MOUNT PLEASANT, S.C. (WCIV) -- A Mount Pleasant Chiropractor just returned home from a once-in-a-lifetime trip to London for the 2012 Olympic Games.
Dr. Brian Class had the privilege of traveling to London to help oversee the American athletes' training, nutrition and overall wellness during the Games.
Dr. Class is the owner of Life Essentials Health Center in Mount Pleasant. Five years ago he was approached by the USA Olympic Wrestling governing body, to be a member of a Wellness Advisory Council for the athletes. USA Judo and USA Weight Lifting later jumped on board with Dr. Class's approach.
They were looking to obtain peak performance, with more of a preventative, proactive approach to wellness, as opposed to a reactive approach such as taping up an ankle injury or taking a medication.
Dr. Class worked with members of the Team USA Judo Team and the men's and women's Freestyle Wrestling teams, including Tervel Diagnev and Kayla Harrison. He worked out with them every morning on both their physical and mental stamina throughout their competition.
We asked him to describe his Olympic experience.
"It was just unreal. You go to a sporting event and you see a really good team maybe playing a really bad team sometimes, and sometimes you get that really good competition. This is the best of the best of the best competing head to head," Class said. "That was the most amazing thing to be a part of. Seeing that on a world stage. I've watched the Olympics on T. V. before, but being there was just completely different. And being behind the scenes was, I think, even more fun."
"The most rewarding part was hearing the National Anthem play, seeing the U.S. flag, and just the pride that athlete had standing at the top of the podium, holding that medal," Class described. "Knowing that all the years of hard work they put in and the hard work and time sacrificed that we put in with those athletes-all throughout the year, it just really made it all worth it."
Dr. Class says he learned a thing or two during the games that he plans to implement with his patients in Mount Pleasant. He said having the right mindset and visualizing success not only works for the Olympic medallists, but that it's the key to overcoming life's obstacles.
"They have to wake up every day and do what they do, and having a part in it is amazing. And I think on a global scale that was something I haven't experienced. But on a weekly basis, I get to see that happening in people's lives every day in our office. Seeing someone's life transform, seeing someone get off their medication, or lose the weight they've never been able to lose, or feel better than they've ever felt—that's why I do what I do."
Dr. Class is a part of a global organization called Maximize Living. It's comprised of about 500 Wellness Doctors around the country. They have clinics all over the world, including one in Zimbabwe, Africa that serves underprivileged people. He also has a weekly radio show called "Maximize your Health" in which he gives clear, practical advice to listeners on how to take control of their health and lives.
"If I want it bad enough, I'll do whatever it takes. And you can do that in every aspect of your life."
Dr. Class said people working within the Maximize Living organization are already developing ways to prepare athletes for the 2016 Games.