Core Balance
Training

JULY 2021

Meet
Dr. Ryan Peebles, DPT

I was ashamed, embarrassed, and angry. I had done everything I could to take care of my back, and yet I felt broken.

Back problems cast a shadow over my life for over a decade. Those years were filled with pain, but they were also a journey of growth—a journey that led me to a deeper understanding of the body, which I want to share with you.

It all began when lower back pain sidelined me from playing basketball as a junior in high school. I couldn't lift weights anymore, and every time I tried to surf—my passion—I felt nerve pain that made it impossible.

JULY 2021

“I Have a Bad Back.”—I Hated Those Words

I didn't talk about it much. My friends and family knew, of course. At times they treated me like I was disabled. But it was something I kept mostly to myself. It was just too painful to acknowledge how much I'd changed.

But it wasn't a sudden change—it was gradual, which made it even worse. When people asked what happened, I had no specific injury I could blame. I just... had a bad back. That became my normal.

By my early twenties, the back problems had gotten serious. Every new physical therapist I saw during those years said the same thing:

"You're way too young for this."

What did my future look like? One chiropractor told me, after looking at my X-ray, that I would be in a wheelchair by the time I was 30. Imagine what that did to my psyche. He then cracked my back so hard that, from that moment on, I felt an instability every time I took a step. I was left in even worse shape. I felt utterly hopeless.

JULY 2021

Depression, Anxiety, Fear... And Then, Impossibly, Things Got Worse

One physical therapist told me, "If you can just hold off on surgery for five more years, the technology should be better by then."

Others were practically begging me to get surgery. I had tried everything else: physical therapy, chiropractic, acupuncture, yoga, Pilates, inversion therapy, pills, injections, myofascial release, craniosacral therapy, Rolfing, the Alexander Technique, the Mackenzie and Egoscue methods, even Chinese medicine. You name it, I tried it!

Despite all my efforts, my body felt like it was falling apart.

One day in 2010, I was curled up on my bedroom floor, consumed by pain. It was my usual spot, but this time was different. Not only did I have my usual lower back pain, but my knees were hurting, too. My neck was in pain, my jaw was jutting forward, and even my bite felt messed up!

JULY 2021

This Wasn't Just a Back Problem. My Whole Body Was Going Haywire

In that moment, I knew I had a choice: either accept that I would end up in a wheelchair, or else take responsibility for my own healing. At 24 years old, I made a commitment to heal my back and reclaim my passion for surfing.

JULY 2021

I Was Determined to Understand the Cause and Find a Permanent Solution

In the following years, I became obsessed with research, devouring countless books and articles. Eventually, I identified the root cause of my back problems: muscle imbalances.

This whole-body concept made sense to me. It connected the dots and explained my laundry list of injuries. It was a way to look at chronic pain from a holistic perspective.

Finally, I understood the source of my pain.

My own body became my test pilot as I learned how to reverse these imbalances. I applied what I learned to my own exercise program, focusing on restoring muscular balance. Though I was still in pain, and far from where I wanted to be, I started seeing positive changes.

JULY 2021

I Needed a Deeper Understanding and More Tools

So I decided to get my doctorate in physical therapy. PT school was a very zoomed-in approach, focused on individual joints. It was hard to see the whole picture, so I applied the whole-body concepts I had already embraced to what we were learning. In 2015, I graduated with 'High Honors' and became Dr. Ryan Peebles, DPT.

I've since worked in rehab facilities, outpatient clinics, sports clinics, with Olympic athletes, geriatrics, a professional sports team, and even in a hospital. Wherever I went, I saw lower back pain, and a predictable pattern of muscle imbalances lurking beneath the surface.

JULY 2021

Everything I've Learned Points to One Simple Truth

To bring the body back into balance, you have to start with the core. When I began focusing on this approach with my own body, it was pivotal in helping me climb out of what I call the "back pain spiral."

By continually adapting my routine as I learned more, I developed a process that addresses the "core" of the problem. Piece by piece, I created a unique program that teaches you how to retrain your body for healthy movement, so you can get out of pain for good.

The Core Balance Training program now helps thousands of people every year escape the back pain spiral and get their lives back. We're making a real difference, and the success stories we've received have been overwhelming.

I encourage you to take responsibility for your healing and empower yourself with this program. Let me share with you the incredibly valuable knowledge of what's happening in your body and how to reverse it.

It's amazing to see so many people succeed with a program that I created for myself, just so I could surf again...

I can't possibly express enough gratitude for this journey and for everyone who has shared in it.