Jessica Galfas is a fascia fitness lover & marketing content creator for wellness entrepreneurs. She is also a living testament to the power of training at Balanced Bodies.
Her athletic endeavors began in Atlanta at age 4 when her parents promised her a present for every time she touched the soccer ball during the pre-K YMCA soccer season. She moved on to competitive swimming, basketball, and running as she grew up. When she moved to Austin in 2009 she began yoga and meditation.
She never suspected the physical activities that she loved would lead to tear-invoking pain and a lumbar disc herniation and protrusion. Jessica followed the traditional doctor prescribed pain killers/physical therapy regimen without any significant results. The back pain became manageable and she resigned herself to being another one of the millions of Americans who must manage chronic back pain. Then she lost range of motion in her shoulder.
Do you ever wake up with a painful knot in your back or shoulder? Jessica can relate. She used to wake up with that feeling every morning and sometimes in the middle of the night when she slept on her side.
Jessica’s shoulder pain increased daily as hours on the computer and traveling for work compounded the problem. It became harder and harder to get quality sleep. Her active lifestyle was a thing of the past. One day in the kitchen she reached up for a glass on the top shelf and was frozen in pain. It hurt so bad!
When an Iyengar Yoga Instructor noticed Jessica couldn’t do many of the movements in class, they referred Jessica to a massage therapist. Jessica went in for a massage but the bodyworker knew she could only help Jessica so much. She told Jessica she knew someone with a similar shoulder issue that was resolved by working with a guy named Mark. She wrote Mark Albrecht‘s name and number on the back of a card and handed it to Jessica.
Jessica was in such consistent pain that would have tried anything. She called Mark and began a corrective exercise program that allowed Jessica to heal herself. It was the beginning of her return to the active lifestyle she had been missing. The program included:
*Myofascial Stretching for tight muscle and fascial chains in her neck, shoulders, arms, and chest;
*Analytical Strength Training for weaker muscles that were hard to recruit;
*ELDOA positions to decoapt the joints in the shoulder, back, and hips;
*And more proprioception, awareness, and problem-solving techniques.
Jessica restored mobility in her shoulder by practicing this new set of tools on her own at home. She started sleeping better and didn’t have to think about hurting herself reaching up to a top shelf in the kitchen anymore.
“Learn by doing.”
-Dr. Guy Voyer
Jessica felt the exercises work as she practiced and her curiosity grew as she healed. How and why do these exercises work when nothing else did? Jessica took the ELDOA 1 and ELDOA 2 Certification Courses at Balanced Bodies in 2017 and 2018 to learn more about the inner-workings of the exercises.
As some question were answered, Jessica’s practice deepened and more questions followed. Her education continued in 2019 when Jessica earned her first Soma Training Certificate in Myofascial Stretching from Scott Herrera, the colleague who introduced Mark to ELDOA and the work of Dr. Guy Voyer in 2009. Jessica’s education expanded her knowledge of HOW she had succeeded in relieving back pain and restoring shoulder mobility.
The more she learned, the more Jessica wanted to spread the word about these hyper-effective exercises. She became inspired to share her exercise treatment regimen with everyone and started marketing Balanced Bodies along with teaching her methods to others. Jessica trains private clients and promotes people and events with honest copywriting, illustrative imagery, and eye-catching graphics.
Are you a wellness entrepreneur? Did you enjoy reading Jessica’s story? Find out how she can grow your business! Email Jessica or follow her on Facebook or Instagram.