ALC Testimonial Of the Month
I am pretty excited about some of the results I’ve been getting from working with Anne Baker at ALC.
I have been attending Anne’s Fundamental Fitness classes on and off for the past 3 years. I started coming to her classes while suffering a shoulder impingement. In these classes, she was always attentive to me and my shoulder issues, giving me alternative movements and reinforcing the instructions I received from a PT. After several weeks, that impingement disappeared and I am pain free and have full motion in my shoulder now.
I have enjoyed her classes for her no-nonsense approach to daily movement and strength. Anne has x-ray vision when she is coaching us. She can tell immediately if you are doing the activity right, and is quick to point out alternatives and corrections; resulting with easier movement, and regular improvement, in how we do daily activities and tasks. Her classes and instruction are excellent! I get an overall, well-rounded workout, so I am not just working out the muscles I use for mountain biking and skiing.
Anne is fantastic at what she does, and my testimonial could stop here. But…
On February 11, 2022, I had a ski accident; fracturing my pelvis and smashing all the soft tissue around the pelvis; I also further damaged the existing osteoarthritis in my hips and knee joints. I spent 5 days in hospital working on pain management and trying to get mobile. I was told 6 to 8 weeks for recovery.
By the time I was sent home, I was able to string 3 or 4 very painful steps together to get to the bathroom using a walker and feeling my age. Some pretty loyal friends, daily PSW’s, weekly physio, and periodic OT, helped me get to a point that I was able to move beyond my bathroom. I hadn’t see my kitchen for a month!
According to the professionals, I was recovering quickly. I think that was thanks to being in such good shape when I had the accident. And thank goodness too! I definitely needed my upper body strength to lift myself up onto that dreaded bedpan; and eventually lift myself onto the walker and commode. I’m not sure how folks who are not in good shape would be able to get themselves around.
Even though I started out strong, I was quick to lose my strength. And with that loss of strength and ongoing pain came some balance issues and alignment troubles. I was really twisting my body to compensate to avoid the pain in every day movement. I couldn’t go up and down stairs. I couldn’t even stand to lift my leg to put on pants without falling over.
At the 8-week mark, I was getting restless and asked the doctor to send me for x-rays to see if I was healed. She determined that I was “healing” but I could start a modified work out program. At this time I was unsure about what I could do. I knew what I couldn’t do. I sent Anne an email to ask if she would work with me to figure out what I can and cannot do, in preparation for returning to the Functional Fitness classes, riding, and eventually skiing.
We worked one-to-one together for 3 weeks; Anne used her expertise in Pilates to help me with balance, mobility, and alignment; and getting me ready to come back to classes. I will say I still have a long way to go, and hopefully I will be pain free sooner than later, but during these 3 weeks, I was able to accomplish 2 major activities based on Anne’s skilled coaching: I can now go up and down the stairs absolutely pain free, and I can put my pants on standing up, without falling over.
I must say that I appreciate that Anne was able to work with me before I started coming back to her classes. Spending the one-to-one time with Anne was a good investment. She is able to help me modify my workout now that I have started back in her classes, Like I said, she has x-ray vision, and nothing gets past her. She gives us all the personal advice that each of us needs to see some amazing results.
Thank you Anne for being you!
