Exploring Life & Business with Sophia Murphy of Imperium Stretch & Recovery

Today we’d like to introduce you to Sophia Murphy.

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
As a classically trained dancer of 20 years, I struggled with injuries through middle school and high school. After a severe tear in my left iliopsoas (hip flexor) and dysfunction in my left SI joint, I was told, if I danced at all, it would be six months – two years before I could begin training again. My mom was a huge health nut and never ate inflammatory foods. She suggested I go gluten-free to see if that would change anything since she was diagnosed with Celiac. Sure enough, after two and a half months, I was dancing again. I learned very quickly that inflammatory foods can make me feel brittle. I believe this simple change in my lifestyle is the reason I was able to continue dancing through college and beyond. It also ignited a passion for injury prevention.

Still, ever since that injury at 14 years old, my left iliopsoas routinely went numb. I’d tried many different modalities over the years to try to gain relief, but many of those treatments just made my pain worse. After receiving my degree in dance from Belhaven University, I moved back to my hometown in South Jersey and began working for a privately-owned gym in Mt. Laurel – Pro swim Fitness. It was there that I was introduced to Fascial Stretch Therapy. My friend, Marty, gave me a stretch soon after he had come home from training, and it was the very first time in almost 10 years that my hip didn’t go numb- and not just during the session, but for five days after.

I was completely amazed. I thought my chronic pain and numbing was just something I had to live with the result of a life dedicated to ballet and modern dance. FST gave me hope that I could feel normal. Better yet, it gave me hope that I could feel better than just normal. After my second stretch, my numbing didn’t come back for two and a half months!

When it came time for my husband to transition out of Active Duty, we decided to move to Nashville to be near family. I took a huge leap and told my husband I was going to start a business. At that point in time, those words coming out of my mouth were anything but normal. I never in my life desired to own a business! Plus, flying halfway across the country to learn a new modality was very far out of my comfort zone. But because I benefited so much from just two sessions, I knew I needed to pursue FST. So that’s what I did.

I read through the textbooks, studied hard, took my exam, and flew to Arizona to attend Level 1 training at the Stretch To Win Institute. Imperium Stretch & Recovery was born in September 2019!

I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle-free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
I think anyone who started a business right before 2020 could tell you it was definitely not a walk in the park! I was a brand new business and February 2020 was when I actually started gaining momentum with building clientele. I vividly remember paying myself for the first time and thinking, “Ok, this might actually work!” The next month, we went into quarantine. I shut down until phase 1 of reopening and besides a few clients, I was starting from scratch.

By August 2020, I was getting busy enough to stop house calls and move into a suite where I could take more clients in a day. In September 2020, I lost my mom to cancer. I didn’t work for the better part of a month. In addition to the chaos of the pandemic as a new business owner, this felt extremely overwhelming. What I learned through such extreme loss and grief is that honesty and vulnerability are everything when you’re really struggling. I have the best clients in the world.

They were all there patiently waiting for my return and extended such grace in the process. By January 2021, I was getting booked more and more. I’m now booked until 2022 and in the process of adding another practitioner to my team! So basically, I’ve just been riding the waves. The good, the bad, the loss, the uncertainty… it’s been rocky, but profoundly rewarding.

We’ve been impressed with Imperium Stretch & Recovery, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Imperium Stretch & Recovery is known specifically for Fascial Stretch Therapy (FST). FST is a pain-free, table-based, guided stretch technique that targets the body’s connective tissue which is known as Neuromyofascia (fascia). Because fascia is what connects every major system to each other, FST literally targets everything from the deepest layer of your skin all the way down to your bones.

FST stands out from many other forms of bodywork due to the extremely personal nature of care given to each client. I personally pride myself in how Imperium Stretch & Recovery is committed to providing the highest possible level of care and attention to detail. FST was created to be highly individual. Not one session is the same. But more importantly, not one client is the same, either. Every single client could walk in with back pain, but through thorough assessment and further movement analysis, none of them would have the same treatment. Each and everybody is different- from their shape and height, to what their career involves, to what they’re going through personally. In this way, FST creates space for ALL of these individualized things. Being able to adapt to whatever my client needs is what it is all about.

I am most proud of creating a space and brand where clients feel safe and cared for. It’s about giving people hope, and Imperium does that.

Imperium Stretch & Recovery is for everyone. Contrary to what many might think, you don’t have to be an athlete to need FST!

Benefits of FST include:
– stress relief
– pain relief
– improved mobility
– better posture
– better sleep
– stronger workouts
– ability to hit new PRs
– better mood
– improved flexibility

Just to name a few.

FST is the perfect compliment to just about anything and everything. The best part is that the stretch is enjoyable and leaves you feeling relaxed rather than being in pain during a stretch which sounds like an oxymoron when talking about stretching, right? I can promise you, pain does not equal gain in this scenario. In fact, it’s the opposite. Give FST a try!

Imperium offers 60, 75, and 90-minute sessions. Head to Imperiumstretch.com to learn more!

Let’s talk about our city – what do you love? What do you not love?
I was shocked to find how welcoming the small business community is here in Nashville. I’ve found that many other cities have a competitive nature when a new business is a new kid on the block. Nashville is so much more than just a music city. It is a city for the arts as a whole. From music, to dance, to theater, to visual art… there is everything. My husband and I felt at home right away after moving from a city that was a little harder to build community. Nashville felt like a complete 180 in the very best way!

As a Jersey girl, the shore has always been my favorite place. My favorite thing about my hometown was my drive to the coast through backroads that barely anybody was on. If Nashville could somehow be on the coast, all would be well in my world!

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: imperiumstretch.com
• Instagram: @imperiumstretch
• Facebook: facebook.com/imperiumstretch

Image Credits
Sarah Elizabeth K