOWN! It keeps happening to me every time I interact with Dr. Mike, Andrew and their amazing revolution about chronic lower back pain. As a recreational runner for many years, I had no idea of how much my bad posture was hurting my body, not to mention my motivation. As the pain got worse, the running almost stopped and the weight continued to accumulate.

Frustrated, I thought doing physical therapy once again might help. It did, but not how I imagined it would. That was a little over two years ago. I was at the most boring physical therapy session imaginable. One of the assistants suggested my problem could stem from my quadratus lumborum. The video that came up when I googled that strange term changed everything.

There was Dr. Mike explaining a condition that had been hiding in plain sight for years as my body (but more importantly my will and motivation) deteriorated. I allowed our U.S. healthcare system to confuse, frustrate and ultimately defeat the mindset that I have control over my body and destiny.

I gobbled up those initial videos and hungered for more. After a mind-blowing visit to meet Dr. Mike, I signed up for the MoveU Forever Fix program and haven’t looked back. Two years later, I’m back running, have lost over 50 pounds, quit my job and moved to New Mexico to pursue my dreams. I came to MoveU wanting relief for my chronic lower back pain. Little did I realize it would improve every area of my life! The knowledge, passion and sincerity of Dr. Mike, Andrew and the whole MoveU family is so mind blowing. I’m in this long term and am so thankful for MoveU’s continuing wisdom, support and laughter.

Written by Rani Bush (@ranibush)

#MoveU

Natawat Thanomsat

My name is Natawat. I’m from Thailand. I enjoy sweating myself under a bar, hissing my breaths on a yoga mat, and enjoying the world upside down in public like many fitness enthusiasts do. My fitness journey has been filled with joy and laughter until the recent years where injuries in my hips, shoulders, and wrists started to pile up. The list of activities I enjoy quickly shrank down so small, that I felt weak, defeated, and frustrated.

I spent years looking for solutions from fitness experts, physical therapists, chiropractors, massage therapists, and even medical doctors, but the results were either short-lived or mediocre. The pain cycle in my body has continued to bother me for 4 years.

I stumbled across MoveU via Instagram while I was clinging for faint hope to get out of pain cycle in mid-2017. I joined Dr. Mike’s webinar, which clarified many root causes of my pain. Without much option to go further, I enrolled in the Forever Fix Program.

My first impression of the program was that the movements appeared very simple compared to what I’d been training, but as I delved deeper into the process I quickly found that ignorance of fundamentals was the primary reason why I got stuck in the abyss. I surrendered myself to the process, feeling vulnerable and broken again.

Fortunately, I had the online MoveU community who have been through similar experiences, if not far more traumatic than mine, to sympathize with me. It was truly a humbling experience to cultivate the awareness and learn from those who were in the same shoes instead of relying on quick fixes from second opinions.

It’s been a year since I joined the community. My body has improved and my knowledge of the human body has far outgrown my physical capabilities. I’m proud to say that the community pushed me to become a yoga teacher this year, a career that I have never imagined to be a part of. I now advocate people to cultivate awareness and build the basic blocks of movement, so they can further build the lifestyle that they want.

MoveU has given me a brand new lens towards pain, where I zoom out to see the bigger picture—that there are things better than being out of pain. It is the awareness to use pain as a signal and learn something that the body has been trying to tell me for all these years.

Thanks MoveU!

Written by Natawat Thanomsat (@watswithendrange)

#MoveU #Transformation #FixYoShit #SuccessStory #MoveUFamily

Pelle Friesen

My name is Pelle, I joined the MoveU Forever Fix Program in October 2017 after suffering my second back injury when playing baseball. I had initially herniated a disc in my lower back using poor form at work and in the gym over the course of a couple years. However, I managed the pain and continued to workout. Four years later, I was playing in a baseball game over a long weekend. I woke up the next day and could hardly stand/walk or sit, I had sciatic pain down both legs. I couldn’t stand to do my job, workout or help the people around me. I felt useless and I was “diagnosed” with a disc bulge and herniation, and was told not to weight lift anymore. I wasn’t about to give up on something I loved and felt determined to fix my body! At the time I was only 22 years old, which was too young to live like this.

