Why choose Medical Exercise Academy (MDX Academy)

What Makes Us Different

Education and experience set us apart. Our mission: Use evidence-based research to develop in-person or remote personalized fitness training programs so every client leaves moving and feeling better than when they first came to us.

Medical Fitness Specialists develop exercise programs, and work with individuals and groups of all ages and fitness abilities, who want to:

  • Avoid chronic disease
  • Who are at risk for chronic disease
  • Have health conditions that may be mitigated or managed by exercise and activity
  • Are newly diagnosed with disease and need exercise guidance
  • Have completed a medically supervised rehabilitation program, such as cardiovascular or orthopedic and need to continue the progress

Five steps of exercise progression

A Proven System

Individuals suffering from chronic illness, such as chronic pain, obesity, or diabetes, need to progress along a series of steps to achieve their health and fitness goals.

Step 1: Chronic Illness

A chronic condition is a human health condition or disease that is persistent or otherwise long-lasting in its effects or a disease that comes with time. The term chronic is often applied when the course of the disease lasts for more than three months.

At MDX Academy, we have the knowledge, skills, and abilities to provide preventive care through all stages of chronic illness including orthopedic injuries, metabolic syndrome, pulmonary and cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and obesity.

hurt knee
Step 2: Functionality

After experiencing a chronic illness, the first thing you need to do is become functional again.

The five functional movements are rotation (twisting), pushing, pulling, squatting, and single leg movements (lunges and walking). Once you are functional and can perform these motions without difficulty, you are essentially at zero, and have achieved a foundation on which you build a healthy and fit body.

tying shoe
Step 3: Health

Physical activity or exercise can improve your health and reduce the risk of developing several diseases like type 2 diabetes, cancer and cardiovascular disease.

Physical activity and exercise can have immediate and long-term health benefits. Most importantly, regular activity can improve your quality of life.

stretching
Step 4: Fitness

A person who is fit is capable of living life to its fullest extent.

Physical and mental fitness play very important roles in your lives and people who are both, physically and mentally fit are less prone to medical conditions as well.

girl looking at fitness watch
Step 5: Performance

Once you are healthy and fit, then you can reach new levels of health and fitness by continuing to exercise, eat right, and follow the lessons that have gotten you to this point.

If your goal is getting better at using your body when you had experienced a chronic illness, then MDX Academy can help. Run faster, jump higher… Achieve your goals!

running on rocks

Clinical Exercise Specialist Manual: A Fitness Professional's Guide to Exercise and Chronic Disease

Kindle Edition Now Available!

Clinical Exercise Specialist Manual: A Fitness Professional’s Guide to Exercise and Chronic Disease is for health, fitness, and exercise professionals who want to be, or are on the front line of healthcare by aiding in the management and prevention of chronic disease.

Exercise and physical activity can positively affect over 30 chronic conditions, making it the number one deterrent of chronic disease in primary and secondary prevention. The succinct content combined with the easy to use tables and figures in this guide will benefit anyone who wants to learn more about the effects of exercise on over 35 chronic conditions.

Inside you will find:

  • Concise, detailed, information that is useful in any fitness setting such as a fitness center, personal training studio, or home gym
  • Easy to use tables and figures to quickly find relevant material
  • Easy to understand protocols for frequency, intensity, time, and type of exercise
  • Contraindications and concerns for exercise
  • Essential sample forms
  • Discussion questions to examine the practical application of the concepts
Bob Van Pelt
“My wife and I have been training with Dan for a couple of years. His skills and experience coupled with a unique sense of humor make the workouts interesting and fun.”

Bob Van Pelt

Rachel Kesselman
“For me, the best quality about Dan is that he knows what I can handle and when to push me, and he varies what we do based on how I feel every time I walk through the door.”

Rachel Kesselman

Katie Murray
“What I appreciate most is that Dan's got education and vast knowledge to support his recommendations for our sessions, which are customized to what's best for me and my goals.”

Katie Murray

Lee Cooper
“I will forever be thankful for Dan's professional expertise and ability to devise and implement a plan that maintains my quality of life.”

Lee Cooper (President Cooper Growth Strategies)

Per Segerstrom
“One of the best aspects is the sense of humor that is part of the training, which has also built many long-lasting friendships.”

Per Segerstrom

Dagi Johnson
“Within weeks of working with Dan, he was able to achieve what 2 years of PT after an ACL surgery never accomplished.”

Dagi Johnson

Leslie Lesch
“In addition to the general workout, I find Dan to be a great sounding board as I continue to work on my overall health.”

Leslie Lesch

Calculate Your BMI

Take the First Step

The body mass index, or BMI, is a calculation used to determine your level of body fat. It can help a doctor determine your overall fitness and your risk of developing chronic diseases.

BMI Calculator
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BMIWeight Status
Below 18.5Underweight
18.5 – 24.9Normal
25 – 29.9Overweight
30 and AboveObese

Chronic illness in U.S. adults

You’re not alone

Chronic diseases and conditions—such as heart disease, stroke, cancer, type 2 diabetes, obesity, and arthritis—are among the most common, costly, and preventable of all health problems.

50% of adults in the U.S. have at least 1 chronic illnesses.

25% of adults in the U.S. aged less than 65 years have multiple comorbidities.

35% of adults in the U.S. experience issues with their joints.

70% of adults in the U.S. are considered overweight/obese.