A Traveler’s Guide to Staying Supple, Comfortable, and Fit

Throughout the summer, many of us have been active traveling and will continue doing so through labor day. This could involve long car rides, flights, and disturbances in our usual movement and self-care routines. Some people specifically avoid traveling due to back pain or similar issues, or perhaps suffer through increased pain which detracts from the joys of vacationing.

Here are some tips to keep you and your body feeling happy and healthy throughout your travels!

Breaks from prolonged sitting

The number one most important thing is taking frequent breaks from sitting, no matter the mode of travel. Prolonged stillness, especially constricted in an enclosed space of a vehicle or plane, is the recipe for soreness and stiffness. 

Rather than only taking breaks for the biological need of needing to use the bathroom, consider the biological needs of your musculoskeletal system. The body’s tissues do not like to be in the same position for too long, especially positions that involve increased pressures on certain areas (e.g. the low back).

In fact, studies have shown that prolonged sitting is associated with increased pressures on the intervertebral discs of the lower back. This study demonstrated  that disc height, particularly between the L4 and L5 vertebrae, is significantly impacted by prolonged sitting without breaks. The loss of disc height was not present with brief positional changes performed every 15 minutes. Changes in disc height during prolonged sitting may be associated with low back pain, sciatica, and functional disability.

At the least, try to stand up and walk around once an hour. Consider setting timers so you remember to stop and move around. If you can do it every half an hour, great! If it is not possible to take a break this often, never go for more than two hours without getting up. If you’re not able to get up, change your position often! Trust your own experience and honor your body’s request for appropriate breaks. 

Targeted movement breaks

Maximize your breaks from sitting with specific movements/stretches that help to reverse the effects of sitting. 

Notice that in sitting, the hips and knees are flexed to around 90 degrees. Most people also tend to sit with some flexion in the low and mid back. This shortens certain muscles/tissues, particularly around the spine, hips, and knees. By specifically performing movements that lengthen those tissues, you can help prevent your body from getting quite as stiff and sore during long trips. 

Consider trying some movement snacks (see our Movement Snacks blog) to break up your car trip, particularly the first three videos that you can do standing up (perhaps using your car or a picnic table for support).

Another favorite is a standing back extension, which involves pressing the hips forward to extend the back and hips. This movement can be done as shown below, or by pressing the hips forward into a support surface such as your car, a chair, or a picnic table, while gently holding on to the support surface.

I also love to do a version of a sun salutation that you can do while standing. This involves reaching up to the sky, down to the ground, and cycling through this while breathing. 

You could also do standing pelvic circles, imagining you are standing with a small hula hoop around your waist, and you make circles with your hips within the hoop.

It may also be helpful to consider how the spine moves in space, and engage in movements in which you move the spine in each of the three directions (flexion/extension, side bending, and rotation). See our How the Spine Moves blog for more information.

At the Wellness Station, we will help you create specific, individualized movement routines that you can integrate into your travels.

Ergonomics and posture

While sitting for a while during travel, it can be helpful to enhance your ergonomics and posture. See our Posture Part II blog for more specific information.

The main factors to consider here are:

Appropriate back support

Consider having an inflatable travel ball to stick behind your back in the car or on the plane to help support your spine.

The above can be ordered from Amazon and deflated to the level that fits best for your body size and your seat.

Changing Position Often

Try not to get stuck in one stagnant sitting position. Cycle between being more reclined and less reclined. Change where you are holding your legs. Move the ball around to some different positions.

Sitting movement breaks

Similar to changing position often, try to incorporate specific movement breaks while sitting. You can be doing the pelvic clock. You can be gently pumping your ankles, stretching your hips, rolling your neck. Some planes even have specific in-flight videos for sitting stretches you can follow along to.

Establishing a vacation movement routine

Many people let their routines slip away on vacation. “I’m on vacation- why would I be exercising?” While of course you want to have plenty of time to immerse yourself in new experiences, or perhaps sit on the beach with an ice cold margarita, vacations are no time to be sedentary. Don’t you want to be feeling your very best to fully enjoy your vacation, rather than feeling stiff, achey, and out of shape? 

