The other night I was having dinner with my sisters, one of which I go to the gym with 3 times a week. As we got to talking about the gym we shared how amazing the coaches are, how much fun we have, and the “joys” of getting up early in the morning. Then my sister goes, “oh, but it’s really great because Jessica has an NSV, non-scale victory. We started doing the evening classes because the row hurt her back. Now she has little to no back pain and we are back to doing the morning classes with the row.”

This moment shared with them was great because to have others around me recognize the hard work that I’ve been putting into the gym, and seeing the results that aren’t visible to the eye is such a reward. I thought I was at a point with my body that I would have to live with back pain for the rest of time. I was working out via karate, but the pain kept getting worse and there would be days where I couldn’t get off of the couch.

I spent 1.5 years trying to heal my back through stretching, resting, and chiropractic visits. Nothing was working. I would gauge my ability to go back to karate based on my walks, and although the pain got manageable, things were not 100%. At the point things got manageable I thought I’d try again, but within a week the excruciating pain returned.

When my friend kept suggesting Orange Theory I hesitated, but decided to give it a try. 11 months in now, I can row, run, and walk multiple miles with zero, or close to zero, pain. I know that there is still a lot of improvement I need to do to make sure the pain stays at bay, or doesn’t return, but seeing the results of my hard work and having those close to me see the results as well gives me hope.

Our bodies are strong and capable of change. We just have to find the thing that works best for them. One day I might be able to return to karate, but for now I will stick to the place, the method of movement, that improves my health versus harms it.

If you are struggling with something in life right now and haven’t found the thing that works to fix it, keep going. Eventually you will run into the thing that will help. Others may not understand why you walk away, or why you choose the path you choose, but it only needs to make sense to you.