I want to share something really personal with all of you today. I’m going to share a side of me that many of you don’t know and would not expect.

I sometimes feel like I’m 98½ years old. I have a blown disc around L4-L5. Fragments kind of came out, and I have been trying to heal it on my own.

The thing about trying to heal something like this on your own, is that you have good days and bad days. Lately, I’ve had a few bad days in a row where my back totally tightened up on me.

I don’t know how it happened. I literally was just walking (like the little guy in the movie Up), and it just locked up. I crunched over, slow as can be, in pain.

I’ve tried massage, acupuncture, hot baths, and ice pads. Nothing worked.

The other night I had to go out when my back was out, and I decided to get some Indian food. I walked into the restaurant really slowly, and everyone in the restaurant was watching me walk completely hunched over.

Of course I started thinking to myself, “Man I don’t want anybody seeing me like this.” I started getting in my head.

Does this sound familiar to any of you — getting inside your head? As this was happening to me and I was having those thoughts about not wanting people to see me like that, it made me think about so many of my clients.

Back Pain Sucks

I always preach to my clients that they need to stop worrying about what other people think. It’s not important. I tell them to love yourself, respect yourself, walk with pride and talk people with pride.

So I walked right into the restaurant hunched over like the little guy from Up, and got my food — all the while letting people look at me. Then I walked into Walgreen’s and did the same thing. I didn’t care what people thought.

What I realized is a very powerful feeling, because that experience allowed me to get deeper inside some of you and what you experience. That really helps me coach you even better and help you even more.

My back going out made me realize something else too. It has made me appreciate the little things in life — things like walking, being able to sneeze without hurting and, most importantly, being able to get up when I’m sitting on the toilet. It’s the small things in life that you take for granted, until your back goes out and you really, really learn to appreciate them!