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Rating: 
Summary: A life-changing book sure to be a classic in its field.
Review: "Walk Yourself Well" is one of the few books which actually changed my life. A ground-breaking approach to perfect and healthful posture and gait, Ms. Brourman's thorough, clear instructions helped me change my walk and posture to "elegant" and freed me from persistent knee and neck pain.This book is perfect for boomers who want to avoid those horrors of aging - the dowager's hump, the old folks' shuffle, and back, neck, shoulder, foot, and knee pain - and surgery. It's never too early, or too late, to enjoy the benefits of Miss Brourman's 25 years of experience as a physical therapist. I predict that "Walk Yourself Well" will become a classic in its field.
Rating: 
Summary: A signifigant breakthrough in my physical well being!
Review: A truly novel approach to physical problems, the author ties all nagging injuries and pain (neck, back, knee, etc.) to how one walks. By changing ones walking pattern, many chronic problems can dissappear! Reading this book was a signiffgant breakthrough in my own physical rehabilitation. After years of abusing myself playing rugby, I was a mess! The author opened my eyes to the world of correct movment patterns. This book is mainly to be used as a manual to set up your own rehabilition program. To do it correctly, you have to be prepared to do alot of work, and not be afraid of feeling awkward and challenging your assumptions. But it does work! After just reading the first part of the book, you will never be able to look at people walking the same way again.
Rating:
Summary: THIS IS A BRILLIANT BOOK
Review: And I am so happy I found it! I have been concerned about my feet and knees...Fascinating discussion of how your gait contributes to structural problems -- and eventually, pain -- and how to correct it, step by step. Lots of exercises to strengthen feet, arches, knees, etc. I love it and am sending copies to all my friends!
Rating:
Summary: Of benefit to everyone who takes a step.
Review: By following the principles in this book, I'm quite sure I have minimized the pain and discomfort of two leg injuries within a year, both requiring a cast - broken ankle requiring surgery and hairline knee fracture, as well as an arthritic hip, all on the same leg. Although I found the technical explanations tough going, I believe I distilled the essence of the instruction into a brand new, better way to walk. I walk my dog twice a day so I slowly incorporated one aspect at a time into changing my walk. There is no doubt that my leg muscles are stronger as a result of my redesigned walk. The book leaves no stone unturned with respect to its topic, so I am quite thankful that I discovered this A to Z instructional reference book.
Rating: 
Summary: I admit walking is good, but...
Review: I have low back pain and am looking at this book from that standpoint. Walking is good for the back but there are no studies showing that it is a good isolated treatment to get rid of your back pain. Besides, because walking does not offer progressive resistance to the back muscles, it cannot strengthen them. I found the popular book "The Multifidus Back Pain Solution" by New Harbinger the best treatment yet for my back pain. By all means keep walking, but don't use it as a sole treatment.
Rating:
Summary: walking properly is the beginning
Review: I have read other reviews about this book that complain of walking as an ineffecient exercise. This book is about learning to walk properly, about standing and walking in everyday life. It is not just another "exercise book". It is about proper alignment, proper footing, to be pain free because you learn to walk and stand correctly. It does include alignment corrections and strengthening exercises. It was absolutely eye opening! I have been dealing with overall "structural" pain for over 20 years. The minute I started my gait corrections (as recommended by the book) I felt relief.
Rating:
Summary: This book took me from a level 6 of chronic pain to ZERO
Review: I have spent the last five years in agony with a bad ankle. For some strange reason that I didn't understand at that time,(and neither did the two surgeons, one rhematologist, two podiatrists, four physical therapists and countless er docs with whom I consulted over the last thirty years), as I was doing my regular areobic work, I totally ruptured the peroneal longus tendon in my right foot. Two surgeries later I was left with a chronically swollen ankle. I had lost the tendon and the peroneal nerve. I had total ankle reconstruction and had my heel bone moved over so my ankle would be more stable. It wasn't. Fast forward three years. The pain had increased and moved up into my back and hips. It was horrible. I couldn't sleep. My foot doc said, you will have to learn to live with it. I had an MRI. I had bulging discs in L1-2, 2-3 and 3-4. The 2-3 was pressing on the spinal cord. I was losing feeling and strength in my hips and legs despite doing all the weight lifting and cardio I could handle, about 90 minutes a day x 6 days a week.
