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I feel so lucky to have been treated by Marek Holowenko. I returned to England this summer, for a well needed rest from my dance career in New York. My knees, feet, and for the first time in my life, even my hips had been aching for months prior to my visit. I suffered with chronic back pain in my middle back, stiffness in my pelvis and tight shoulders. I thought that my
body was simply changing due to my age and that the stresses I'd placed
on it were too much for it to handle. To my great relief and surprise I
realized this was untrue after just 2 visits with Marek.
Marek listened to my complaints and assessed my standing posture and flexibility limitations with a fine tuned eye. He began to assess and work through my muscles using a soft tissue massage, checking in with questions
as he went along. Through this, he was able to pinpoint the main areas of tightness, and imbalance, and used techniques to stretch, roll out and lengthen the muscles. His intuitions were all spot on and his massage was unlike any other I have experienced. He stretched out my imbalanced shoulders, my extra tight gluteus medius which was causing lower back pain, and after the session, I had largely increased the mobility in my shoulder
joint and could feel my chest and back relax finally.
The session ended with some stretching and Pilates exercises that I was to practice daily in order to help maintain my posture and keep the imbalances from reoccurring and causing pain.
The next day I could see a visible difference. My shoulders were lower and more equal, I looked less tense, and my rib cage looked relaxed. When I walked I could feel my tail bone releasing down toward the ground and my walk felt more cushioned.
Now, a few months on and back in New York, after only 2 physical therapy sessions, 2 Pilates lessons, and an exercise program that I have stuck to, I
feel so much healthier. Every morning when I wake up, my shoulders have crept a little towards my ears, but following the exercise program, I can feel my pelvis, rib cage and shoulder blades slide into a more efficient position
that allows more mobility in my limbs and allows me to go through the day
in a completely different way. My room mates have noticed that my body "looks different" and have commented on how the stretching I am doing looks really good. What Marek has really done for me, is more than pain
relief; Marek helped me realize that joint ache, can not only be down to
age, but also to muscular stress, and this I have control of, and so I
mustn't give up. Though I am a dancer, and have good body awareness,
his expertise was absolutely invaluable, and provided not just physical help
but an education of how to help myself. I am so grateful to him, and
would recommend him to any athlete or dancer.
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