Dr. Melis
I’ve been meaning to write something about Pro-Active Chiropractic for going on a year. Yes, I’m a slacker…but I thought I’d post a quick bit. My amigo Chuck Bird–a pedorthist, bootfitter, and raging tele god–suggested I visit a local shaman a couple years back. No, shaman’s not the right word–a former Boulder College of Massage professor, expert massage therapist, chiropractor, and all-around good guy. Dr. Stephen Melis is this gent’s name, but in the way Chuck spoke of him, I half expected to meet Yoda.
And in the end, I have. Dr. Melis is the absolute best therapeutic bodyworker I’ve ever visited–and that’s after 20 years in Boulder, a decade of which was spent racing bikes and scamming massage whenever and wherever I could. I’ve gotten the rub from soigneurs for teams like US Postal, Garmin, and Saturn. I’ve been to most of the “recommended” therapists in Boulder. I don’t get any money from Dr. Melis, I’m not on commission, I’m just shooting you straight: this guy has the hands of the Buddha.
Now, don’t get carried away and think it’s going to feel good every time you go. He works you. He works you deep. But the point is, when you stand up to leave, you are going to feel relief, healing, and progress with whatever you’re trying to fix. Me? Tight IT bands, a jacked lumbar, a torn tendon in an elbow, and yes, Dr. Melis has significantly helped all of those conditions. I referred Dr. Allen Lim there, who promptly turned athletes like Levi Leipheimer, Taylor Phinney, and Christian Vande Velde on to Dr. Melis. I told Timmy O’Neill to go and now the climbing community’s on board.
Most notably, Renan Ozturk visited Dr. Melis after nuking himself in a skiing accident last year. Renan busted his neck, whacked his head, and generally worked himself over falling down a couloir without a helmet. If you read the climbing rags then you realize Renan just put up a new route on the Shark’s Fin of Mount Meru in India. (Update: the climb, completed with Conrad Anker and Jimmy Chin, has just been nominated for the Piolet d’Or, or the “Oscars of Climbing”.) Renan had mere months to begin his rehab once his body had healed to the point it could tolerate it. Not only did Renan bounce back, he felt so strongly about Dr. Melis’s role in his recovery, he made the following film about it:
The Healer from renan ozturk on Vimeo.
The great thing about Dr. Melis is, he’s not going to try and get you on the table for two hours, just to treat your calf strain. If you want to pop in just for a focused session on your lower limb, then schedule a half hour and save your dough. And he’s a bargain compared to some of the schlocky, wheatgrass-mafia freaks in this town.
Seriously–this is the best, and most effective bodywork you’ll find on the Front Range. And keep in mind Pro-Active offers longer, more traditional massage appointments with Dr. Melis’s wife, Stacey, and Dan Orth (both LMT’s). They’re both super solid, and I’ve visited Stacey and Dan for more general all-over bodywork, in between bouts with Melis. There’s only so much a man can take, ya know?
Get to Pro-Active and tell them you’re there for the goods. They’ll deliver!
