Port Stephens Chiropractic and Rejuvenation Newsletter

March 2019

In this Newsletter

  • Chiropractic Update
  • Essential Oils Workshop
  • Rejuvenation Yoga Timetable for March 2019

My sincere thanks for your ongoing support. As you know our epic journey is now resting in Nelson Bay for at least the next year. There will be a few short trips away, April is the first. We are here in Nelson Bay and very committed to assisting you towards your health education as well as your ongoing strengthening of health.

Chiropractic

On the Chiropractic front, Dr Kevin has had amazing opportunities in various Practices around Australia to enhance many patients as well as in the support of Indigenous Health throughout the various States and Territories. With another 8 months of post graduate study under his belt, alongside his 30 years of Clinical practice, Kevin is keen to be supporting his patients in their journeys and certainly providing the highest quality evidence-based care as a Registered Chiropractor, Member of the Australian Chiropractic Association and long-time contributor to the Australian Spinal Research Foundation.

Kevin is gently settling back into his schedule, so feel welcome to make your appointments.

How Yoga Saved My Life – by Maree Frawley

How Yoga Saved My Life – By Maree Frawley

 In my first experiences of Yoga, I was 100% certain that Yoga was going to kill me – now I’m certain, it’s one of the handful of reasons that I am balanced, healthy and alive…..

If you were with me back in the late 90’s most of my family, work colleagues and clients would have thought I was playing an April Fool’s Day joke, if I had said back then that I would be a Yoga Instructor. 

 

I was manic and extremely adrenalin driven! If I was awake I was moving. I could not sit still and there was certainly no balance in my life.

 

Here, I was an “Old School” (hard core) group fitness instructor, (I even had part of my career with the infamous g-string leotard generation of instructors!); I was extremely fit and was devoted to the movement of seeing people love moving to music, being fit and being happy. I was part of the pioneering Personal Training Movement – (before there was even a title Personal Trainer!); I was recognized as an Expert; consulting with elite athletes and getting amazing results with clients from youngsters through to my oldest client who started with me when he was 93.

 

My long blonde hair at the time and Brazil Sul Fitness wear were with me nearly everywhere I went. My odd coloured shoe laces and loud laugh were a strong identifying factor to the many people I would see day in and day out through my sessions, training and general environment. I deeply loved and had great inspiration for seeing people achieve their fitness goals. However, if you looked closely at my face, I was chronically tired, in constant pain and more than likely always depleted of nutrition and fluid.

 

Probably more importantly, the chronic pain and extreme physical demands took its toll on my emotions. A car accident from years before and my unwillingness to surrender meant that I would always be pushing through back and neck pain. Which then would lead to foot, ankle, knee, hip, shoulder pain and headaches/migraines depending on the day and the workload. I would wake up, hobble around like an old lady until a hot shower and then be too busy to take notice of my body or emotions until collapse time….. sometimes 18-20 hours later. I trained and worked hard! Very hard!

 

Looking back, the discipline and physical extremes certainly helped me strengthen my character, but at the time, this was truly tough. I created this image of strong and invincible, but as the wise out there know – it is they who are most vulnerable. I did not really have any time throughout the day to really focus on myself. The weekends still involved work. Often at social events, I would be so tired and almost coma like in social skills after ensuring people were comfortable in their conversations. With constant highs of working with groups and then depleting all energy, my physical demands certainly were my highest priority. So needless to say relationships, friends and family suffered.

 

I was a chronic over-trainer and my mantras were, “It is better to burn out than fade away”….. “No Limits”…. “Never surrender”. An average day for me during this time would be 3 – 5 group fitness classes (sometimes more if other instructors were away), 2- 4 personal training sessions, 6-8 hours in my work role, marathon training/weight training/kick boxing 1-2 hours, 2- 4 hours study (studying my Masters Degree at the time) and, 3-5 hours sleep.

 

For some reason during this time I developed a fear of not waking up in time for my work. Some days it was a 4.30am start. This led to months of insomnia and one strategy of sleeping in my work clothes, just in case I slept in – I share this to emphasise just how out of balance I was.

 

Physically for a female, I was fit. I had a resting heart rate of 42bpm and low blood pressure. My weight would fluctuate, but my strength was constant. My range of motion was restricted through pain and injury. My mind was really strong – set me a challenge and my mind would get me through.

 

This is the era before fitness ‘boot camps’. This was a time when people still loved the idea of doing a one-arm pushup and believe it or not they actually loved pushups. Activity levels were higher and there was a genuine buzz in the gyms of a love for fitness. In my character as an instructor people liked me because I was human. I would laugh and joke, but when there was an outcome people would achieve (within their limits). Even though I would be inspiring the regulars and more advanced to push through, the new person had my smile and complete support to do what was safe and most importantly with appropriate and precise technique. (I mention this because today there seems to be a little too much yelling and not enough focus on technique and the adrenal response of the body. Let’s save that one for another day!)

