Meet Shara Simmons | MAT, CHEK, ELDOA Therapist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Shara Simmons and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Shara, what habits do you feel play an important role in your life?
There is no question that the habits that have helped me evolve in my practice/life are the habits that I teach my clients in my office. People come to see me because they are experiencing pain and/or discomfort. They may have an acute or recent injury or they have possibly tried everything and nothing else has helped. In my practice, I take a multi-disciplinary approach, integrating Muscle Activation Technique, the CHEK system, ELDOA and Soma Training. These different modalities help me identify the cause, choose and apply the appropriate treatment, then teach my client how to reinforce what we do at home with very specific exercises, stretches, and postures. As well, during the treatment process, I am teaching the 6 foundational principles of health; breathing, movement, hydration, nutrition, sleep and thinking. As a CHEK Practitioner I have been taught that you can take your clients and/or patients only as far as you have gone. In other words, these are the habits I instill in my life. These are the habits that along my own path, in my ups and downs I have always returned to, in order to heal and overcome my own dysfunctions, injuries and/or pain. Pain is our bodies way of telling us that something is wrong, it is our alarm system. I am a therapist and a guide through hands on treatment, movement and re-education, help my clients tune into their own internal compass so that they become empowered to take responsibility for their own health. This can take time, but one thing I can say confidently is that I am 100% dedicated to my clients and that I will use every tool in my own toolbox to help them live a pain-free life.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
EuKinetics, “creating harmonious movement through a multi-disciplinary approach”, this name is the heart and soul of my practice. I started my practice in order to provide a space to help people to overcome pain in their body. I have always believed that movement is an outward expression of our internal health. Movement and our ability to move freely allows us to experience our lives and other humans fully. The journey started with a degree in Kinesiology from CU Boulder. It wasn’t long after graduation that I was on a mission to find a new teacher and more information about how to feed my interest in movement. This lead me to the CHEK Institute where I began building the foundation of my practice and the beginning of my dream. Here is where I learned that you can, and specifically how to heal the body through the 6 pillars of health; breathing, movement, hydration, nutrition, sleep and thinking. It was at this moment in my life I knew and trusted my path. In 1999 Greg Roskopf chose 23 people to be a part of his first year -long program and I was fortunate to be a part of this amazing group. This is where I learned Muscle Activation Technique. This technique profoundly changed how I approach my sessions. MAT provides an incredible approach to identifying and treating what specific muscle(s) are causing my clients joint instability/pain. I use this technique every day in my practice and it allows me to create positive change quickly. I am always looking for new ways to grow in order to have a quicker and more lasting effect on my clients. This is what lead me to my next school, Legacy Sport and Wellness Center in Dallas and where I met my current teacher, Scott Herrera. This is where I began and will continue my journey in learning ELDOA and SOMA Training. ELDOA is the only tool I have found that actually “creates space” in a specific joint. When you create space in a joint you promote, healing, longevity, stability and proprioception. There is an ELDOA posture for every level of the spine and joint in the body. This technique, created by Guy Voyer is an incredibly powerful tool and I am very excited to be integrating this into my practice in individual sessions as well as in group classes.

My clients session begins the moment they walk through my door. Even before I know what their specific complaint is, I am gathering information through most of my senses, listening to what they say as well as how they say it, assessing mood, movement, etc. This approach provides an opportunity for me to connect with my client, to establish trust and then to choose the best treatment going forward. I integrate all of these modalities; MAT, CHEK and ELDOA, in a creative way based on my clients needs to get the desired end result. I believe the most important person is the one in front of you and the most important time is right now. This is what I hope my clients feel when they leave their session with me.

What I do for “work” isn’t an act that stops once I leave my office, it is me. For this I am profoundly grateful.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I absolutely love Colorado! I live a very active lifestyle and love playing outside in Fort Collins and the surrounding area. There is so much to do no matter the time of the year. If it was spring or fall we would spend a day climbing up in the Poudre Canyon followed by a meal and some live music at Mishawaka. If it was one of our many hot summer days we would wake up early, head to Urban Egg so I could share my favorite breakfast of Tatum’s Toast, a Cold Brew and a Colorado Honey Lemonade. Then we would throw the paddleboard on the car and head up to Horsetooth Reservoir. We would start with a hike up to the “tooth” followed by a dip and a paddleboard session on the reservoir that lasted long enough to watch the sunset. On a slow lazy day, we would go spend the day at Rossborough Park, set up a slackline, throw the aerobie frisbee and end the day with dinner at the Farmhouse at Jessup Farm. Assuming we had the time, we would hit up my favorite grocery store, Whole Foods, pack the car up with food and snacks and head to the Great Sand Dunes or The Black Canyon of the Gunnison for a long weekend. If they came to visit during the winter, we would enjoy climbing indoors at Whetstone Climbing Gym or a day snowboarding outside of Boulder at Eldora Mountain. When my friends or family come to visit they know we must fit in some sort of workout and treatment session. We would head out in the morning, drive through Human Bean for a cold brew and head to my place of work, Ironside Athletics. The workout would be finished with a bonus treatment session in my office upstairs from the gym. No matter the time of year there are places to go and be active outside, healthy and delicious places to eat and interesting people to meet.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I will be forever grateful to my mentors and teachers, Paul Chek, Scott Herrera, and Greg Roskopf. I can honestly say that my first class at the CHEK Institute with Paul Chek was the first moment I felt my true purpose. There is so much to learn about the body and what I can say confidently is the more I learn, the more I realize I don’t know. I will continue to educate myself for my own health, so that I can then provide and care for my family and to ensure that I am providing the best possible care to my clients. I am grateful for each and every one of my clients that I have seen along this journey. They have provided so many opportunities for me to apply my skills and to gain the experience needed to truly know how to help whoever walks through my office door. A huge shoutout to my family. My mom and dad for their unconditional love, support and believing in me through the thick and thin. To my partner Alex who keeps me grounded daily and has helped me see my true worth as a healer, therapist, business owner, mother and human. Last and definitely not least my daughter Maia. I can attribute most of my success and where I am today because of her powerful presence in my life. She has inspired me to be the best human and mother possible. As her parent I have learned to live a life of dedication to health, honesty, humility and growth.

Website: www.eukinetics.com

Instagram: www.instagram.com/eukinetics

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SharaSimmonsEuKinetics