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Muscular Retraining for Pain-Free Living: A practical approach to eliminating chronic back pain, tendonitis, neck and shoulder tension, and repetitive stress
Here's an innovative and practical approach to eliminating chronic muscle pain, written by a popular occupational therapist with thirty years of experience freeing people from the discomfort of tendonitis, lower back pain, and neck and shoulder tension. These types of chronic pain can be caused by a number of factors, including old injuries, habitual movement patterns, problems with body alignment, psychological causes, and inability to sense your own body movements accurately. Muscular Retraining for Pain-Free Living clearly and concisely explains the causes of persistent muscle pain and offers a therapeutic exercise program to address these problems and end pain.
This book explains the basic principles behind Williamson Muscular Retraining, a pain-relief discipline, in a way that is practical and easy to understand. The problems of poor posture, muscle tension, and stress-caused pain are corrected by seeing them through the lens of kinesthetic awareness. Normal kinesthetic awareness is lacking in much of the population and typically overlooked by health care practitioners. Muscular Retraining for Pain-Free Living presents case examples of how people have used kinesthetic awareness and exercises to change how they think of their bodies and to end pain.
This book explains the basic principles behind Williamson Muscular Retraining, a pain-relief discipline, in a way that is practical and easy to understand. The problems of poor posture, muscle tension, and stress-caused pain are corrected by seeing them through the lens of kinesthetic awareness. Normal kinesthetic awareness is lacking in much of the population and typically overlooked by health care practitioners. Muscular Retraining for Pain-Free Living presents case examples of how people have used kinesthetic awareness and exercises to change how they think of their bodies and to end pain.
198 pages, Paperback
First published August 14, 2007
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82 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
August 28, 2008
A transformative book!
I learned more about the workings of our muscle system from 10 pages of this book than all my school days combined. An amazingly lucid book about muscle pain and what causes some of us to get stuck in a pattern. Headaches, neck aches, back aches...
The basic premise is this: Muscle pain can be caused by two things.
1. Injury. Know how to treat and heal and injury.
2. Patterning, or reflexive muscular tightness. This can be caused by an accident or injury, but often long after the injury is healed, or should be healed, the pain lingers on.
I have been struggling with a shoulder injury (oops from shoulder PAIN) for over a year now. I know exactly how and when it started. I have seen Chiropractors, AMA docs, massage therapists all in an attempt to alleviate the pain. But for a year, I have had limited success.
Cause: I began playing competitive tennis a year ago, after a number of years off.
Pain: After playing a couple of sets I retire and recline on ice packs for 45 minutes or so. Otherwise, I will be unable to sleep during the night from the pain and night sweats associated with the pain.
Solution: I am still working on this one. But I can say, that last week, I had little or no disorienting pain. Several things going for me. I have not played tennis for 3 weeks. I am seeing a chiropractor/accupunturist/sports injury specialist who is working me pretty hard. And I have been doing some of the exercises in this book.
More results later. All I can say, is I had to resist buying 5 copies of this book and passing them out. It's a users manual for our muscle/nervous system. - JMac
I learned more about the workings of our muscle system from 10 pages of this book than all my school days combined. An amazingly lucid book about muscle pain and what causes some of us to get stuck in a pattern. Headaches, neck aches, back aches...
The basic premise is this: Muscle pain can be caused by two things.
1. Injury. Know how to treat and heal and injury.
2. Patterning, or reflexive muscular tightness. This can be caused by an accident or injury, but often long after the injury is healed, or should be healed, the pain lingers on.
I have been struggling with a shoulder injury (oops from shoulder PAIN) for over a year now. I know exactly how and when it started. I have seen Chiropractors, AMA docs, massage therapists all in an attempt to alleviate the pain. But for a year, I have had limited success.
Cause: I began playing competitive tennis a year ago, after a number of years off.