 

So, on field after “yelling”, (in those days I would have called it inspiring) at the athletes I was training (I was participating – I was not doing physical exertion), I was struggling to get my heart rate under control and to regain my breath. I could not tell if I was in pain because I was always in pain. The sports medicine trainer we had began caring for me, initially talking about asthma, anxiety, then mentioned heart attack and then there was the realization, that maybe my lifestyle was taking a more of a toll than a benefit. After that episode, there were lots of medical tests and then the conclusion of – physical and emotional stress.

 

I took it easy for a couple of days. I mean that I only taught my classes (3-5 a day) and trained a little less (maybe weights and a bit of cardio), but still worked in a challenging environment, loving my clients and managing my study. I needed a way to train in a relaxing way, so Yoga was an obvious consideration.

 

And here it was – my first Yoga class – I hated it!!!! Let me remind you of my chronic pain and limited range of motion. A few examples; Child’s Pose led to violent foot cramps, which led to swearing and then tears. Sitting on the floor was more painful than me completing a 42km run. I knew the instructor, he was a cool guy, relaxed and very intelligent. Let me emphasise – excruciating pain!!! For all the Yogi’s out there, body wisdom was not even a concept in my physiology at that point. There are many explanations of my discomfort and fundamentally, this was a reflection of me and my expectations of thinking I should push and be able to go in and out of postures easily.

 

After a few weeks I was more balanced emotionally and it amazed me. After about 8 months of Yoga and very little gym work except my teaching group fitness, I went back into the gym and after such a long break I was able to complete 90kg squats and more importantly feel good the next day. At the time this was a massive achievement for me physically. It took many more years to really balance my emotions and adrenal response, that Yoga can provide.  

Yoga is an evolution of a journey.

 Today, my everyday involves yoga. It is not always a physical practice, but there is always an awareness of mindful living and how to maintain balance in each day. I have taught flowing Vinyasa classes, physically challenging classes, more spiritual and emotionally focused classes, but now I rest very easy in this gentle nurturing pathway of Yoga – which any body can participate in. 

 There is no doubt that when it came to the next chapters of meeting my love, falling pregnant with twins, being a mother of twins, business owner and all the awesome challenges that life brings Yoga has certainly held my hand.

If you have not discovered yet –  Yoga is so much more than physical poses. Yet, if it is just the physical rejuvenation you are after, then do not delay in finding a practice of Yoga that you are aligned to. The styles of Yoga and their delivery are diverse, so, continue to look and experience different styles, until you find the one that feels best for your needs. 

Throughout this blog, I look forward to sharing how the practice of Yoga whether it is formal or at home can help you improve your emotional and physical health, as well as your relationships and time management. Regardless of your limitations, learning how to tune into the innate healing intelligence of your body to create and consolidate health and vitality is a life skill that each person should have the gift of learning.

For further information on my session times or rejuvenation mentoring, feel welcome to make contact via phone 0249811664 or email mfree112@gmail.com.

 

 

 

 

Maree Frawley

MBA, B Comm, RYTA 500, (plus more), 21 years experience in fitness industry, 14 years as a business owner and a lifetime commitment to learning…..

Maree is a rejuvenation specialist who believes that every person can live an inspired life full of vitality with the balance of support and challenge.

 

As a Rejuvenation Specialist she utilises, high performance coaching, mind set techniques, superior implementation of biomechanics, yoga and over 21 years and diversity of expertise in the fitness & health industries.

 

As a mum of twins & business owner/manager she understands the necessity of having optimal health to thrive and live with inspired purpose. Maree is no stranger to pain and adversity and her experience with over thousands of clients will have you on your way to inspired vitality.

 

She provides simple pathways and outstanding nurturing support of how to find clarity amongst the confusion, how to decipher the best options for your personal vitality including nutrition, exercise & emotional management.

 

For information about Programs, Retreats, Mentoring, Meditation, Yoga Sessions & Key Note Presentations, feel welcome to email mfree112@gmail.com.

Port Stephens Chiropractic & Yoga 

112 Government Road Nelson Bay NSW 2315

02 49811664

 

 

Pelvic Floor – One of the Secret Weapons to Core Activation

 

Pelvic Floor – One of the Secret Weapons to Core Activation.

Written By: Maree Frawley

In 1997 I attended a conference in Melbourne, where some big names of Sports Conditioning were discussing the role of the Pelvic Floor when it comes to core activation (abdominal strengthening). This was the key theme at the conference and included a whole host of experts talking about the benefits, not only from a conditioning perspective, but also from rehabilitation with pelvic floor related concerns and conditions.