I researched why this would happen. I had a gradual onset of the back issue and couldn't remember a specific incidence of over doing or strain. The title of this book popped up in reply to an internet search I did on the L2-3 disk bulge, so I ordered it. I had gone to see an osteopath for help with the back issue and was in physical therapy for it. My pt noticed that during exercises my ankle bowed out. She said, "That's the problem." I went home to find this book had come. I read it in two days and immediately began to do the work recommended. I took the book to the osteopath who agreed with the pt. That was about two weeks ago. I am now totally pain free for the first time in five years, and without pain meds. Not only are my right ankle, leg, hips and back good, but my left shoulder which also hurt most of the time no longer hurts. It seems that due to my gait my ankles roll to the outside with every step. This resulted in atrophied ankle muscles, which meant more weakness. Finally my tendon blew. And then my spine. Thanks to the information this author presents in a humorous fashion I have finally accepted the cause for my problems and am working on relearning to walk. It isn't all that easy, but then it isn't impossible either, given the other choice. A number of members of my family have the same gait pattern. My father and older brother have both had horrific ankle problems, no one knew why. They both have had back surgery, and both have lost the L2-3 disc. Again, no one knew why. I have two sons in their twenties who walk like me and who have had ankle problems and back pain since their late teens. I am buying copies of this book for them. Using this book could be difficult for those without an open mind. The author's use of humour and stories of her patients helped me to recognize and accept my problem. I think we sometimes take life way too seriously, and that makes pain worse. I am so grateful for this book. I can't begin to say what value being pain free is for me. It is as though I have my life back! That said, I will admit that this information is not a panacea. I don't think it will cure asthma or aids. But, for structural problems and joint issues like mine, this information, and hard work, will be the answer. I am still in therapy and will be for a while. I expect that lasting results will not happen without sustained effort at relearning patterns of movement over a long period, probably the rest of my life. But it will be SO worth it!
Rating:
Summary: This book took me from a level 6 of chronic pain to ZERO
Review: I have spent the last five years in agony with a bad ankle. For some strange reason that I didn't understand at that time,(and neither did the two surgeons, one rhematologist, two podiatrists, four physical therapists and countless er docs with whom I consulted over the last thirty years), as I was doing my regular areobic work, I totally ruptured the peroneal longus tendon in my right foot. Two surgeries later I was left with a chronically swollen ankle. I had lost the tendon and the peroneal nerve. I had total ankle reconstruction and had my heel bone moved over so my ankle would be more stable. It wasn't. Fast forward three years. The pain had increased and moved up into my back and hips. It was horrible. I couldn't sleep. My foot doc said, you will have to learn to live with it. I had an MRI. I had bulging discs in L1-2, 2-3 and 3-4. The 2-3 was pressing on the spinal cord. I was losing feeling and strength in my hips and legs despite doing all the weight lifting and cardio I could handle, about 90 minutes a day x 6 days a week.
I researched why this would happen. I had a gradual onset of the back issue and couldn't remember a specific incidence of over doing or strain. The title of this book popped up in reply to an internet search I did on the L2-3 disk bulge, so I ordered it. I had gone to see an osteopath for help with the back issue and was in physical therapy for it. My pt noticed that during exercises my ankle bowed out. She said, "That's the problem." I went home to find this book had come. I read it in two days and immediately began to do the work recommended. I took the book to the osteopath who agreed with the pt. That was about two weeks ago. I am now totally pain free for the first time in five years, and without pain meds. Not only are my right ankle, leg, hips and back good, but my left shoulder which also hurt most of the time no longer hurts. It seems that due to my gait my ankles roll to the outside with every step. This resulted in atrophied ankle muscles, which meant more weakness. Finally my tendon blew. And then my spine. Thanks to the information this author presents in a humorous fashion I have finally accepted the cause for my problems and am working on relearning to walk. It isn't all that easy, but then it isn't impossible either, given the other choice. A number of members of my family have the same gait pattern. My father and older brother have both had horrific ankle problems, no one knew why. They both have had back surgery, and both have lost the L2-3 disc. Again, no one knew why. I have two sons in their twenties who walk like me and who have had ankle problems and back pain since their late teens. I am buying copies of this book for them. Using this book could be difficult for those without an open mind. The author's use of humour and stories of her patients helped me to recognize and accept my problem. I think we sometimes take life way too seriously, and that makes pain worse. I am so grateful for this book. I can't begin to say what value being pain free is for me. It is as though I have my life back! That said, I will admit that this information is not a panacea. I don't think it will cure asthma or aids. But, for structural problems and joint issues like mine, this information, and hard work, will be the answer. I am still in therapy and will be for a while. I expect that lasting results will not happen without sustained effort at relearning patterns of movement over a long period, probably the rest of my life. But it will be SO worth it!
Rating:
Summary: Of benefit to everyone who takes a step.
Review: it's to bad doctors can't tell you how to walk and stand?
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