How can you re-establish a movement routine while traveling? Bringing a yoga mat and some very minimal supplies (ankle weights, therabands) might be an option while traveling. If not, perhaps there is a hotel gym and/or pool that you could enjoy. When bringing equipment and gym access is not possible, think of what body weight movements you could do (e.g. variations of squats, lunges, push ups, cat cow, step ups, etc.)

Consider opting for an active vacation. How can you explore new places with your own two legs? Is there a hike in the area you would like to explore? A bike trail? Swimming in a pristine lake or a salty sea? Or perhaps a walking tour of the downtown must-sees.

Whatever your journey may be, try to prioritize staying active so you can make the very most of your vacation. At the Wellness Station, we can help to gradually progress your fitness to help you be able to move towards the trip of your dreams. 

A biking exploration of Jasper National Park

Written by Jacob Tyson, DPT - Physical Therapist, Yoga Instructor and The Wellness Station Team

References:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4152382/

Doing Dishes With Back Pain: Strategies for Success

For most of us, doing the dishes is not exactly the highlight of our day. For those of us with back pain, this chore can be daunting, uncomfortable, or even seem impossible. There are many strategies that can help this task become possible, manageable, or even easy. A lot of this comes down to our posture and movement patterns, our attitudes, and our willingness to break down the task into chunks.

Posture and Movement Patterns

How we hold ourselves can make a big difference in how our bodies feel. Being in a forward bent position for a long time puts extra strain on the back. Because the dishes are down and forward, it is easy to find yourself in this slumped position, but it is possible to do it differently!

1. Position yourself for readiness:

The closer you place your body to the sink, the shorter the lever arm is that your body has to hold. In other words, if you’re holding a heavy pan far away from your body, this is a lot more work on your back than holding the pan close to yourself. Just wear an apron so your clothes don’t get wet! 

You could also bring the dishes closer to you by using two dish pans. One on the bottom, and the other one upside down which would bring everything up closer to you. This will allow you to wash the dishes a little higher, and not have to bend down as far to scrub dishes at the bottom of the sink. A long handled scrubber may also be helpful.

2. What’s under your feet?

Think about your feet, as you are holding your weight through your legs as you stand. Try standing on a soft cushy pad to help spread the forces coming up from the ground.

Another strategy is to have one foot placed on something, such as on a stool, or inside the cabinet that is in front of you. Every so often, switch which foot is elevated. This will both keep you more upright, and allow your legs to alternate sharing the load. However, the downside of using a stool is that it brings you further away from the sink. This makes it all the more important to elevate the dishes by using two dish pans, as described in #1 above. 

Notice that this individual in the left-hand picture does not need to be bending from the waist in order to see the dishes. This position causes the back to work harder than it needs to. This person should instead be looking down at the dishes by tipping just their head, not their whole back. 

3. Dishwasher strategy:

Use the automatic dishwasher as much as you can. Believe it or not, this actually saves water! However, loading and unloading the washer can be troublesome for many with back pain. At the Wellness Station, we can teach you how to optimize your body mechanics for success based on your individual characteristics.

Generally speaking, try to position yourself as close to where you are putting the dish as possible. In other words, don’t try to reach and crane to the far corner of the bottom rack holding a heavy plate! Walk around to the side, send your bottom back, and place each dish with ease. In other words, keep your center of mass (your pelvis) over your base of support (your feet) so that when you reach forward, you can counterbalance by sending your bottom back. This is something we can teach you to do effortlessly at the Wellness Station.

Attitude and Mindset

If we see dishes as a cumbersome chore, it will continue to be so. How can we change our attitude and mindset relative to this task to make the most out of it?

1. Mindfulness:

Don’t have time to meditate? Make doing dishes your meditation. Pay full attention to your experience. Notice the sensory information coming from the splashing water. Notice your fine dexterity skills required to grasp and scrub. Relish in the small dopamine hit from each completed dish, and the sense of accomplishment from finishing the task. Feel gratitude for having food to eat, dishes to use, and modern technology to support the ability to feed yourself and your loved ones.