If you had been with me back then, my experience with abdominal work and back strengthening certainly all came from a perspective of Jane Fonda’s ‘feel the burn’ 🙂 ; (overloaded hip flexors; herniation patterns & digestive toxity). My education in the early days of my career in the fitness industry involved role modeling fellow fitness instructors and reading popular magazines to expand my knowledge. – You have to start somewhere!

I am sure you can understand how this seminar was mind expanding for me and certainly was a catalyst in moving into sports science knowledge. This all came to catapult my knowledge with sports conditioning and understanding biomechanics and I have never looked back or stopped learning. Somewhere early in that process due to the incredible mentors I had, I very soon become the mentor of hundreds of other instructors and thousands of clients.

I still have hilarious & outstanding memories listening to Anna Louise Bouvier (at the time the Wallabies Physiotherapist), talk about Pelvic Floor Exercises and the unforgettable activation techniques. Techniques, which I have now been teaching and expanding on for 18 years. Initially, when I learnt these techniques I was terrified with the responsibility that knowledge brings.

Here I was just a young instructor in a world caught in a time warp, teaching group fitness classes to groups varying in size from 20 through to 80. Part of the group fitness timetable included 15 minute crunch classes, which sometimes attracted numbers of 100+.

I was so nervous the day I decided to confront the beliefs and limited knowledge (which I was responsible for) of the people who attended my crunch classes. But, it was awesome! By the end of 15 minutes, participants had experienced a new concept of core activation. Over the following weeks there was massive expansion and enquiry as to how to utilize breathing and muscle activation and apply it to their high performance or social endeavours of sport, fitness and simply protecting their back.

I used my platform to help people understand how to engage their core muscles with simple muscle awareness and breathing. Then from there we added all the layers of ‘fancy’ exercises. We can talk about ‘the fancy’ some other time J.

Overtime, these basic activation techniques have became more mainstream. Yet, as close as they become to being common knowledge, there is still this undercurrent of amazingly poor exercise selection. I would often get asked questions such as, “how come other instructors don’t teach this?” I think that this potentially is a more macro problem of poor examples in the media and a gap between sports science and popular fitness knowledge and also pre-choreographed fitness programs. Also submitting to what groups and clients demand of their trainers is also a common pressure. For you as a devoted trainer, I encourage you to think about what is the outcome of this exercise and who is this exercise potentially going to harm or enhance?

In life, I am sure that you would agree, we can certainly over-complicate things. Pelvic Floor activation like any skill requires a bit of practice and an essential sense of humour, but each breath gets you closer to mastery. There will always be an element of confusion – without confusion, how does our brain expand? Like all mastery, there are specific steps within the technique. Start with the mantra of “do no harm & allow yourself to learn”, then refine and practice.

For me here in 2015, 21 years into my fitness and health career, these techniques have helped me overcome and manage significant back pain post a car accident and then chronic back pain due to ridiculous activity choices that I would make. I have been able to complete marathons, live a very active lifestyle, carry twins to 39 weeks gestation and today have an amazing quality of spinal health and energy. With athletes, I have seen their strength and stability improve exponentially, for women struggling with pelvic floor and looking at surgical options, find strength and a quality of life. For men post prostate, reclaim confidence and improve their recovery. For people in pain, find a sense of activation, release and stability.

This technique is important! It may not save your life, but it will certainly enhance the quality of your life.

The technique in written form:

(If you a visual or kinesthetic learner – video will be posted soon).

For the refined anatomy experts out there, relax into the simplicity and remember the necessity of a sense of humour:

Serious Step One: Understand the muscles.

3 parts – For the girls / ladies – pelvic floor:

The part you wee out of.

The part you could potentially have babies out of.

The part you pooh from (because ladies never break wind :-).

2 parts – For the boys / men – pelvic floor:

The part you wee out of and other stuff – here on referred to as the crown jewels

The part you pooh out of and break wind from 🙂

Step Two:

Remember if you do not get this straight away – it does not define you as a person 🙂

Step Three

For the boys / men

Breath in naturally and as you exhale over a count of 6

Lift your crown jewels up of a cold plate & have the sensation that you are stopping yourself from breaking wind

Important points:

Relax your face

Breath

Keep your bottom checks relaxed and maintain postural alignment

For the girls / ladies

Breath in naturally and as you exhale over a count of 6

Have a complete sensation of trying to stop yourself from weeing, lifting up through the middle part and stopping yourself from breaking wind.

Important points:

Relax your face

Breath

Keep your bottom checks relaxed and maintain postural alignment

Step Four:

Relax – breath – smile – read this technique again and understand there is more to it, but this is a great starting point.

