IT Band Syndrome  |  Hamstring  |  Shin Splints/Calf's
Fibromyalgia/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome   |  Knee & Ankle  |  Rotator Cuff/Shoulder
Herniated Disc/Neck or Lower Back  |  Plantar Fasciitis

IT Band Syndrome

Linda Wood
Running and Strength Training

I am a full time mom, homemaker, and I work for my husband in his small mail order business.

I became a runner in May of 2001, shortly before completing a 12 week program of strength and cardio training. After 5 -5k's and a couple of long training runs, I started having IT Band problems in my right knee. I had my condition confirmed by an orthopedic surgeon and some local physical therapists. The only advice that I was given was to do LOTS and LOTS of stretches and then some more stretches and to run on the flattest surfaces possible. This was also the advice of the running magazines and message boards that I visited.

I tried ALL the stretches and then some. I also tried a Patt Strap but that didn't help either. Early on, depression and frustration set in and then desperation. I posted a plea for help on a local running web site and that's when I found Stephe. Even though he was 300 miles away- round trip, I decided to give Stephe's therapy a try.

After two to three weeks of therapy, Stephe had me out pounding the pavement and kicking up some dirt again. I even trained enough to run my first 10K. And guess what!!!??? No IT Band pain. I'm running again and strength training again, and loving every minute of it. Stephe Worley solved my IT Band problem. He treated the problem and not just the symptoms, as all the others had done. Stephe educated me concerning my condition and provided the best and quickest therapy I could have ever imagined.

Thanks Stephe. You're a God-send.

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Debbie Strobel
Marathoner

I've been a runner for about the last 20 or more years. The past 3 or 4 years I have been hampered by a nagging hamstring pain, which finally forced me to stop running in early 2000 until I could get some relief.

