I had huge back problems. Spinal Stenosis, herniated discs and Spondylosis from years of bad posture and sports injuries. I did yoga for many years but even some of those poses aggravated the situation and made things worse for me. I started Foundation Training and it has made a huge difference. I have no pain at all. My back feels stronger everyday. As a nutrition consultant, I find myself now telling my clients about it. I am hooked! Great program!
I thought my lower back would be my Achilles’ heel forever. Foundation Training took that thought out of the equation. I feel strong and flexible, and my posture is better than it has ever been. This stuff is just plain good for you.
I had been planning a cycling trip down the GDMBT for a couple of years. I am happy to say that my dedication to performing a Founder based routine daily for the year leading up to the trip and then Founders anytime I was off the bike – in the rain, on mountain passes, NM deserts put me in a position where I had literally no spinal/back discomfort at anytime over the 50 days and 4500km of off-road cycling in very remote places. A strong statement coming from a 54 yr old well worn body. I even had a couple of kids imitating me while I was taking a break going thru a reserve in NM. AWESOME BODY OF WORK. It is my go to program for my patients seen daily in my Chiropractic Practice.
Using the hips to hinge, paying special attention to the head/neck relationship, developing the core strength of the posterior chain vs. limb strength or ab strength I’d heard all this before, thirty years before and have had decades of personal experience with the various systems out there that attempt to focus on these concepts. So I put the book down, ignored the DVD and didn’t try Foundation Training. (Hint, this was a mistake, don’t do this.) Fortunately I was offered a couple of sessions with a Foundation Training expert trained by Dr. Goodman to learn about the work directly and I grudgingly went along with it just to check out what the buzz was around Foundation Training. Literally two minutes into the exercises I realized something special was going on here. Dr. Goodman has taken a very well-worn path and blazed a completely new trail which is impossible to appreciate or understand until you get your first two minutes of Foundation Training and the light bulb goes on. Foundation Training is like powerlifting or Olympic weight training for your deep postural muscles. As we sit a lot, collapsed, and work on computers these deep postural muscles degrade and weaken to the point they can no longer function and hold us up. Even the “fit” among us, professional athletes, tend toward developing poor movement patterns from the years of sitting we all do that then translate into their sport whether it be basketball or cycling. Breaking these postural movement patterns is virtually impossible using most all of the existing systems. Yoga increases flexibility and strength, weight training increases muscle strength, the Alexander Technique and Feldenkrais make us aware of poor movement patterns, but Dr. Goodman has developed the unthinkable – one single set of exercises that quickly, almost miraculously create profound muscle strength and flexibility at the same time in just the areas we are weakest and tightest from our modern lifestyle habits.
Dr. Eric Goodman worked as the Strength coach for our USA Olympic Water Polo team from December 2007 to July 2008 leading to the Beijing Olympic Games. All of these athletes are world-class and they felt that Eric did an exceptional job of keeping them injury free while performing at a very high level through some extremely tough months of training. In my opinion, this program was very critical to our success in Beijing. The team exceeded everyone's expectations and became one of the great stories of the Olympics by winning the silver medal. We stayed healthy and performed at a high level and Dr. Goodman deserves a good deal of credit.
After a decade of endurance sports racing it was becoming more difficult to move through life without an incredible amount of day to day pain. All traditional medical remedies were failing including chiropractic care, physiotherapy, prescription drugs. It wasn't just that I could no longer participate in athletic events - it was to a point where I was (1) having difficulty being active with my kids, and, (2) I was considering the very real possibility of having to give up my career as a flight paramedic. I came across foundation about four years ago. After reading the original publications I immediately ordered the DVD and began to feel better in a matter of days within starting the workouts. I now do foundation exercises everyday of my life. EVERYDAY. I move pain free now. I am constantly telling everyone I work with who I see suffering the same muscular imbalances and erroneous muscle recruitment systems I used to suffer from about how foundation can help remedy this. More importantly I can now be the active father my children need. Foundation training has given me a new lease on life.
Practicing Foundation Training for the past 4 years has been one of the most critical decisions of my surfing career. I had recurring lower back problems when I was a bit younger, but since starting Foundation Training I have felt constant improvement with little to no pain whatsoever. My flexibility and stability are both the best they have ever been. As my career is growing and I am now surfing on the World Tour, I can easily tell you that Foundation Training is a huge part of my success as a surfer. It helps me continue to become the best athlete I can be.
[Foundation Training] was the keystone to my recovery… it gave me my career back. The Foundation exercises rapidly increased my strength, flexibility, coordination, and balance quicker than I ever could have imagined… I went from having a hard time walking up and down stairs to competing in the Amgen Tour of California in May of 2010... I was not only able to meet my goal of finishing the 7 day, 812 mile race but I was also able to finish inside the top 20 and be highly competitive day in and day out. Since, I have taken these exercises to heart and put them into my training regime year round. They helped get me back to racing competitively as well as cured other imbalances I had developed after years of racing my bike and neglecting my core strength. I encourage everyone to have the open mind I did when seeking help for my injury. Follow that path and a better, healthier lifestyle is right around the corner.
I have suffered from chronic back pain for over 20 years until I discovered Foundation Training.
Coming from a very physically demanding Military unit I returned to civilian life barely being able to put on my shoes in the morning because of the lack of flexibility and pain. I was able to maintain an active lifestyle through stretching and even some "as seen on TV" gimmicks which had some benefits, but seemed to only be temporary relief. I was even desperate enough to buy a $5000 hot tub which is very nice, but is far from the answer to back pain.
I have been determined to continue an active lifestyle and continue my career in Law Enforcement, but I began to lose time at work and about twice a year my back would "go out" and I would be completely immobilized for a week or two. Long hours of sitting in a car with duty gear pushing against my lower back and walking with the off balance heavy gear hanging from my hips had completely taken its toll and I was beginning to wonder if a medical retirement or back surgery was the only option.
I discovered Foundation Training from a fellow student on a work trip several months ago and I have been practicing religiously. It has completely turned things around for me and I expect to continue to improve and live my active lifestyle and enjoy my career indefinitely.
I hurt my back many years ago by lifting things that were too heavy for me but managed to keep out of pain most of the time through my yoga practice. However after a fairly disastrous hysterectomy in 2015 my back became much weaker through lack of use and then when I started using it again I sat up in bed one morning in Jan 2016 and felt it go completely in the same place as the old injury. I was floored with the pain of what I suspected was herniated disc and couldn't move at first and then only with severe shooting pain down my right leg and particularly in, through and under my right hip joint. I struggled through the year with osteopathy and pain killers but as I teach yoga and play golf I knew I needed to know what was wrong and why it wouldn't heal this time. I finally had a mri scan in September which showed the disc bulging on the right handside. 'Likely to be an ongoing problem' the doctor said. I took this as a personal challenge! Having listening to a book review by Brian Johnson of True to Form and watching Eric's TED talk I bought the FT Connect programme a week before Christmas 2016. I followed it religiously and within 5 days started to feel muscles that had been long forgotten whilst protecting the damaged disc start firing and providing support once more. I couldn't believe it felt so different, so much better than it had for so long. All the training information made perfect sense and I felt empowered to make the right moves to heal myself from within. I have adapted my personal yoga practice to incorporate this. On those few days that I have not fully committed to the workout I noticed a twinge here and there returning. This is why I say that my back and hip pain is now a choice. If I do the exercises everyday I feel great and if I don't it comes back. My choice. Simple!
I have signed up for the training in Florida, as I feel just about everyone could benefit mind and body from holding their own body in this way. Yes this goes well beyond the physical I think expanding the diaphragm in this way improves wellbeing and happiness too.