“I don’t think I’ll ever know exactly what caused my sciatic nerve pain in my early 20’s. It could’ve been a car accident at 19, lifting heavy weights at 22 or walking with improper gait for all my life. Knowing what I know now, it was probably a combination of these and many other factors. All I knew was that at age 28, I had thrown my back out three times and the pinching, knife stabbing pain was only getting worse at my sedentary office job.
One morning while I was getting ready for work, I turned on the television to PBS and I saw a woman decades older than me doing movements that I couldn’t do because of the pain and stiffness in my lower back. Then I heard her say, “this will help relieve pain.” I followed her cues, moving gently and only going as far as my body would allow at the time. After a week, I realized that I was jumping out of bed instead of carefully getting up. The pain and stiffness were gone! I also began to see changes in my posture. One day while doing Windmills, I felt a release in my back and I was able to reach further! That’s also when I started seeing the toning and weight loss benefits. I had been lifting weights and doing HIIT for the past 6 years. About a year after beginning Essentrics, I sprained a ligament in my index finger while lifting weights. I took it as an opportunity to stop working out so hard and only do Essentrics. What happened was incredible – I got in better shape than I ever could with lifting and HIIT!
In 2018, I became an instructor and for the past three years, Essentrics has been the only form of exercise that I’ve done consistently. I am now 34 – when I meet new people, they are surprised by my age because they think I’m only 24!
I’m happy to say that I’ve gotten many of my family members who don’t like to exercise to start doing Essentrics to relieve pain and lose weight. I’ve had to start teaching in Spanish to bring this revolutionary technique to them. My journey with Essentrics continues to evolve and I’m excited to share this with others for the rest of my life.”
-Claudia Sanchez
@stretchfitnessclass
