Personal Training for Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome in Deerfield, IL Our Five-Step Approach To Changing Your Life
Personalized Workout Plans Obtain Strength, Stability, and a Pain-Free Life
At Bean's Fitness, we specialize in personalized training for individuals with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS), hypermobility and Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS). With a deep understanding of the unique challenges conditions like EDS and POTS present, our experienced trainers are dedicated to helping individuals overcome health challenges to achieve their fitness goals and live their fullest lives.
With expert 1-on-1 guidance, we’ll lead you through safe and effective exercises to enhance your long-term health while minimizing the risk of injury. Schedule your first session free today!
Get the Ultimate Guide to EDS & POTS
Get practical tools to support comfort, stability and daily function with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome and POTS. This free guide covers symptom support, flare-up response, sleep positioning, hydration, compression and movement strategies from Bean’s Fitness. Sign up today and receive the guide for free.
What Is EDS & POTS Training?
EDS & POTS training is a specialized approach to exercise for people with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, hypermobility and Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome. EDS affects connective tissue, often causing joint instability, chronic pain, hypermobility and fatigue. POTS affects blood flow and heart rate regulation, often causing dizziness, rapid heartbeat, fatigue and brain fog.
The Specialized Training Advantage
Standard fitness programs often fail people with EDS or POTS because they move too fast, overload unstable joints or ignore nervous system stress. Specialized training focuses on controlled strength, joint stability, breathing, posture and gradual conditioning so your body can build support safely.
Who Needs EDS & POTS Personal Training?
EDS & POTS personal training is designed for people who need more than a basic workout plan.
This may include people with:
- EDS, including hypermobile, classical or another subtype
- Chronic joint instability or recurring joint pain
- Frequent subluxations, dislocations or a feeling of joints “slipping”
- POTS symptoms like dizziness, fatigue, rapid heartbeat, brain fog or exercise intolerance
- Hypermobility with poor body control or recurring injuries
- Difficulty building strength without flare-ups
- Failed traditional physical therapy, gym programs or generic personal training
- Fear of movement due to pain, instability or past injuries
If exercise has always felt unsafe, unpredictable or exhausting, Bean’s Fitness can help you rebuild from a safer starting point.
How EDS & POTS Training Works at Bean’s
At Bean’s Fitness, our approach to personal training for EDS focuses on improving strength, stability and flexibility without overloading fragile joints. Our EDS workouts are designed to build muscle, reduce pain and prevent injury, emphasizing low-impact movements and proper alignment.
Every person with EDS is unique, which is why our process begins with a thorough assessment. We evaluate your current functional capabilities and muscular strength to identify areas of weakness and instability. One key test we use is the Adduction Drop Test, which helps determine muscle imbalances and whether your body is in an optimal position for movement. By understanding how your muscles function, we can develop a training plan tailored to where you are and guide you toward greater strength and stability.
You don’t have to accept pain as normal. Let’s take the first step toward a stronger, more capable you.
Support for POTS (Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome)
Many people with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS) also experience Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS), which is not a coincidence. When your body is out of position and under constant stress, your nervous system becomes dysregulated, blood circulation is impaired and symptoms like dizziness, rapid heart rate, fatigue and brain fog can take over.
Here's the good news: when we correct positioning, calm the nervous system and build real functional strength, the body starts to self-regulate again. You don’t need to live in fight-or-flight, and you don’t need to rely on salt packets or compression garments forever.
Just like we do with EDS, we take a step-by-step approach to helping you regain energy, stability and control without flares or pushing past your limits.
Our 5-Step Strategy to Reclaim Your Autonomic Health
Step 1: Nervous System Reset
“Out of Fight-or-Flight”
Living with POTS often means living in a constant state of survival, so we begin by addressing your nervous system directly with controlled breathing exercises to calm you and your body down.
This helps:
- Activate the parasympathetic system (rest and digest)
- Improve sleep, digestion and mood
- Reduce feelings of panic, overwhelm and lightheadedness
- Create the calm foundation your body needs to begin healing
Step 2: Postural Repositioning
“Alignment Unlocks Regulation”
Poor body causes joint pain and places excess demand on your cardiovascular and nervous systems. Repositioning the pelvis and ribcage reduces internal stress, allowing your body to return to a state of neurological and circulatory balance.
This step directly:
- Improves blood flow
- Reduces the load on your heart when standing
- Alleviates chronic muscular tension and joint stress
- It also sets the stage for pain-free movement and better energy regulation.
Step 3: Foundational Strength Training
“Build The Support System You’re Missing”
We don’t jump into intense exercise. Instead, we guide you through precisely selected, low-load strength movements designed to:
- Support blood return to the heart (especially through glutes, hamstrings and internal obliques)
- Stabilize hypermobile joints
- Improve muscular coordination and postural control
By training the muscles assisting circulation and support movement, we build the system your body has been missing from the inside out.
Step 4: Activity Tolerance Training
Step 4: Activity Tolerance Training
“Rebuild Stamina the Right Way”
After your body is repositioned and calmer, we introduce gentle, consistent movement to restore endurance without triggering symptoms.
This includes:
- Controlled, functional strength sessions customized to your ability and recovery speed
- Outdoor walking, performed only after repositioning, ensures the right muscles are supporting you
No wall sits. No intense cardio. No bodybuilding exercises. Just smart, steady movements to naturally build tolerance. The way your body was meant to function.
Step 5: Living Fully Again
Step 5: Living Fully Again
“Energy, Confidence, and Control”
The goal isn’t to mask symptoms. It’s to address the root cause and help you return to life. As your body gains proper alignment, strength and regulation, you’ll feel:
- Less dizzy and fatigued, or as I like to call, “potsy”
- More capable of handling daily activities
- Calmer, more energized and better than you have ever felt
You were never broken. Your body was just overwhelmed. With the right guidance, it can recover.
Step 1: Nervous System ResetSafe Exercises for EDS & POTS Clients
Safe exercises for EDS and POTS clients should focus on control, stability, gradual strength and symptom-aware conditioning. At Bean’s Fitness, we select exercises based on your current ability, joint stability, pain level, nervous system response and recovery speed.
Common exercises may include:
- Isometric Holds: Gentle holds help build strength around unstable joints without relying on excessive range of motion.
- Controlled Resistance Training: Slow, guided strength work helps improve muscle support, joint control and everyday function.
- Core Stabilization Work: Deep core and trunk control exercises help create a stronger base for walking, lifting, standing and daily movement.
- Low-Impact Conditioning: Symptom-aware conditioning helps build stamina without aggressive cardio or unnecessary joint stress.
- Breathing-Based Positioning Drills: Breathing drills help improve ribcage, pelvis and diaphragm function while calming the nervous system.
Every workout is customized. The right exercise for one EDS or POTS client may not be right for another. We focus on safe progress, not pushing through pain.
EDS and POTS: One System, One Solution
These conditions are deeply connected. And when we treat the whole system—posture, breath, strength, and nervous regulation—you don’t just feel “a little better.”
You feel in control again.
Let’s take the first step. Book your free consultation today.