2. Bring the joy to the experience:

If mindfulness isn’t cutting it, what else can you bring to the experience? How about playing your favorite music and making it into a dance? Listening to your favorite podcast to educate yourself while you work? Or perhaps rewarding yourself upon completion with a tasty snack or self care routine. 

Breaking it down

Many of us can’t tolerate dishes because of the amount of time spent standing. If the above strategies are not helping as much as you would like, consider breaking down the task into chunks and taking movement breaks.

1. Break into chunks:

Rather than trying to push through and finish dishes as quickly as possible at the expense of a sore back, how about breaking it into chunks? Unload the dishwasher, sit down. Load the top rack, sit down. Load the bottom rack, sit down. Wash the pots and pans, sit down. Remember the lesson of the tortoise and the hare! If sitting down is not necessary, or even preferable, consider moving about with other household responsibilities and coming back to washing dishes later. 

2. Movement breaks:

Try incorporating some gentle movement breaks into your dishwashing routine. It might be helpful to do movements that incorporate the opposite movement of your body. As doing the dishes involves some bending forward with your arms in front of you, how about some bending back with your arms behind you? Here is a movement break that are great for incorporating into your dishes routine: Hip and Shoulder Extension

Written by Jacob Tyson, DPT - Physical Therapist, Yoga Instructor and The Wellness Station Team

Images:

1. https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwl-brightside.cf.tsp.li%2Fresize%2F728x%2Fjpg%2Fe9d%2F462%2Fd0b65c576a80d4c98515bdd500.jpg&tbnid=m_lLFIeUPwppcM&vet=12ahUKEwjwxs_pmYn_AhX-Fd4AHSwiCakQMygIegUIARDSAQ..i&imgrefurl=https%3A%2F%2Fbrightside.me%2Finspiration-health%2F7-things-that-may-cause-lower-back-pain-and-how-to-avoid-them-801900%2F&docid=YUHit_5OzWax3M&w=728&h=485&q=dishes%20with%20back%20pain&ved=2ahUKEwjwxs_pmYn_AhX-Fd4AHSwiCakQMygIegUIARDSAQ
   

2. https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.rte.ie%2Fbrainstorm%2F2022%2F1205%2F1340007-fable-tortoise-and-hare-versions%2F&psig=AOvVaw3AwFNFpH64xqwrslNIpjvW&ust=1684855805331000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CBAQjRxqFwoTCIDZrJCfif8CFQAAAAAdAAAAABAE 

Mindful Movement Part I: Practices for Healthful Aging

It is well-known that exercise has tremendous benefits for all aspects of health. Exercise is extremely protective for cardiopulmonary and metabolic fitness, mobility, balance, muscle and bone strength, cognitive and psychological health, and much more. 

What if we are having trouble exercising because of the very things we are trying to protect? Our shortness of breath is preventing us from walking greater distances. Pain in our joints is preventing us from lifting weights or getting up and down from the floor in a yoga class. Our imbalance and fear of falling is contributing to sedentary behavior. 

These kinds of limitations in physical activity will ultimately contribute to the functional decline that so often occurs with aging, which will further discourage people from participating in traditional exercise routines. 

When it comes to society’s messages about exercise, we are taught that more is good. 

Put in more effort for greater benefits. We often hear “no pain no gain”. On the contrary, for people who are actually experiencing chronic pain and mobility issues, these messages are not inclusive and can further dissuade people from exercising. It changes the way that we think about movement- rather than relating to movement as a privilege that is empowering, movement is seen as “work”, a task to complete, an activity that is associated with pain.

If we want to improve our relationship with movement, it has to work well for our bodies, and we must enjoy it. When you observe children in a playground, you can feel how they love to run, climb, and try what is challenging  – pause, imagine those kids for a moment, can you feel the joy in your own body? 

Improving your relationship with movement will be a gift that keeps on giving!

• You will begin to understand your limits more clearly, knowing when to put in more effort and when to scale it back.

• You will become more aware of how your body moves, so you can move in a way that feels good to you.

This will make movement more intrinsically rewarding, as it is with children. The enjoyment of movement will support healthy levels of physical activity and fitness.

