to better relate to themselves and each other on the court. Years later, when I heard Dr. Josh Binstock, a CMCC graduate and fel-low beach volleyball devotee, also had a dream to make it to the Olympic Games, I couldn’t resist contacting him to help him with his Olympic goal. I had had that dream myself, before a physical di-agnosis started me on my chiropractic path. I called him and, over lunch, we connected. Our clinic decided to spon-sor him and, of course, after his spinal checkup, I started adjusting him too. Four months later, and seven months before the summer London 2012 Olym-pics, Josh called, and shared that the relationship with the beach volleyball partner he had committed to his Olym-pic journey with, had dissolved. He had found a new beach partner, and asked if, this time, I would consider coaching them. The coaching required was similar to the relationship coaching that Mark and John had used to tweak their rela-tionship for the Atlanta Olympics. I agreed. The 2012 Canadian Olympic volleyball team, Dr. Josh Binstock (DC) and Martin Reader, compete in London. tinue to lead them towards their dream and destiny. This work was important, especially during the weeks leading up to the Games when they would experi-ence a higher degree of distraction and adversity. WORKSHOPPING THE RELATIONSHIPS And so began the weekly, one-hour meetings between Josh, myself and his new partner, Martin Reader from Co-mox, B.C. Our goal was simple and that was to: first strengthen the relationship they had with themselves and their com-mitment to their Olympic goal; and then, in turn, strengthen the relationship they had to each other and all those in sup-port of their Olympic goal. So, along with weekly adjustments, we began working on their performance by identifying internal blocks – the most important of these were the “experienced hurts.” Having competed against each other for some time, they knew one an-other, but didn’t know, deep down, what made the other “tick,” or “get ticked.” To-gether we labelled strengths and weak-nesses, likes and dislikes, both about one another personally and the game. Under the umbrella of commitment, honesty and participation we explored challenges they faced with nagging injuries, finan-cial stresses, external distractions and re-lationship hurts, which included feeling put down, let down or shut down. We also worked on building a clearer vision so that the force of innate, that we know so well in chiropractic, could con-www.canadianchiropractor.ca BRIEF TRAINING Another aspect of our relationship train-ing involved teaching them how to build awareness around their “BRIEF ,” an ac-ronym for belief, ritual, intensity, emo-tional awareness and focus. When one’s BRIEF is strong, rather than reacting to outcomes (for example, a lost game), one is redirected from their awareness of outside-in, to an awareness of inside-out. As well, they learned that when commu-nicating with BRIEF it allowed them to build a healthier relationship within the partnership. Part of the BRIEF training involved developing stronger daily ritu-als, including morning-time movement, meditation, prayer, and journaling, as well as pre-game warm-up routines. I also helped them strengthen their emo-tional awareness by better learning to ex-press their hurts. This skill is cultivated through meditation, which we would practice in 15-minute cycles during acts of eating, sitting or walking. Typically, after each one-hour ses-sion, there was more clarity of purpose, increased focus, and, most importantly, a better relationship with themselves, so they could have a better relationship with each other, in order to train with intensity and belief and move together towards their shared Olympic goal. THE RESULTS Their hard work and training paid off. Although they had a difficult early sea-son on the pro-Federation Internationale de Volleyball (FIVB) tour, and even some injuries, they persevered for a personal best ninth-place finish in Poland and qualification to three grand-slam tour-nament events. Their relationship skills were growing stronger with each game played – this was evident when they beat Mexico in a three-set heated thriller (15-13 final set), to give Canada the Olym -pic bid, in front of a deafening Mexican crowd. Now all they had to do was beat, on home soil, last year’s Canadian Beach Volleyball Champions. This was the last step of their journey, as the winner would represent Canada at the London Olympic Games. In a hard-fought two-set match, in front of a jammed Ashbridges Bay crowd in Toronto, they won and, with that win, their dream (and mine, too!) to reach the Olympics had come true! It was a gift to be at the London Games along with my family, and meet so many of the athletes representing their countries. Witnessing the kind of rela-tionships they had with themselves, their teammates, and families was also amaz-ing. As well, it was wonderful to see so many athletes, knowing that so many of them were being adjusted by their chi-ropractors. It was great to watch their nervous systems functioning at their op-timum levels, ultimately allowing them to better relate to themselves, and their surroundings, in competition. It was such a blessing to be a part of it. • CANADIAN CHIROPRACTOR | OCTOBER 2012 • 33
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