Fitness and exercise is a large component to living a healthy lifestyle but can it help injured people in their recovery after an accident? We recently had the chance to speak with Greg Herzog, owner of Osteopathic Fitness in Ridgefield, Connecticut about the benefits of this approach to exercise and his experience assisting injured parties.
Please tell us a little about your professional background.
I was trained personally by John Philbin, Founder of the National Sports Performance Association (NSPA) certification course, the Washington Football Team strength coach, and the Washington Nationals strength coach. I have 3 decades of experience in the health and fitness industry in New York, Los Angeles, Ridgefield, Connecticut. I was a former world track and field athlete, sub four-minute miler ranked 30th in world, among US additions. I have trained celebrities and have been recognized as one of the Top 50 trainers in U.S. Some of my other accomplishments are designing an AI-based software program to predict and change behavior and performance and authoring the book “15 Minute Executive Stress Relief Program” which was published by Putnam, an imprint of Penguin Random House.
What is osteopathic fitness, its benefits, and common osteopathic problems?
Osteopathic fitness is structural functionality fitness training, encompassing mental, physical, emotional, and nutritional conditioning with the philosophy that you are only as strong as your weakest link. The benefit to this type of fitness is that it works to strengthen you all over- in different aspects of your life.
As a personal trainer, do you find that clients often have similar goals and does an individualized approach work best to meet those goals?
I think many people have similar goals initially (weight loss, getting in shape, etc.) Then, they may discover that, for example, back pain relief or rehab from a slip/trip and fall is more important so we will modify or adjust the training technique with that in mind.
How does your approach to exercise help people feel better after they have been injured in an accident?
When I work with a client who has been involved in an accident that has left them injured, my focus is on improving their overall strength and balance. The goal is to get them to operate at the highest level within their own capability. Since many accidents can be traumatic or take a mental toll, the osteopathic approach takes this into account and allows clients to work through their emotional pain while we are working on their physical issues.
What are the most common events that lead people to want to get osteopathic help?
When I work with people who have been involved in an accident, they have typically suffered injuries to their back, shoulders, knees, or hips. I have worked with so many clients who have had issues with these areas of the body to the point where the issues are now very minimal. Currently, I’m working with a woman who has serious back issues and was told by her doctor that she needs surgery. With this in mind, we focused on strengthening her body as a whole to prepare her for the upcoming surgery. The stronger she is going into it, the stronger she will be coming out of it.
In regard to the recovery process, what does it look like and how long does it take for most patients?
As a baseline, I have found with my practice that we can make great gains and do some substantial work in a 12-week period. Some people move faster than others depending on the injury and strength prior to being injured but I find that the 90-day guideline is a relatively strong benchmark in terms of when people will feel improvement from when they began.
Pro Tip: Accidents that involve significant injuries sometimes require the services of an injury attorney who can help in a variety of accident cases. Should you have any questions about your Connecticut accident case, please contact us.