What is mindful movement?

In order to find more enjoyment in our movement practice, we must maintain mindful presence while we move. Our bodies are always present, but where is our mind? Mindfulness is simply bringing one’s attention to the present moment without judgment. We can not truly enjoy anything unless we are there for it. 

Many of us are used to sitting and meditating, drawing our attention to our breath, sounds, and thoughts. By applying this same mindful presence to physical movements, we can become more aware of how we move. This foundational awareness gives us a greater sense of connection to our bodies, and the ability  to change habitual movement patterns that may be placing unwanted stress on the joints and tissues.

Decreasing strain, improving comfort

For example, think about the movement required to follow the upward flight of a bird. If we are only moving from our neck, this may be a pattern that puts additional strain on our neck. If we find that your chest can participate in this movement, we can bring more ease to our tissues during bird watching.

Bring your hand to the back of your neck. Now, look up towards the sky. Does the back of your neck stay long, or does it compress? Now, practice looking up again, but this time put your hand on your chest bone. Does your chest bone rise, or does it stay where it is? Does allowing your chest bone to rise, thereby keeping length in the back of your neck improve the ease and comfort of looking up?

If we are able to change our patterns in ways that improve the efficiency of our movement, we can take strain off our tissues and feel a greater sense of comfort, ease, and enjoyment in our movement practices- as well as the rest of our lives!

The ability to move mindfully will support flow, a positive mental state in which we are fully immersed in what we are doing.

Moving in a state of flow brings intrinsic enjoyment because we are present, engaged, challenged but not too challenged. Consider this the next time you are engaging in movement or exercise- how can you find a state of flow, an embodied presence in what you are doing?

Written by Jacob Tyson, DPT - Physical Therapist, Yoga Instructor and The Wellness Station Team

Images: 

1. https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.thirtythousanddays.org%2F2017%2F06%2Fseven-factors-that-predict-healthy-aging%2F&psig=AOvVaw1_n376b_mdhLa_vO8Hr0m4&ust=1679328220136000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CA8QjRxqFwoTCLDnuqKv6P0CFQAAAAAdAAAAABAE 

2. https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.pexels.com%2Fphoto%2Fbird-looking-up-6026823%2F&psig=AOvVaw1ABOzYFDAOdYp--V8kw3Hg&ust=1679840752025000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CA8QjRxqFwoTCICTzMyk9_0CFQAAAAAdAAAAABAE 

Reversals: What and Why?

Reversibility is the ability to stop, start, and change the direction of a motion at any point in time.

According to Moshe Feldenkrais, the ability to perform reversals is a key indicator of well-organized, refined movement. When performing a movement, consider your ability to turn around and go the other direction, pause, or do something else. When our reversibility is impaired, it indicates a lack of freedom to change our minds or to respond to changing circumstances. This can be evident in certain functional movements: can we sit down in a chair or get on the floor slow and controlled, or is there a plop? When attempting to change the direction of a movement (e.g. pelvic clock circles), are we able to find a flow or is there jerkiness and incoordination? Can we walk backwards? 

Reversibility is not just a movement, but a state of existence.

Our ability to be spontaneous, go with the flow, adapt, maintain presence and freedom of choice. An ability to perform reversals indicates that we are not moving on autopilot, but have a keen sense of what and how we are doing something in the present moment. When we reverse, we are traveling the same territory but from a flipped perspective. In the muscular system, what primarily for a particular muscle or muscles has been a concentric action (muscle shortening under tension) will become an eccentric action (muscle lengthening under tension). As mentioned above, “sit to stand” is a concentric action, and “standing to sitting” is an eccentric action. When we purposefully choose to reverse, it provokes the cognitive process of attentiveness, comparing and contrasting. This is one of the key requirements for learning.

When we use movement to enhance our learning, the quality of our lives can expand.

