Tuesday, May 24, 2011

What the heck is ELDOA?

Do you want the simple answer or the complex one?

ELDOA is an acronym in French for Etirements Longitudinaux avex Decoaptation Osteo-Articulaire.

The English translations is LOADS...Longitudinal Osteo Articular Decoaptation Stretches.

(Now you are asking which answer is the simple one and which the complex, right?!)

We know that the human spine is a complicated and vital structure. Compression and articular blocks can cause pain, arthrosis, neurological pinching, disc compression and pathology, and articular lesions. ELDOA is a highly effective solution to these ailments.

An ELDOA technique puts the myofascial chains into tension around the point of a primary lesion, thus making the lesion point the center of decoaptive (separating) forces. This myofascial tension solicits a postural normalization of a particular joint, resulting in many benefits.

ELDOAs consist of very precise postures which target a specific articulation, providing relief from pain and recuperative balance. The advantage of learning these exercises is that they take only a minute each day to perform, while reducing pain and improving posture.

When I first became acquainted with ELDOA, I had pain radiating from my left glute down the outside of my left leg all the way to my ankle. I had "shrunk" from 5'6" to a little under 5'51/2". I had experienced what I called sciatic pain that actually kept me bed-ridden for several days. The pain was so excruciating that I could barely get into or out of bed and sitting down, even to go to the bathroom, was an ordeal.

I had never heard of ELDOA or of its creator, Guy Voyer, D.O., but I started doing L5/S1 (which creates space between the 5th lumbar disc and the 1st. sacral disc. I did this religiously, every night before bed, desperate for relief.

And I got it!

In just a few months, the pain completely disappeared. I am once again 5'6" and aspiring to become 5'8" (why not?). I have had the supreme good fortune to partner with Scott Herrera, who introduced me to ELDOA in the gym four and one half years ago. Through Scott, who is enrolled in Voyer's doctorial program, I met Guy and become a student of his work on ELDOA and Myo-fascial Stretching.

Legacy Performance and Integrated Wellness Center is doing ground-breaking work, integrating the ELDOA and MFS into performance and fitness programs with all our clients. It has helped our clients deal with pain and injury issues. Our semi-private training classes enable clients to work on their programs several times during the week as they continue to book one-on-one training sessions with us. The ELDOA program at Legacy is an indispensable component of our overall Wellness and Performance Programs.

It works.

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