Over the years, I have had many important discussions about ‘this bit’ should be relaxing and ‘that bit’ should be not engaging. Rather than think of right and wrong, move into a personal evolution of discovery and not only receive the obvious benefits of pelvic floor, but enjoy moving to a more balanced awareness of your body.

Have an evolution. There are many professionals and practitioners out there to support this technique

In Conclusion:

Relax – have fun – enjoy strengthening and activating your Pelvic Floor, your secret weapon to core strength!

image003

Maree Frawley

MBA, B Comm, RYTA 500, (plus more), 21 years experience in fitness industry, 14 years as a business owner and a lifetime commitment to learning…..

Maree is a rejuvenation specialist who believes that every person can live an inspired life full of vitality with the balance of support and challenge.

As a Rejuvenation Specialist she utilises, high performance coaching, mind set techniques, superior implementation of biomechanics, yoga and over 21 years and diversity of expertise in the fitness & health industries.

As a mum of twins & business owner/manager she understands the necessity of having optimal health to thrive and live with inspired purpose. Maree is no stranger to pain and adversity and her experience with over thousands of clients will have you on your way to inspired vitality.

She provides simple pathways and outstanding nurturing support of how to find clarity amongst the confusion, how to decipher the best options for your personal vitality including nutrition, exercise & emotional management.

For information about Programs, Retreats, Mentoring, Meditation, Yoga Sessions & Key Note Presentations, feel welcome to email mfree112@gmail.com.

Welcome to Port Stephens Chiropractic & Yoga

Chiropractor, Dr Kevin G. Schwager and Rejuvenation Mentor, Maree Frawley are inspired to provide health services, health solutions and support the ongoing education within Port Stephens Chiropractic & Yoga and the wider community with regaining and maintaining health and wellbeing. Located in Nelson Bay, we welcome new patients to begin and continue their journey towards health and vitality.

Our Purpose is to help you achieve the health and quality of life that you desire. To move from dis-ease in the body to harmony and health.

Our Mission at Port Stephens Chiropractic & Yoga is 3 inspired actions:

1. To serve you with empathy, understanding and commitment through the delivery of life enhancing Chiropractic services, yoga sessions, meditation sessions, retreat days, health products and health education.

2. To educate and empower all patients, clients and community with health solutions specific to their own unique needs.

3. To create community awareness of proactive health actions and solutions that can remove confusion and provide clarity for the unique needs of each individual.

Our Vision is to help and assist as many people as possible to live a healthy vibrant life that is balanced physically, emotionally and mentally.

Our Values:

Walk in your shoes.

Speak from The Heart, Fearlessly.

Play is Work – Work is Play.

Be The Change.

Act on Inspired Thoughts

Chiropractic Treatments

When it comes to Chiropractic care, there are many obvious benefits to use Chiropractic care for pain management for back pain, neck pain and injury. There are also so many benefits of Chiropractic with supporting overall wellness due to the focus on strengthening the bodies innate ability to heal itself via a strong nervous system.

When you are in the care of Dr Kevin, you will find a caring, educated and wise whole-body approach of Chiropractic that encompasses a mastered variety of techniques specific for your individual health needs. Over his 25 years as a practicing Chiropractor, Dr Kevin has performed more than a million health enhancing adjustments. Moving people from pain to vitality, rehabilitating sports injuries and acute injuries, helping women during their pregnancy, caring for new borns through to 99 year olds and individuals and all families.

Dr Kevin has a wealth of knowledge and has trained many Chiropractors. He is inspired to educate his patients with the best strategies for maintaining their health and quality of life. With a whole-body approach towards Chiropractic treatment, Dr Kevin includes exercise, nutrition, mindset, emotional management and health solutions to enhance your body’s innate healing ability.

Yoga, Meditation, Kids Yoga & Meditation and Retreat Days with Maree Frawley 

Maree is a rejuvenation specialist who believes that every person can live an inspired life full of vitality with the balance of support and challenge.

She provides simple pathways and outstanding nurturing support of how to find clarity amongst the confusion, how to decipher the best options for your personal vitality including nutrition, exercise & emotional management.

The Yoga sessions are small, nurturing and specific for the needs in the room. Combining core strength, mobility, activation, range of motion, stability, breathing & relaxation.

This is a gentle style of Yoga that allows for all levels and limitations to participate together to facilitate rejuvenation. 

Welcome to Port Stephens Chiropractic & Yoga’s world of support and education!

“Our best wishes for health and vitality are with you always! – please call us today so we can help move you to the great health that you deserve!”

Dr. Kevin & Maree

For further information, we welcome your call on 02 49811664