I came across MoveU on Instagram and signed up. I was determined to Fix My Shit! The people who created this program and are involved in the Facebook group are the most compassionate, helpful, and straightforward people I have ever known. They’ve helped me at my worst and encouraged me at my best. I owe these people and this program far more than the money they charge. They have given me my LIFE back!

It took time, hard work, and patience and I can say that today I am moving better than I ever have before. I am back in the gym almost entirely pain free with an unstoppable mindset!

Thanks MoveU!

Written by Pelle Friesen (@pelle_fr)
#MoveU #Transformation #Makeover #FixYoShit #SuccessStory #MoveUFamily

Emilio Lenoir

Hello! My name is Emilio Lenoir and I’m 22 years old. At a young age, pain had gotten to the point where it ruled my life. Doctors said it was due to scoliosis. I tried every treatment that came across my way. Nothing truly helped. Whenever I felt like I was fine, I went off and did something crazy. I missed being able to move freely. This turned into a sequence of short bouts of intensity followed by soaking in pain. No consistency whatsoever.

Last year I was fed up. Miserable. I Found MoveU through Instagram, invested in the program and BOOM. Things started to change. When I dislocated my shoulder one month into the program I was really devastated. To my surprise being tied down with a broken back and shoulder proved to be the best that could ever happen to me. I was forced to do nothing else but the program.

One year of hard work later, my head is above the water. I’m so grateful for what I learned through the program and for the people involved in it. Now I have to start to actually build it into something that lasts a lifetime. Luckily I have the tools to do so!

To all of you who are looking for change and improvement, I would really suggest enrolling in the program!

Written by Emilio Lenoir (@emiliolenoir)
#MoveU

Jordan Veldman

My name is Jordan I am from Calgary, Alberta. I started the MoveU program in November of 2017 after struggling with chronic back, neck, shoulder and knee pain for 4 years.

Before starting the program I was in a pretty dark place, dealing with crippling anxiety and depression. I was terrified that I would never be able to enjoy the sports and activities that I loved to participate in. I consulted with various health care professionals including osteopaths, physios, massage therapists and chiropractors, all of which provided little to no relief for the pain I was experiencing. Some of these specialists told me I would need ongoing care and adjustments in order to stay pain free for the rest of my life.

By chance, I came across the MoveU instagram page and watched a bunch of their videos. I started implementing some of the movement techniques that they taught into my own training and started to see some results with my body. Over time, I began to plateau, and that’s when I decided to go ALL IN on the program. The program has given me the knowledge to correct the muscle imbalances that I picked up over the years and has given me the confidence to continue to progress to new levels.

Being in pain sucks A LOT and truly there is no quick fix to it. The MoveU Program will provide you with everything you need to get your body working at its best again.

Written by Jordan Veldman (@jordveld)
#MoveU

Erica Weaver-Herbert

My name is Erica, I signed up for the MoveU Forever Fix Program in June 2017 because of a few injuries and some very consistent pain.

My main push to sign up was the knee pain that I had for the last 2 years and shoulder pain that was 8 months post-surgery, which provided almost no relief and seemed to have made the issue worse. I had also started to develop pretty consistent back pain when lifting weights.

The 3 years before I joined the program, I had seen many physical therapists, had regular visits with a chiropractor, massage therapy, rolfing and seen several orthopedists. I was consistently told I was getting older and needed to scale back my activity, to stop running and strength training, and to settle into a gentler lifestyle. At 30 years old and only 4 years into my fitness journey, I did not like those options.

I had started following MoveU on Instagram when I was recovering from surgery, and decided that if I wanted to change my path I had to try something different. I followed the program spending at least 15 minutes a day on the workouts but averaging 5 days a week of 30 minutes to an hour a day. Within a few months my knee and back pain had dramatically improved and by 7 months my shoulder felt like it did pre-injury.

I am back to my old self, I am running again, lifting weights and having fun! I continue to improve and build strength I didn’t know I was capable of. I have full confidence in my body’s ability again and that is an amazing feeling.

Written by Erica Weaver-Herbert (@elaur1)
#MoveU

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was last modified: December 21st, 2020 by Atif Riaz