Pain: After playing a couple of sets I retire and recline on ice packs for 45 minutes or so. Otherwise, I will be unable to sleep during the night from the pain and night sweats associated with the pain.
Solution: I am still working on this one. But I can say, that last week, I had little or no disorienting pain. Several things going for me. I have not played tennis for 3 weeks. I am seeing a chiropractor/accupunturist/sports injury specialist who is working me pretty hard. And I have been doing some of the exercises in this book.
More results later. All I can say, is I had to resist buying 5 copies of this book and passing them out. It's a users manual for our muscle/nervous system. - JMac
June 23, 2021
I had the pleasure of working with Craig while living in Maine. He started me out slowly and let me realize it was okay that I wasn't stretching like I used to... but that I could get there again if I wanted.
Of course, he recommended his book. My first thought was, "great, he just wants to sell more books." Boy was I wrong!!! This book opened up even more than I was getting in person because I could read and re-read as I needed. No more forgetting was it this way... or was it ....
The book was well written and easy to understand. I highly recommend it.
Of course, he recommended his book. My first thought was, "great, he just wants to sell more books." Boy was I wrong!!! This book opened up even more than I was getting in person because I could read and re-read as I needed. No more forgetting was it this way... or was it ....
The book was well written and easy to understand. I highly recommend it.
March 26, 2009
I picked this book off a library shelf while looking for some guidance on how to address some recent pain in my lower back. The author presents a thorough explanation of the interconnection between body alignment and muscular pain. He then offers a series of exercises to help relax different muscle groups to relieve pain in various parts of the body. A good starting point for me.
June 25, 2013
I'm pretty convinced, after reading this book a few times, that the exercises will totally cure my chronic back pain. Unfortunately, I'm too lazy to ever do them consistently, so I am not quite sure. So it goes.
December 20, 2007
Helpful exercises but one must actually do them regularly. Which is so unfair. Clearly written and easy to understand and follow.
August 29, 2008
tough to get thru unless you have a great knowledge of the body. It would be helpful to have pics.
June 11, 2014
"Awareness facilitates healing. Awareness can be healing." (p.4)
"We all have the capacity for awareness, and our awareness affects our physiology. When awareness is part of a therapy, that therapy becomes somewhat process oriented. This is because our awareness, like any process, is always changing." (p.5)
"Genuine learning always involves dealing with the unknown. If you are open to the process, you can learn from anything and everything, whether you are traveling to a new place, making a new friend, moving your body in a new way, or simply staying home to watch television. Every breath you take is new, as is every cloud that traverses the sky and every bird that hops on your lawn. Learning is a state of mind." (p.6)
"A distinction can be made between awareness and concentration. These words generally refer to paying attention, but they actually have very different meanings. In simple terms, awareness involves widening your scope of consciousness, while concentration involves narrowing your scope of consciousness." (p.7)
"When something is named, it is defined, and that definition can limit a person’s ability to see it fully and without preconceptions." (p.8)
"Musculoskeletal pain, even severe pain, can result from habitual muscle tension, from poor posture that causes tissue compression, from muscular reactions to physical impact (such as a car accident), or from unresolved emotional stress. Increasing your kinesthetic awareness can help unravel and resolve all of these problems because you need to be able to sense your body accurately in order to move it comfortably." (p.11)
"It makes sense to regain healthy kinesthetic awareness first, before going through complicated treatment procedures that can overlook its importance." (p.22)
"Kinesthetic awareness affects your physical and emotional flexibility. These two types of flexibility are not separate; they support one another. When your kinesthetic awareness is clear, you can experience your feelings as they occur. Essentially, this means you know yourself. As a result, you are more flexible in dealing with stress and better able to make choices about your life circumstances." (p.29)
"Emotional stress can trigger muscle contractions, which can eventually become a dysfunctional movement pattern." (p.43)
"As a general rule, the more efficient your movement patterns, the less energy you expend and the easier an activity is to do."(p.45)
"Many people have been trained to think of exercise as something that is naturally painful, forceful, and arduous." (p.46)
"The more skilled you are with movement, the less force you need and the more relaxed you can be." (p.47)
"It is a commonly accepted sign of mastery when a performer makes a difficult art appear easy; this occurs when a performer is relaxed with what he or she is doing." (p.47)
