07-11-2022
Ep.130 Meghan Griech, Doctor of Physical Therapy, How to Move without Pain
Meghan is a Doctor of Physical Therapy with over 19 years of experience treating patients with a multitude of diagnoses, injuries, surgeries, and medical complications to help them achieve their optimal mobility and functional ability. She’s worked with all sorts of people - whether it be kids with a sprained ankle, or their moms with lingering post partum pains. Meghan also likes to think of herself as one of her patients. She acknowledges that everyone has flare ups and pains once in a while, but the long term solution to that is not giving your body more rest, rather engaging it in more movements. Of course, almost everyone has busy lives, but Meghan encourages making little adjustments in your life to combat your joint and pain issues - like multitasking when you’re on a walk, or fixing your computer alignment while you're sitting at your desk, or carving out just an hour in the day for active movement. Meghan is extremely passionate about moving the body and working the muscles. With that, she’s found another passion: Yoga. She managed to find the right community and instructor that made her feel empowered, push her limits, and also quiet her to-do lost brain. Now, she is on a mission to teach people about their joint pain so they can live the active, pain-free life they want. Meghan has developed How to Move Without Pain to reach more people who want to live, work, and be active without joint pain and strain holding them back. She’s even in the process of developing a program - Bone Boost - to help people with osteoporosis engage in the right types of movement and work all parts of their body! What we discussed: As we age, it’s important to be consistent with movements instead of just doing them abruptly for a couple of months and then stopping. As our muscles, fibers, and overall flexibility changes, Our bodies need to get used to the movement, it has to feel lived in, instead of just a binge of movement. General movements like walking, stretching, or swimming is key to loosening up the tightness in your body and soothing those irritated muscles. The difference between hurt and harm - what are the short-term and long-term pains and irritations? What is the pain threshold like for each of them, and what can we do to identify and curb these sorts of issues? It may be counterintuitive, but the way to get your body to get over soreness and pain is not to sit down and rest more, but to move! Osteoporosis is something that you cannot feel, and you aren’t aware of when it’s happening. So, it’s important to ask yourself: What’s my balance like? How strong am I?. Although you may not be able to identify your degrading bones, you can control the types of movements you do and make adjustments to your lifestyle to counteract those issues. Strength training coupled with mobility exercises are key to controlling osteoporosis. Meghan is developing a program for people to follow, which incorporates a diverse basket of exercises for controlling osteoporosis! Using your muscles will work wonders for you! Staying still is detrimental. We talked about her online community. Meghan publishes an informative article every week about things that her patients normally ask her, like “what’s a rotator cuff?”. She aims to make it informative, but also relatable! She also publishes an email newsletter on Tuesdays and Fridays. Meghan’s Timed Loaded Standing Test measures the time a person can stand while holding their arms straight out in front of them, holding 2lb dumbbells. Set Timer for 30 seconds! How many can you do? How to do the test: Stand tall with feet hip-width apart while holding 2lb weights Hold weights out in front of you, elbows straight with thumbs up and hands at shoulder height. As soon as the arms are out straight, the timer starts. When the weights can no longer be held out, the timer stops. This test is a great way to know your back and upper body strength and endurance. This test can be very helpful as a starting place and then work to increase the time, especially in the years when osteoporosis is a concern. Meghan’s community is growing day by day, with more and more people getting empowered to be consistent with moving their bodies! Links and Resources: Connect with Meghan Griech Follow Meghan Griech on Instagram Connect with Deborah Voll Take The Midlife Quiz Need a new resume? Connect with me for your Resume Audit here Leave the work to me! Passion and Purpose Digital Workbook