How I Tamed My Genes and Optimized My Life

My name is Mario and I hate my genes. There, I said it. I feel better already. The truth is I hate two of my genes – my bad lower back and my propensity for diabetes. Both are gifts from my parents. My late father passed down the “spaghetti spine,” as he used to call it, to my sister, my brother, and me. My mom, stemming from her family, gave me the propensity for diabetes.

In fact, in our immediate nucleus of five I am the only one that isn’t diabetic. Believe me, that’s an accomplishment because I work very hard and diligently to keep the Big D at bay. Then there’s the lower back issues. I already had back surgery in 2004, a lovely discectomy that while successful has created some havoc with my glutes and lower back muscles.

But this isn’t a woe-is-me story. Nope, I’m done wallowing. I’m done catastrophizing. I’m done letting my anxiety (another gift from the folks!) paralyze me into fear. I’m doing. I’m moving. I’m exuding positivity. And now, I’m sharing it with you.

The secret to reclaiming your life, and I hope I don’t sound like a cheesy infomercial, is to surround yourself with smart, caring, knowledgeable people that can share some of that wisdom. Who better than family?

That brings me to my brother and sister-in-law, Brian and Karen Friedman. They own Winter Garden Yoga, a former brick-and-mortar studio in Florida that is now completely online. It took me a long while to get to them. It was after tenures with chiropractic care, Pilates once a week, and counseling to try and control my anxiety the natural way. Better late than never.

With Karen, I adjusted my diet to maximize sugar-control, protein-quotient, and the almighty health benefits. I’ve been a vegan for more than four years, and I’m now veering toward vegetarian. I’m still vigilant about what I eat but this time I’m armed with so much research, facts, trial-and-error, and good common eating sense that I know I’m on the right track.

With Brian, I have become a student of isometric muscle exercises. I have learned how to safely work those glutes and lower back muscles. No gym required. I’ve bought a few tools here and there and Brian teaches me new moves just about every week during our Zoom calls. I will admit it took us a while to find a groove – my glute muscles are stubborn, baby – but here we are.

Perhaps even more important than exercise, Brian has taught me how to tweak everyday moves. You know, the mundane stuff you don’t think about until it hurts doing it. He has helped me rethink the way I reach for something I dropped, the way that I sit at the computer, and the way that I walk. Ever tried walking backwards? It’s awesome exercise for your back side, plus it’s super fun.

Brian also introduced me to Crooked, a paramount book about the back pain industry and the road to recovery that has already made a huge impact in my life. The combo of reading Crooked, working with Brian, continuing my counseling, and controlling my anxiety has led me to quit the chiropractic care that was a monthly staple for me since 1995. That, my friends, is monumental.

Am I done taming my genes? Ha! Not in the least. I will be taming my genes until I’m ashes in an urn. The difference is that now I’m in charge, not my genes. I am working with them. We are a pre-arranged marriage that neither of us could prevent. So, we’re making the best of each other to keep the union at peace and optimum functionality.

My name is Mario and I hate my genes. But we’re finally living in harmony.