Basildon gymnast goes gold!

Basildon mayor David Harrison called for a civic reception to be held for Basildon gymnast Max Whitlock – who won an Olympic gold medal in the Men’s Pommel Horse tournament – when he returned to Basildon from Rio de Janeiro. The victory came only hours after Whitlock secured a gold medal for Men’s Floor Exercises and days after he secured a bronze medal in the Men’s Individual All-Around competition. The 23-year-old athlete trained with the South Essex Gymnastics Club at the Basildon Sporting Village, and is an inspiration to Essex gymnasts who dream of one day becoming Olympic champions.

Although Max Whitlock isn’t one of my clients, I do spend some of my time working with both professional and amateur athletes in my role as an osteopath and holistic healer. In my free time, like a lot of people, I like to keep fit – and you don’t have to be an Olympic athlete to enjoy sport and keeping your body in good shape. For the majority of us, just being able to enjoy sport for our own satisfaction is good enough – we don’t need to go pro or to win medals to benefit from the physical and psychological benefits of exercise. Yet we can be beset – just like top athletes – with the aches and pains of stress on our body. We too can suffer from physical discomfort that makes getting up early for that run, cycle or other training harder than it may need to be.
There are many simple ways that you can avoid suffering from those niggling pains, and even stop more serious injuries from forming, if you take 5 simple steps.

Whether you are going for Gold – or aiming to get to the bus in time without pulling a muscle from the sudden exertion – taking care of your body should be a number one priority for everyone.

Graeme Stroud ND, MRN, DO, ACOH is an osteopath, naturopath, certified zen body therapist and a qualified healer.