Tale of the aspiring soccer player

A few years back I was coaching a boys select soccer team. For three years I had a many different boys that I coached, but none quite like Kevin. He played for me for all three years, voted by the team as Captain for all three, but at the end of the first year he was having some very difficult problems in his right leg, specifically his right quadriceps. Back then, before practicing Shiatsu, I tried to massage out his problems. I'd work and work and work on his leg and nothing would result in it. He saw a physical therapist, a multitude of doctors, and still nothing. All they kept telling him was that he needed to stretch better. He was frustrated with this because before every game I had him stretch for 30 to 45 minutes, and it would only feel ok for the first few minutes as he ran and the pain would always come back. For all three years he dealt with this and it got so bad that he couldn't run for more than a few seconds. I had to teach him how to play goal just so he could be on the team. He dealt with this problem for over a third of his young athletic life. This problem never went away, but only started to hurt when he ran.

And then I was offered the job at "The Spa" at The Pro Sports Club and moved up north. It was sad to leave these boys behind, something that was a difficult decision to make, but had to for my family. After a few months of working, the opportunity to learn Shiatsu presented itself and I was lucky enough to be selected. I, again, was amazed with what was taught to me and knew that it would be many years and many practice sessions before I could get to the level of my Master, but through his training I actually had an amazing epiphany... I finally understood why Kevin's leg was hurting and what the TRUE problem was. For the longest time, we focused his stretching and massage on his right leg, which seemed obvious, that was where the pain was. But through the training of Shiatsu, I've come to understand that the body is one massive set of plumbing, and in most cases, when there is pain or tension on one leg, the "Problem" is actually on the other side. The client will feel the symptoms on the leg that hurts, but the real issue needs to be addressed on the other leg. Bad circulation on one side will literally redirect more fluid to the other side, causing the muscles to be extremely tight and have horrible elasticity. And since this was only happening while he ran, his heart was pumping more and more blood during the cardiovascular activity, which really was causing a lot of tension in the leg that was literally being overfilled with his own fluid, but NOT inflammation, which many doctors will think could be a problem.

So, because I was still learning, I asked Kevin's parents if I could come pick him up and take him up to one of my training sessions, it was a 1 1/2 hour drive and on a Monday morning, and told them I was taking Kevin to see my Shiatsu Master. They didn't fully know what was going on or what to believe with this, but at the same time they were frustrated because Kevin was not getting better with anything and they were almost out of options... surgery was the absolute last resort.

So as Kevin was in the car with me, heading up to my training with my Master, I explained to him what was actually wrong with his leg and how it was going to be fixed. I explained to him that my Shiatsu Master would hit spots on his body that was going to be quite painful, but that the pain would subside within a few seconds and that he just needed to trust him. Kevin, being one of the coolest young men I have ever had the privilege of knowing, trusted me and as such was 100% willing to trust Mike Shimizu, my Shiatsu Master.

During the session, Mike hit some areas on Kevin that I didn't think would be an area of focus, but at the same time I was right in the fact that Kevin's true issues were all on his other leg. After a 30 minute full body treatment he was done and looked like he was intoxicated. The endorphins running through his body were pretty intense and he felt good. After the training, I took Kevin home, but stopping by a soccer field to test his leg out. He ran a bit and said it felt MUCH better. He was a bit concerned that it wouldn't last though. At this time he was in the middle of his High School Freshman soccer season, so he'd have all the opportunity to fully test his leg out. And now, to this day, many days of running, kicking, and playing soccer games, Kevin is still without pain in his leg. I actually had to write a letter to his high school coaches explaining his situation, because they kept putting him in goal because they didn't want him to "re-injure" his leg. I explained that his leg was never injured and it was a pure circulatory scenario. Thankfully I knew the Varsity Coach and her staff personally, so she believed me. He had some very big games and finally, after multiple frustrating years, was able to play the game in which he loves so dearly.

He has asked, "What happens if it comes back?" My simple reply was, "You know why it was there, and now you know how to get rid of it IF it comes back." I also explained that if he was to start feeling some problems, it would most likely be gradual, and to just give me a call. But most importantly, Kevin was given PREVENTATIVE measures to keep his leg from getting like that ever again.

This story is somewhat of a legend at Pro Sports Club. Many of the Shiatsu Practitioners use this story when talking to their clients about the amazing benefits of Sennin-So Shiatsu. The major difference between Kevin, 16, and the average client at Pro Sports Club, age 28-48, is that the younger you are, the faster your body can fix itself and the faster the circulation re-balances itself. It took 1 treatment to rid Kevin of 6 years of ongoing pain in his right leg that never let up unless he just didn't run. Many of the clients I have seen have had to see me multiple times to get their circulation moving properly. If you were to get this treatment 1-4 times, once per week, until the circulation is moving properly, you'd have a body that was in a state that it hadn't been in for years, and then would only need to be seen on a preventative measure. You'd also notice that each week you received this treatment, the pain would be much much less then the previous week.

Our society looks for the quick fix, but it doesn't exist. This is the fasted most effective treatment I have ever seen. But, depending on your issues, age, overall health, and general mindset, it might take multiple treatments to bring your body's circulation back to normal. Don't give up, your body will love you forever.