"The ideal way to move is to “go with the flow” of the movement, rather than forcing yourself. Although it sounds simple in theory, it’s not necessarily easy in practice."(p.47)
"The physical health and performance fields tend to overemphasize the importance of muscle strength and ignore the importance of kinesthetic awareness." (p. 58)
"Since the nervous system interconnects all parts of the mind, body, and emotions, muscle tone is a reflection of the whole person." (p.59)
"Balance and security in your body comes from being comfortable with freedom of movement, not holding yourself still or collapsing into your ligaments." (p.81)
"People can go through life with “emotional suppression” as their default setting. The rational mind takes over, and life goes on." (p.132)
"Let your bones hold you up."(p.187)
"We all have the capacity for awareness, and our awareness affects our physiology. When awareness is part of a therapy, that therapy becomes somewhat process oriented. This is because our awareness, like any process, is always changing." (p.5)
"Genuine learning always involves dealing with the unknown. If you are open to the process, you can learn from anything and everything, whether you are traveling to a new place, making a new friend, moving your body in a new way, or simply staying home to watch television. Every breath you take is new, as is every cloud that traverses the sky and every bird that hops on your lawn. Learning is a state of mind." (p.6)
"A distinction can be made between awareness and concentration. These words generally refer to paying attention, but they actually have very different meanings. In simple terms, awareness involves widening your scope of consciousness, while concentration involves narrowing your scope of consciousness." (p.7)
"When something is named, it is defined, and that definition can limit a person’s ability to see it fully and without preconceptions." (p.8)
"Musculoskeletal pain, even severe pain, can result from habitual muscle tension, from poor posture that causes tissue compression, from muscular reactions to physical impact (such as a car accident), or from unresolved emotional stress. Increasing your kinesthetic awareness can help unravel and resolve all of these problems because you need to be able to sense your body accurately in order to move it comfortably." (p.11)
"It makes sense to regain healthy kinesthetic awareness first, before going through complicated treatment procedures that can overlook its importance." (p.22)
"Kinesthetic awareness affects your physical and emotional flexibility. These two types of flexibility are not separate; they support one another. When your kinesthetic awareness is clear, you can experience your feelings as they occur. Essentially, this means you know yourself. As a result, you are more flexible in dealing with stress and better able to make choices about your life circumstances." (p.29)
"Emotional stress can trigger muscle contractions, which can eventually become a dysfunctional movement pattern." (p.43)
"As a general rule, the more efficient your movement patterns, the less energy you expend and the easier an activity is to do."(p.45)
"Many people have been trained to think of exercise as something that is naturally painful, forceful, and arduous." (p.46)
"The more skilled you are with movement, the less force you need and the more relaxed you can be." (p.47)
"It is a commonly accepted sign of mastery when a performer makes a difficult art appear easy; this occurs when a performer is relaxed with what he or she is doing." (p.47)
"The ideal way to move is to “go with the flow” of the movement, rather than forcing yourself. Although it sounds simple in theory, it’s not necessarily easy in practice."(p.47)
"The physical health and performance fields tend to overemphasize the importance of muscle strength and ignore the importance of kinesthetic awareness." (p. 58)
"Since the nervous system interconnects all parts of the mind, body, and emotions, muscle tone is a reflection of the whole person." (p.59)
"Balance and security in your body comes from being comfortable with freedom of movement, not holding yourself still or collapsing into your ligaments." (p.81)
"People can go through life with “emotional suppression” as their default setting. The rational mind takes over, and life goes on." (p.132)
"Let your bones hold you up."(p.187)
August 9, 2016
I really enjoyed Craig Williamson's explanations of the reasons behind chronic muscle pain. He talks about our kinaesthetic sense (our sense of our muscles and our body) as a sixth sense and how many of us have shut down our muscular awareness over time. He argues that the key to overcoming muscular pain is becoming aware of our bodies again and feeling our muscles and what they are doing (e.g. over-tightening). He also talks about the dysfunctional movement patterns many of us have developed over years, the effects of poor posture and how shutting out emotions can cause blockage and create real pain for us. He provides a series of explorations and exercises for us to try to reconnect with our kinaesthetic sense, free up dysfunctional movement patterns by making them functional, and find pain-free living.