Several years ago I was a fitness runner, running 5 to 6 miles a day, 5 days a week, at an eight to eight and a half minute mile pace, running simply to keep my weight down.  At that time I had no desire to participate in road races even if the organizers called them "Fun Runs".  On one particular noontime run I stepped in a hole in the dirt road upon which I was running and severely twisted my right ankle.  This was a real problem as I was at least two and a half miles from where I had started my run.  After a few minutes of sitting and rubbing my ankle, I was able to limp back.  It took a week or so for the ankle to feel well enough for me to start running again.  When I did, I noticed that my right knee began to hurt - I had never before had any knee pain associated with running, but there it was and it really concerned me.  Because running had become a way of life for me, something I really wanted to do, I experimented with various apparatus and routines that would allow me to continue to run with at least tolerable pain in the knee.  I tried several types of neoprene braces with some success but for the most part I discovered that if I took no more than one day off from running at a time and ran no slower than an 8-minute mile pace, the knee didn't bother me much.  I finally settled on a knee strap and the training schedule mentioned above which worked fairly well. 
After a couple of years several guys joined me in my daily runs and things got a little more competitive.  We began entering local road races and that lead to more serious daily training.  I found that speed work didn't bother my knee but I started to have trouble with my hamstrings.  If I really pushed the workout one or the other hamstring would get sore and occasionally, at least 2-3 times per year, I would pull one or the other hamstring.  A pulled hamstring usually meant a few days off from running, some hot/cold therapy, and occasionally some message therapy before I would slowly get back into my running routine.  For at least a week after I began running again, my right knee would bother me.  Almost like clockwork I could count on at least one pulled hamstring in the Spring and at least one pull in the Fall of each year as those were the times that I did most of my speed work. 
All of above background brings me to the 2001 running season.  I registered for the 2001 Arkansas Grand Prix Series and was competing relatively well in my age group.  The 2001 Series consisted of 19 races ranging from a short 2mile race to a long marathon, all races occurring between the months of February and November (an average of 2 races per month).  If one included local races (non-Grand Prix races) there would be very little time between races in which to do some serious training.  I ended up trying to work in speed work a day or so after a race in order to allow my legs to recover before the next race.  All went well until April.  Between the Grand Prix races and a few local races I attempted to race 6 consecutive weekends.  During the sixth weekend I pulled my left hamstring about one mile into a 5K race and had to drop out.  I was not able to race again until the end of June but I slowly regained my level of fitness.  Again, all went well through the summer and into the fall until the month of October.  As before, there were races on several consecutive weekends and I overdid the speed work in-between.  This time the right hamstring pulled at the 2 1/2-mile mark of a local 5K in which I was running a sub-six minute mile pace and had visions of winning.  I still hobbled to the finish line in 19:32 and finished first in my age group but out of the top three, and my Grand Prix season was over with 2 races left in the series.  Luckily I had already run the minimum of 10 races (5 championship and 5 non-championship) and scored enough points to be awarded second place in the Grand Masters category.
I am part of a 5-member corporate relay team that participates annually in the Dallas White Rock Marathon Relays.  By the time I pulled the hamstring in October, the team had already paid entry fees, reserved hotel rooms, and purchased non-refundable airline tickets for the early December race.  The team was committed and I had to get my hamstring in shape to run the race.  It was about that time that I noticed an advertisement for the Gold Medalist Sports Therapy Clinic, (now Athletes In Pain Sports Therapy Clinic) on the ArkansasRunner.com internet web page.  I clicked on the link and read the information provided about the therapist and read some of the testimonials from previous patients, most of whom were runners, and some of whom I had seen at the Grand Prix races.  I emailed Stephe Worley of Gold Medalist my problem and asked if he thought that he could help me get the hamstring ready for the marathon relay in early December.  In his reply, Stephe indicated that I probably could get the hamstring ready for Dallas but a better goal might be to try and find the cause of the hamstring pulls.  Treating the cause rather than the actual pull should prevent a reoccurrence. 
Unfortunately Stephe did not have an open appointment for more than a week.  He suggested that I rest the hamstring until then.  To make a long story shorter, Stephe was able to find a problem that was related to the ankle/knee injury I had experienced previously.  I had not sought professional therapy for the injuries back then and the healing process had resulted in a misalignment of my right hip and knee leading to fatigue when I over trained and eventually the pulls.  The occasional pulls in the left hamstring could have been caused by overcompensation.  At any rate, the therapy and advice I received at Gold Medalist had my leg in pretty good shape before the Dallas race. 
My part of the marathon relay was the finishing 10K.  I took a lot of time warming up prior to the anticipated time that my teammate would arrive at the exchange point but as luck would have it, the team was running a bit behind schedule and I cooled off a bit before I got the handoff.  I probably started out a bit fast and after about a half mile into my run, I felt a sudden tightness in the right hamstring.  I decided to slow my pace just a bit and continue.  The strategy seemed to work and all went well until the four-mile point at which time I again felt a twinge in the right hamstring.  As I had picked the pace up prior to the four-mile point, I again slowed a bit and continued on.  As I neared the finish line and could see the time clock I realized that I had to get the lead out if the team was to accomplish its goal of bettering our previous best time and I was going to break 40 minutes for the 10K.  I did just that and not only did our team set a new PR (by 3 seconds) but I set a personal 10K PR for 2001 of 39:53.  Not only did we set a new team PR but also in doing so we won the 5-person corporate division for the forth-consecutive year.  
I continued the corrective therapy at Gold Medalist until the start of the 2002 Grand Prix Series.  I have been able to train and race thus far without any hint of hamstring problems and so far, all of my race times this year have been better than they were last year.  Thanks to Stephe Worley and Gold Medalist Sports Therapy Clinic, I am looking forward to a great, pain-free (hamstring) running season this year and for years to come.  However, should I develop another running-associated injury, I will not hesitate to give Stephe a call to seek his assistance! 
By the way, early on Stephe indicated that the therapy would allow me to run without using the knee strap on my right knee.  I was reluctant to give the strap up but I quit using it that very day and have not used it since.  Loosing the strap has made my wife happy, as I no longer have a white "non-tanned" line around my right knee that caused people to stare when I wore shorts in public.
I sincerely recommend Stephe Worley and the Gold Medalist Sports Therapy for your sports therapy needs. 
William M. Witt 

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Sue Houston
Runner

I am a business analyst with ALLTEL Information Services. I began running in 2000 because I wanted to start combining regular cardiovascular workouts with my weight training. Running was something I always wanted to do, so I found a training plan for beginning runners and hit the track.

