Over the past eight years, alongside his TRX fitness training classes, Albie has used TRX extensively to restore mobility, strength and, crucially, confidence in many clients who came to him thinking that their active lives were a thing of the past, and are now TRX converts!
Peter Green (68) is one of Albie's more recent rehab clients. He had a bi-compartmental knee replacement in September 2018. Although he was following the exercises that the physiotherapist gave him, he wasn't really making any progress, his confidence was low and the pain was only just bearable: "I was having no problems straightening my leg but I was having a lot of pain and issues bending it. I don't like taking painkillers, so I was putting up with the pain. My consultant advised me that if I didn't get sufficient bend in the knee, then they would manipulate the leg for me which could be extremely painful."
Peter talked to Albie in October, and they discussed TRX as a way forward for the knee stiffness and pain.
At the beginning, he couldn't bend his knee to 90 degrees, and his leg was weak, but progress was fast and effective; after just three months of weekly one-hour TRX sessions, Peter was able to bend his knee to over 120 degrees and the pain had virtually gone in everyday use. "Albie did not tell me to give up doing the exercises from the physiotherapist but to do them in addition to the exercises that we did with TRX."
Albie describes how they approached the issue: "We started with simple supine routines with both feet in the TRX straps, gently mobilising the knees under non weight-bearing conditions, using hamstrings curls and hip adduction/abduction exercises. From there, we moved on to standing asymmetric squats using arm strength to assist the movement. Over the following weeks we progressed to unassisted full leg squats, gradually increasing the range of knee flexion. Monitoring the mobility and the level of pain at each session was vitally important to ensure we were not pushing the new knee too far too quickly - difficult to do as Peter was so keen to get back to full, pain-free flexion. We then introduced single leg balance lunges and pistol squats, together with side lunges to increase the overall strength of the leg muscles, which had become significantly weaker in both legs due to enforced rest."
Now Peter is feeling much stronger and more confident overall, having used TRX to work on his upper body, leg and core muscles at the same time. "TRX has made a huge difference to my life. Albie took it at my pace, understood my lack of confidence initially with the pain and weakness I was feeling in my knee and I didn't feel under pressure. He tailored the TRX exercises to my specific needs, aimed at rehabilitation and fitness".
"I see TRX now as helping me build my core strength and help me build up my other leg which also needs a knee replacement. Using the TRX has given me the confidence to go back to the gym and use a bike as well as a rowing machine and I swim regularly."
Peter is one of many TRX good news stories at Hands-on Health. The clinic's studio accommodates a maximum of three people in a TRX class, ensuring that everyone gets individual attention; many clients come specifically because they hate working out in a gym, and this gives them all the benefits without the pressure or self-consciousness. People aged from 18 to over 80 have enjoyed the surprising results TRX offers - some recovering from injury or surgery, others preparing for specific sporting endeavours and still more slotting it into their schedules to ensure they continue to be able to run after the bus, their children, or their grandchildren!
Check out Hands-on Health here for more TRX Classes and information.
