Nate Tilley Testimonial

 – By Ryan Hommel

Meet Nate Tilley! Nate is one of Nelson Chiropractic sponsored athletes. A little bit about Nate, he is an aspiring martial artist, specializing in Brazilian Jiujitsu and Taekwondo. He is currently 19 years old, turning 20 in July of 2018. Originally, Nate is from Rapid City, SD but decided to move to Spearfish, SD in August of 2017. His biggest accomplishment to date is taking home double gold medals and winning both his tournament brackets at the Colorado state championship for Brazilian Jiujitsu. His ultimate goal in jiujitsu is to be a world champion, and his goal in life is to serve others and keep people laughing. 


I was able to sit down with Nate and talk about how Nelson Chiropractic and Chiropractic care in general has helped him stay on course to achieve those goals. 


Why are you an advocate of chiropractic care?

“Chiropractic care has completely changed the way we look at medicine in general. Everyone was skeptical at first, but it ended up being exactly what we needed, which is to be aligned. I believe that being aligned is the core element of life, not just our bodies but also our minds. I’m a huge advocate of aligning my life with my values, so it would only make sense for me to align my body as well, and I think chiropractic care ties both of those things together very nicely.”


What would you consider the biggest benefits of chiropractic care?

“I actually have a pretty crazy story about that. I compete in Taekwondo which requires a good amount of flexibility, but I always had issues with my left hip. Whenever I would try to stretch out my leg horizontally my hip would never turn over, leaving me with a very small range of motion. I went in for just one adjustment with Dr. Devon, she noticed right away that something in my left hip wasn't in place, so she popped it back into place and I instantly had the flexibility and rage of motion that I’d never had my whole life. I think that’s when I first realized just how beneficial chiropractic care can really be.”


Have you felt any change to your level of competition since you started going to Nelson Chiro?

“You know, competing in jiujitsu, you have to be very smooth with you movements, almost like you're flowing. And I think it was Bruce Lee that said, the muscles that are the most relaxed are the ones that can travel the fastest. So if my muscles are really tense, I can’t perform the way I want to. It’s the chiropractic care that allows me to release all that tension, keeping my body aligned, and creating better blood flow, lets me move much more smoothly and effortlessly out on the mat. Being able to move smoothly and fluently allows me to be much more efficient in competition, and I really attribute a big part of that to the chiropractic care I've received at Nelson Chiro.”


What separates Nelson Chiro from just any other chiro clinic?

“Oh my gosh! So my first time at the clinic, I walk in the door and I’m greeted by Deb, who is so nice and genuine, just seeing her in the office made my day. Then I go into my treatment room and Deb came in and did my evaluation with me, while also giving me the history of Nelson Chiro, basically telling me that they come from a long line of chiropractors and how they’re locals of the Black Hills, which made me feel right at home. Then Dr. Devon came in and very clearly explained what it is that was causing me pain, what she was going to do to treat it, and what I needed to do on my own time to make sure I am helping the process along. She also explained each movement she manipulated and told me why she was adjusting certain things. I learned more in that first day about how my body works than I ever had before, it was incredible. I couldn’t believe how down to earth the whole staff was, I could tell that they genuinely cared about helping me improve my quality of life. I think that’s the biggest difference between Nelson Chiro and any other chiro clinics.”


What do you have to say to young athletes who haven't looked into chiropractic care yet?

“I think being a young athlete, its hard to realize just how important it is to take care of your body. You don’t have as many issues with injuries or wear and tear on your body when you're younger, so no one thinks they need to worry about getting aligned, stretching, things like that. Not only that, but also eating a clean diet, sitting in a sauna and other things along those lines Nelson Chiropractic promotes a holistic lifestyle approach for all aspects of life. If you're a young athlete that wants to be an old athlete one day, taking good care of your body is extremely crucial, and chiropractic care is a much bigger piece of that puzzle than people realize.”


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