Intuflow Questions

[loadkeeg]

I am curious whether or not I should start to consider moving to the Intermediate level program. I have some questions.

I understand the rules concerning RPD, RPE, RPT. But I have barrages of questions regarding these metrics.

Does my breathing directly reflect my personal RPE for the movement? I find in most of the spinal movements I'm at best executing forced inhalation on exertion, and at worst, hold my breath or bracing. What is the best way to work on this? Should I back off the ROM to a point where breathing is passive? I would consider my exertion to be no greater than 5 on most movements otherwise.

I am also curious how to best measure my technique. Is breathing considered a part of this as well? (I suspect it is) I feel like on most drills, I'm following the finer points of execution fairly well. I would say on any given day, my technique is approaching a 7 or 8. Also, would a technique level of 10 also indicate full ROM for that movement?

As far as discomfort, I do not have a lot of discomfort, however I'm dealing with some things that most would say are "worth worrying about", for lack of better words. I have SI issues, but this is really starting to come along i feel. I also have an issue with my left shoulder, but the source is still not apparent to me, and I suspect it is an old injury to a disc in that area radiating outward. At any given time, I do not surpass an RPD of 4.

Today I am also sore in the lateral hip movements. I do these quite often (10-15x per day) as they are easy when I stand up from my desk. I'm sore in my hip area, and my activity has been very light lately, is it safe to say that I'm doing the movements too much and a training effect is occurring?

The way I understand things, soreness would indicate a training effect.

[loadkeeg]

Were my questions so stupid they didn't merit a response?

[Kathryn Woodall]

Loadkeeg,

Hi there. No, your questions are not stupid. Please, know that your questions are welcome.

The question of when to change level's arises fairly often. The answer I typically give my clients is to move to the next level anytime you have been following proper intuitive training and find yourself completely bored with the current movements. Keep in mind that you don't have to step all of the movements up to the next level - you can pick an area or two and try those at the next level while keeping everything else at the current one.

While it is ideal to be breathed by the movements, that skill takes time to develop. However, you want to be exhaling on exertion. If you feel that you need to brace or hold your breath, then you should back off on the movement until you can exhale through it. Until you can exhale through the movement, your effort is too high and you should not progress to the next level. I try to keep Intu-flow exertion to a max of rpe3-4 and most times more like 1-3. It is recovery and not training so exertion should be low.

All of the measurements of intuitive training are person evaluations. You are trying to do the best that you can to gain pain-free range of motion that is appropriate for your body. Coach Sonnon does a nice job of explaining his idea of what each area means in the introduction for the Intu-flow dvd. I watch that every now and then just to make sure I'm getting it right and recommend that my clients do too.

Soreness can indicate a large number of things. It might be that you are over-training the area or it could be that your body is re-integrating so that you are using and area more than previously, or it could be an infection or a sub-clinical process that has suddenly turned clinical -- it is impossible to know what soreness is caused from over the internet. But if you feel like it might be over-training, there is no harm in decreasing the amount of times you do that motion each day to see if the soreness resolves. Guessing why you hurt or trying to self-diagnose even what you think are old injuries can be a mistake. If things don't feel better quickly, get them checked out by your health care team.

I hope that answers your questions. :)

[loadkeeg]

I appreciate your effort.

[loadkeeg]

Based on your recommendations, I decided to move up. I feel like maybe I've been a bit too conservative, because after performing the Intermediate program I think it has a lot to offer me in terms of recovery.

However I did notice a much larger exertion required, and it felt like a workout in some movements. I think it'll be important to blend the movements with some of the beginner movements for good results. It was a blast though.

Thanks for your help Jeanne. I will change my signature, as I realized you called me by my login name, but my real name is Lucas Wagner.

Thank you.

*Edited* Thank you Kathryn. I had people confused.

[Cody Fielding]

Quick thought for you...

Don't think of this entirely as a linear progression. Try 'toggling' back and forth between different levels of the program.

C-

[loadkeeg]

I'm starting to see that certain areas of my mobility can benefit from both basic ranges, and more complicated ranges of motion.

Honestly, my hips have given me the most problems, but they seemed to really respond well to the circular motions...i think the nature of the si problem makes circular motion better (at least in my case) for treating it. I feel like i've made quite a significant leap in the past day, just from the hip circles and spine rotations.

I can certainly see myself skipping around levels as I find out what my body needs in terms of therapeutic movement. The new program might (**EDITED** not) always be appropriate either, due to the increased exertion level. I'm very happy with the results so far, and definitely glad I have this in my toolbox now.

I scouted out Z-Health quite a bit before I purchased Intuflow, and was really turned off by the "you have to see a Z-Health instructor" mindset. I really appreciate Intuflow's approach of small improvements daily make good habits over time. Few things in life worth having can be gotten over the course of a day or two.

[Kathryn Woodall]

Lucas,

Very nice to meet you, and you are certainly welcome. :)


I really appreciate Intu-Flow®'s approach of small improvements daily make good habits over time.
Daily practice is indeed the key and you are well on your way to success for realizing it. Good job! Intu-Flow® is nutrition for the joints and it is also an excellent feed-back system. It allows you to realize that an area is losing some mobility from a new activity (or inactivity) before it is deeply ingrained into the structure.

Cody is correct about it not being linear. There are days when I do all four levels for one or all areas in one session. You will learn to know what you body is asking you for as you continue to work with the program.

Keep up the great work and keep us posted as you progress!

:)