Review of Performance without Pain: A Step-by-Step Nutritional Program for Healing Pain, Inflammation and Chronic Ailments in Musicians, Athletes, Dancers. . . and Everyone Else (Paperback)

This is a great new addition to the Weston A, Price/Nourishing Traditions literature. "Performance Without Pain: A Step-by-Step Program for Healing Pain, Inflammation and Chronic Ailments in Musicians, Athletes, Dancers...and Everyone Else" is a long title for a book that is a modest 132 pages, but it lives up to its billing.The author is Kathryn Pirtle, who is a clarinetist with the respected Orion Ensemble, and has a long list of professional credits.Co-authors of the book are Sally Fallon, President of the Weston A. Price Foundation and Dr. John D. Turner, DC, CCSP, DIBCN and former National Qualifying Gymnast.
The author tells her story of increasing pain and physical disability related to her profession as a musician, and her search for answers. As her very successful musical career unfolds, she develops pain in many areas of her body, stiffness, nausea and other digestive disturbances, as well as something called "embouchure shaking" (shaking in the area of the mouth) which is apparently quite a serious condition, especially for a clarinetist.Ms. Pirtle seeks help from all sorts of alternative and medical professionals.Finally, someone identifies that she has celiac disease, and extreme sensitivity or intolerance to grains.
What's interesting in her tale is that all along the way, she seems to be doing all the `right' things, such as including supplements, massage, lots of fruits and veggies and whole grains, but it wasn't until she discovered the Weston A. Price (WAP) approach to nutrition that things really began to turn around for her.After this quite compelling true story, most of the book is a very succinct, clear explanation of the basic principles of the WAP diet, its relation to people who use their bodies in the special ways of dancers, athletes and musicians, and the extra problems of those with grain sensitivity.
There are good recipes, suggested readings and helpful ways to "make it practical".This book would make an excellent gift for anyone as an introduction to WAP principles and especially to any musician, dancer or athlete.As a university dance teacher and former ballet dancer, this book came along at a great time.I will be teaching a course in Dance Alignment, in which I try to cover many topics related to basic body care for dancers.I always try to include information about Weston A. Price, and the Nourishing Traditions approach to eating, but I feel that having this book available to show my students will make the information that much more credible.(I know they'll like the testimonial in the front of the book by Daniel Duell, a former New York City Ballet soloist.)
I also know that this approach to eating (it's not a 'diet' per se) works, as it has, over the past five years, changed my life dramatically for the better also.You can do yourself a wonderful favor by reading this book, and trying it!



Product Description
Performance without Pain details the author's recovery from chronic pain and inflammation and provides a practical, step-by-step dietary plan for musicians, athletes, dancers, those engaged in repetitive motion and anyone else suffering from this debilitating modern condition.

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