A True Stretching Success Story: From 5 ft. 10 in. to 5 ft. 8 in. to 5 ft. 10 in.
The story I am about to tell you has truly blown me away!
I could not wait to write about it and share it with everyone. Hopefully, this story will inspire you more than ever to stretch.
I have a married couple that has been coming to my studio twice a week for private Stretch Therapy sessions for the last 6 months. The wife loves it and cannot wait to get to every session. The husband... not so much. I think he really does like to stretch on the inside, but on the outside, he comes kicking and screaming—but still, he comes.
A little background about the reluctant husband…
He is in his 70s, and he is very fit. In fact, he works out for hours every day. He is extremely tight and has had to modify movements to reduce pain in his body. He wants to stay active.
He is a prime candidate for stretching!
A few days ago, as we were finishing up a session, out of the blue he asked me if I had a tape measure. I said that I did and asked him why he needed it.
He said that on his doctor visit last year, his height was measured as being 5 ft. 8 in. He was upset because he had been 5 ft. 10 in. his whole life. He wanted me to measure his height again to see if it had changed.
I ran to grab my measuring tape then stood him against the wall, barefoot, and marked the top of his head with a pencil line. I rolled out the tape to measure to the line and there it was—plain as day—70 inches, which is 5 ft. 10 in.
WHAT?!
In disbelief, he insisted that we do it again.
So I stood him against the wall again and made my pencil mark on top of his head, rolled out the tape and there it was still 70 inches. He was 5’10”. HOLY SMOKES!
His wife was standing right there with us and witnessed it. We were all speechless and astonished!
So, here’s the greatest part of the story…
You see, when I first started working with him, he was kyphotic.
Kyphosis is an excessive curvature in the upper spine which causes a humpback appearance and a distention of the head going forward.
He was not aware that he had it. It came upon him over time.
In all the stretching workshops I have attended, the instructors always warn us to look for kyphosis in our students. A true indicator of kyphosis is when a student lays down flat on the floor, their chin will rise and head will fall back due to the girth in their upper back. We are instructed to quickly put a towel, blanket, or block under their head when we see this happen in order to prevent strain in the neck and cervical spine.
In the beginning sessions with my client, I noticed this was happening. I would be ready to place a blanket under his head when he laid flat. He never wanted me to, but I did.
As time went on, he seemed to lay flatter on the floor and even his wife commented on how his chin was not lifting anymore. She said it seemed like a miracle that now his head was lying flat.
This was a first for me!
Never in a million years did I think that consistent stretching and lengthening of the body and spine would affect kyphosis in such a BIG way.
I am still astonished!
It is seriously life changing—here’s why:
Thanks to his consistent stretching over the last 6 months, his spine has lengthened, which not only allows him to stand taller, but he also gets all the health benefits of a long, strong, spine!
Here are some of those health benefits:
— His heart and lungs have more space in the chest cavity to function well because he is not bent forward, restricting their ability to pump blood and oxygen to the entire body.
— His ribcage is now lifted up and off of the belly where all his vital organs live. This frees them to have space and work more efficiently.
— When his spine is lengthened and posture is improved, spinal fluid can flow more freely to his brain.
As Dr. Roger Sperry, 1981 Nobel Prize recipient for brain research, said, “90% of the stimulation and nutrition to the brain is generated by the movement and lengthening of the spine.”
So stretching not only benefits the muscular system, but the organ system as well.
This story, for me, has made my journey as a Stretch Therapy coach even more worthwhile, encouraging me to continue helping as many people as I can.
I will never erase the pencil mark on the wall in my studio. It is a constant reminder to me that Stretch Therapy truly is life changing!
And, no matter how reluctant the student, even if they come to me kicking and screaming, I will continue on. I am grateful to be able to share my love, passion, and knowledge of stretching with so many—now more than ever.
That one little pencil mark has inspired me more than you could imagine. I hope it has inspired you to stretch, too!
