Health Always Comes First
I always have my sights firmly fixed on the future of my health. I ram regularly piecing together information that will provide me with the best insight into my future health which I can then use to implement strategies now to prevent poor health outcomes, particularly as I age. Likewise, with a constant eye to the future health of my clients I am better able to help them to implement strategies that will do the same for them. Note that my primary aim is HEALTH and not fitness or physique or weight loss because I know from experience that if you take care of your HEALTH then the other elements are much easier to look after.
At the end of last year I was required to undergo a double hernia repair. It often surprises many of my clients when their trainer has a health issue but in my mind it is simply a fact of life that there are many health challenges that we will all have to go through. I have been fortunate enough to go through many health challenges early in my life that have given me greater clarity and experience when it comes to servicing the health of others. You may be surprised to know that at only the age of 32 this hernia repair was my 5th surgery under general anaesthesia.
While it would be easy to complain about some of the ‘luck’ that I have had when it comes to illness and injury I have learnt that the experiences that I have had deliver far more benefits than it may seem. Without my experiences, I would be far less capable of guiding clients through their various health challenges. Knowledge is one thing but experience is quite another. For the record I have had 3 surgeries related to ankle injuries: haematoma removal, artery repair and bone spur removal. I have also had a heart surgery. This was what is called an ablation surgery where gamma radiation is used to burn a congenital defect in the heart which in my case was causing an abnormal heart rhythm called Supra-Ventricular Tachycardia. So it was with little hesitation and quite a deal of confidence that I decided to have the double hernia repair once my specialist recommended it.
I had no concerns over general anaesthesia, the surgery or the rehabilitation. My concerns lay elsewhere. My main concerns and the questions I directed at the doctor were specifically targeted at the area that is most important to me – my future health and how to prevent poor outcomes. I wanted to know things like:
- What caused the hernia?
- How could I have prevented it?
- Will it recur?
- What do I need to change?
These were the important factors for me and it reflects the message that is most important for my clients to understand: everyone will have health challenges. What is most important is our ability to assess the problem and prevent it, treat it, rehabilitate it. It is your own attitude to your health that will make the biggest difference over the long term. Being willing to make small changes can lead to big outcomes. There is a multiplier effect over time. Of course, there will always be elements of your health that are unforeseen or due to factors that you cannot adjust but if you are serious about your health your goal should be to “control the controllables”.
My recovery is going well and I am enjoying being back at work and catching up with everyone. For the record, it turns out that there was little I could do in the doctor’s opinion to prevent my hernia. Whilst that surprised me, I will still be implementing some of my own strategies in the future to help prevent it recurring. In the meantime, I am working hard on my rehab and looking forward to returning to exercise at the 6 week mark. I’m also excited to share an even greater level of experience with my clients in the New Year.
Welcome back everyone!