What do Mexico's most famous soccer player, one of China’s greatest martial arts stars, and the woman who just took home snowboarding GOLD in the Olympics for Team USA have in common? All rely on the advice of superstar physical therapist and today's guest Vinh Pham, who is sounding the alarm about one of the most pernicious bi-products of the Covid lockdowns: chronic back and neck pain.

For those of us who struggle to be our best selves (and cannot afford a personal trainer), Vinh has written SIT UP STRAIGHT: Futureproof Your Body Against Chronic Pain with 12 Simple Movements which offers an antidote to the aches and pains that, during the pandemic, seem to have attached themselves to all of us like barnacles. Additionally, posture plays a key role in mental health, and confidence and can help with stress and burnout.

Vinh Pham is a world-class physical therapist—a member of a new breed that dissects how people really move. He has worked with a broad range of clients, from Olympians to NBA stars to MMA fighters to Golden Globe and Grammy Award-winning artists. Early in his career, he discovered a disappointing truth: most of his patients came to him already in pain. They had poor, deeply ingrained lifestyle habits that misaligned their joints and tightened their muscles. And the recent epidemic of prolonged sitting—which represents an all-day assault on the body— has only made things worse. If you’re sitting for more than thirty minutes at a time without getting up, you may be heading toward a world of hurt.

Vinh’s answer to the host of muscle maladies that ails us has been a revolutionary concept: why not futureproof? Instead of reacting to chronic pain after it flares up, what if we focused on a “movement discipline” that not only prevents injuries but leads to longer lives, healthier bodies, and a clearer mind?