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Randy Oates
Tri-athlete

Following my first triathlon of the season in June I injured my right calf and foot in a 2 mile race and could barely walk. The owner of a local running shoe store suggested I go see Stephe. He made me quit running or biking for several weeks and started working on my injury twice a week. A month later I was still nursing the injury but by following his advice was able to compete in Triathlons. He has made a world of difference with therapy in my foot and leg and helped me with diet and training. I am confident that as a result of his therapy and changes in my training I am going to be more competitive than ever. Already, this summer is turning out to be my best tri-season ever and I am not at full speed yet!

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Thanks for helping to make my "dreams" come true! You've really helped me reach my goals!

Joyce P. Faulkner
Little Rock, Arkansas

When I am not traveling with my husband I play tennis, enjoy music and art, cavort with my eight grandchildren and do volunteer work. I have no time for pain and that is where Stephe Worley comes in.  For at least 15 years I had pain in my right hip and later on pain in my left knee problem.  I was diagnosed and treated by three different orthopedic physicians for bursitis, osteo-arthritis, and pulled muscles during this time.  I was given prescriptions for all and every new anti-inflammatory drug.  Finally, I went to see Stephe.  My family and I call him "the miracle worker",  He has changed my whole life with very short-term therapy treatments. I DO NOT  have any pain and I have taken up tennis once more and I enjoy a regular active life.
THANKS, STEPHE
 

Garth shattered his left ankle during one of his track meets and after several surgeries, began to feel the after effects of the scar tissue setting up around his ankle.  To say the least his training, not to mention just his day to day duties of walking was drastically effected.  Through the therapy that was preformed, Garth is now not only competing again, but going for what he hopes to be his best year ever.  By the way, he cleared 17' 10" several weeks ago.
 

Pam is Garths wife and they have one little boy, Josh.  She has had some severe knee problem that kept her from training and altered somewhat of her life style.  Finding that Pam had an opposite hip problem causing the aggravation to her knee, we were able to treat and release Pam to go back to what she loves most, basically pain free and much stronger. 

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Elena Moerman
Little Rock,  Arkansas

In January of 2002 my husband, unfortunately, took a tumble down our front steps and injured his left arm.  His physician recommended the services of Stephe Worley.  Please with the outcome of his therapy my husband urged me to see Stephe to see if he could help with a problem that I have had for many years with my left shoulder and arm.  Having been to conventional physical therapy many times, I was very reluctant to subject myself to something that I thought would be of no benefit.  I had just made up my mind that I would have to live with the pain, the reduction in motion, the inability to do simple things like pick up a cup of coffee or reach into the cupboards for dishes.  I had resigned myself to the fact that I would never sleep lying down again; that I would always have to sleep in a semi-sitting position and never get a full night's sleep.
To please my husband, I decided to give Stephe a chance to fix my shoulder.  He said that I had a frozen shoulder with built up scar tissue.  I was not very optimistic but decided to undergo therapy and was extremely surprised to find that he has been able to help me a great deal.  I cannot say that the pain is all gone but I am no longer in constant pain.  I am able to sleep more soundly, pick up heavy objects with my left arm, reach to levels higher than my chest and even scratch my back.  More importantly, my gardening activities have, once again, resumed.
Elena Moerman

I have seen Stephe for everything from my neck, to my  back,    to   my ribs, to my hip.  Stephe is definitely good at what he does!  In my line of work, I am constantly stressing my body and pushing it to the limit.  Whenever I push a little beyond that limit, I can definitely turn to Stephe to help put the pieces back together.

Matt Hamilton
Professional Mixed Martial Arts Fighter