His writing is lucid and a pleasure to read. I'm still not quite sure I understand how to do the exercises though!
His writing is lucid and a pleasure to read. I'm still not quite sure I understand how to do the exercises though!
December 4, 2007
This book is well-balanced in practical and theoretical advice regarding how to manage chronic muscle pain, tension, repetitive stress injuries, tendonitis, etc. The basic principle rests on what Williamson calls "kinesthetic awareness," a quality most of us lack. Learning to develop our kinesthesia is the key to pain-free living. Williamson includes "explorations" in each chapter in order to develop this awareness. Part II of the book includes exercises tailored toward problem areas and based on the prior explorations.
Williamson presents the information in a logical and engaging way, encouraging the reader to the exercises daily. I have seen great improvement in my own lower back pain and would recommend this book to anyone who struggles with muscular pain.
July 25, 2009
Better than a massage. Better than my favorite yoga class. That's how I feel after doing a half hour of Williamson's exercises. His premise is that sometimes muscles become tense over a long period of time. At some point you are no longer aware that you are tensing the muscles, but the tension causes pain in your body. These simple movements relax your body. Even better, they retrain your body and help you develop more effective, comfortable posture.
I read part one and skipped to the exercises. I love how my more mobile less painful body feels.
I read part one and skipped to the exercises. I love how my more mobile less painful body feels.
November 24, 2013
This was an amazing non-fiction book that helps a person understand how the musculo-skeletal system works. Who knew that you weren't supposed to bend at the waist but instead our bodies were built to bend at the hips! If that is the one thing I take away from this book it is tremendously worth it and may help my lower back issues. I am starting to do the exercises in the book now and find them helpful.
December 24, 2013
The first half primarily talks about dysfunctional movement patterns that can cause pain- either from the body compensating involuntarily due to acute injury or from poor habits. The second half is stretches and exercises organized by area of pain. The first stretch for shoulder injuries helped a lot, and helped me realize my issue was more tightness in back muscles rather than with the joint. Recommended if you're looking for some new stretches or insight into muscular issues.
March 17, 2008
Excellent information. Quite similar in theory to Somatics and Feldenkrais and Egoscue all mixed together. Learn to relax the muscles to gain balance. Exercises to help you do so. A far far far better method than pain meds and bedrest.
October 14, 2010
The first part of the book was intersting and informative. The true value of the book, and thus the rating will ultimately be determined by how these exercises help me turn my rock-hard shoulders into clay.
May 18, 2014
This book offered some excellent theory on getting through long-term muscle issues (of which I've had a couple in legs/knees due to running too much without building a foundation of balanced muscles/tendons). It also has a ton of good stretches/exercises, which I didn't really use but maybe should.
August 11, 2025
This book changed my life by changing the way I exercise and rehabilitate my body. When I go the physical therapy now I want to know which muscles I should be feeling because I'm able to sense even the little muscles working now that I've learned to stop and listen to them.
July 16, 2012
I know the exercises by heart. So, even though this is my exercise bible, I'm removing it from my currently reading shelf.
August 22, 2016
This is the book that gave me the knowledge to finally get a handle on my migraines. The information on "muscle memory" was also useful in training my obedience and agility dogs, an added bonus.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews