Move Forward Without Making Things Worse
Pain changes how you relate to your body, your choices, and your future. StrongStrides exists to help you regain agency - without pushing, proving, or pretending.
This is not about doing more. It's about doing what's safe, sustainable, and actually helps.
You will find a self-paced performance and pain-management community with thoughtful guidance and shared support.
What StrongStrides Is
StrongStrides is a supportive framework for people living with pain, limitation, or recovery - whether chronic or recent.
It helps you:
- Understand what your body is signaling
- Reduce actions that quietly make things worse
- Move forward without crossing lines you cannot undo
This work respects limits. It treats limits as information, not failure.
What Makes This Different
Most approaches to pain focus on:
- motivation
- intensity
- discipline
- pushing through
StrongStrides focuses on:
- clarity
- pacing
- reversibility
- trust in your own signals
Here, stopping is not quitting. Stopping is how you preserve progress.
The Core Principle
No movement without an exit.
That means:
- no exercise without a safe way to stop
- no plan that traps you
- no commitment that increases pain without recourse
If something escalates symptoms, confusion, or fear, it's not the right move - regardless of how effective it looks on paper.
What I Offer
I support people by:
- helping them interpret pain patterns
- clarifying what is likely safe vs. premature
- reducing unnecessary effort and over correction
- offering language when things feel uncertain or overwhelming
I do not promise fixes.
I do not push timelines.
I do not override your experience.
Community Support
StrongStrides includes a community space where people can:
- ask questions
- share what they are navigating
- slow things down
- learn from others without comparison or pressure
It's designed to be:
- low pressure
- non-performative
- easy to step away from and return to
Support should never create obligation.
Who This Is For
StrongStrides is for people who:
- have tried "pushing through" and paid for it
- are tired of conflicting advice
- want to move carefully without stagnating
- value long-term integrity over short -term wins
If you are looking for intensity, this may not be a fit.
If you are looking for steadiness, it probably is.
What This Is Not
StrongStrides is not:
- a medical replacement
- a hustle program
- a productivity system
- a place where pain is minimized or dismissed
This work takes pain seriously - without letting it define you.
A Simple Invitation
You're welcome to explore, participate, step back, or just read.
There's no pressure to commit.
No expectation to perform.
No requirement to prove anything.
Just a space designed to help you stay intact while you move forward.
Welcome to StrongStrides Performance Lab:
An open, self directed learning and support community for people working through pain, performance limitations, and recovery. This space is designed to help you understand your body more clearly, move without fear, make small, safe decisions that compound over time, and regain trust in your own signals.
The programs are self-paced. The work is yours.
I participate in the community to clarify concepts, answer questions when I can, help people get unstuck, offer perspective when things feel confusing.
This is a space to slow down, ask questions, and make sense of what your body is telling you. Nothing here requires pushing through pain or proving anything. If something doesn't feel right, that matters. You're allowed to stop. You're allowed to rest. You're allowed to take this at your own pace.
This is not coaching, therapy, medical diagnosis or treatment, or crisis support. It is a shared space for thoughtful progress, practical tools, and steady support. Overall StrongStrides is a place to learn, ask, and slow things down to do less, better. You are always in control of your pace and your choices.
Starting or coming back from running? StrongStrides wants to help you get into movement with a scientific return to run plan.
Use this program to start running or if coming back from a break.
Designed to allow gradual strengthening of tissues to avoid injury.
If your recovery was good after the session with no pain or muscle soreness then take a rest day and then advance.
If you are sore from the workout take one day off and repeat the workout
If you have pain take two days off and go back one step.
Walk-Jog
1 minute jog 9 minutes brisk walk x 3
Rest Day
2 minute jog 8 minutes brisk walk x 3
Rest Day
4 minute jog 6 minutes brisk walk x 3
Rest Day
6 minute jog 4 minutes brisk walk x 3
Rest Day
8 minute jog2 minutes brisk walk x 3
Rest Day
30 minute jog
Jog-Run
Rest one day between each workout.
30 minute jog
30 minute jogs day on day off (5) at 50% 60% 70% 80% & 90% of easy pace
30 minute run at easy pace, repeat three times
35 minute run at easy pace
42 minute run at easy pace repeat three times
35 minute run at easy pace
30 minute run with 7-10 minutes of moderate tempo work
45 minute run.
30 minute runs two days on one day off x 3
Start training or workouts.
About AJ
AJ works with people who are dealing with pain, limitation, or recovery - especially those who have tried pushing through and found it made things worse.
His approach is grounded in careful observation, respect for limits, and helping people regain trust in their own signals. Rather than prescribing intensity or rigid plans, he focuses on reducing unnecessary strain and clarifying what is safe to do next.
AJ's work emphasizes pacing, reversibility, and long-term integrity. He believes progress should not require sacrificing well-being, and that stopping at the right time is often the most important skill to learn.
StrongStrides grew out of this perspective - as a place for support, shared learning, and steady forward movement without pressure.
Professional Background
I've worked directly with six Olympic gold medalists across four sports, coached professional running groups, and supported athletes competing at the 800m, 1500m, 3K, 5K, 10K, marathon, and Ironman World Championship levels.
Over the course of my career, I've worked with more than 200 professional runners and supported over two dozen Olympians, primarily in the context of pain, durability, and return to function.
This work informs a bias toward restraint, reversibility, and long-term capacity over short-term performance gains.
Work with AJ
AJ will discuss your case, assess your current state, and outline a structured plan for improvement.
Strength Training Programs