As we go through life, there may be a gradual tendency towards settling into our habitual patterns, and an associated loss of spontaneity, functional mobility, and options for how we move and engage with ourselves and the world around us. We may not be able to respond as quickly to the demands of the situation, like needing to step back quickly to avoid an oncoming vehicle while crossing the street. Or we may lose the agility required to turn around when we forgot our keys, and instead of taking one step backwards, we may need to take several small steps to turn ourselves around. The person who has difficulty with these reversals is much more vulnerable to falling when they do have to turn around quickly. Practicing reversals helps us learn more about how we move, and can expand our movement repertoire so we have more options available to us. We certainly do not want our only option to be able to plop down into a chair each time, rather than gracefully descending in any way we choose. Reversals are a key requirement for developing and improving balance, agility, neuromuscular control, and eccentric strength. In fact, dynamic balancing is essentially reversals in action.

Practicing reversals

Walking backwards

Walking backwards is a task that may have originally been easy, but perhaps can become impaired over time. If unsteadiness is present, perform this practice next to the kitchen counter or back of the sofa to have something to hold on to as needed.

Simply start by walking forwards slowly, paying attention to how your body moves, how the feet make contact with the ground, etc. Then, reverse it. Walk backwards, comparing and contrasting this experience to walking forwards. 

Check out this article that dives into the health benefits of walking backwards.

Focus on the eccentric

Bring attention to the lowering component of a movement, whether this is in strength training or daily life.

A simple example is to practice standing up from a chair, paying attention to how you do this. Then, try to sit down the same way in reverse, challenging yourself to lower down slowly. Compare and contrast the process of standing and sitting in terms of the mechanics of the movement as well as the sensory experience.

If strength training is part of your routine, pay attention to the lowering movement such as the descent into a squat, the lower of the weight during a bicep curl, or the lowering of your chest towards the ground during a push up. Try to refine the control of the movement, with the ability to slow it down, pause it at any moment, or reverse the movement at any point in time. Also, in a safe manner, practice some reversals quickly, because sometimes that is what life demands!

Yoga Transitions

If yoga is part of your routine, tune in to the transition between two poses.

A simple example is cat and cow, which involves reversing between spinal flexion and extension. Tune in to the exact moment of transition, and explore reversing the movement at different speeds, and at different phases of the motion (e.g. can you do the cat cow in slow motion, and switch between cat and cow through variety of ranges, rather than going all the way into the full expression of cat pose before transitioning into cow?)

This can be applied to any transition in yoga (or life off the mat). Get creative with it- pick any two yoga poses, and explore a variety of transitions between the two shapes.

Explore Your Own

Enhance your sense of spontaneity and exploration by bringing reversals into your daily life.

Perhaps make up a dance move. Practice the move again and again. Then, try reversing the move, as if someone recorded you and played it in rewind. Or, take an everyday task. Reaching for a glass. Can you pause as you reach, and reverse it? Repeat this, reversing the movement at various stages of the reach.

Notice if this brings any greater sense of awareness of your movement and ability to choose different options for how to reach for something. And notice how much more confident you will be crossing a street when an unexpected vehicle requires you to take a very quick step backwards.

Written by Jacob Tyson, DPT - Physical Therapist, Yoga Instructor and The Wellness Station Team

References:

1. http://kinesophics.ca/reversibility/ 

2. https://www.movementandcreativity.com/blog/podcast/2021/2/7/on-reversibility-the-ability-to-stop-start-or-change-direction-at-any-moment 

3. https://www.eatingwell.com/article/8013593/health-benefits-of-walking-backward/

Chaos Vs. Rigidity: Finding Your Balance

All of us live our lives on a spectrum between chaos and rigidity. Some of us tend to live more in a state of chaos and constant change, while others tend to live with more rigidity and stagnation. If our life is overly chaotic, we may live in a constant state of fear, anxiety, hyperactivity, and reactivity. On the other hand, if we are too far on the rigid end of the spectrum, we may become inflexible, resistant to helpful changes, and even close-minded. We might have certain contexts within our lives that are towards one extreme or the other- chaos in our work life, rigidity in our home life, or vice versa. Perhaps we subconsciously bring structure and rigidity into one aspect of our lives, such as our fitness routine, in order to balance the chaos and unpredictability within other aspects of our life. 

Daniel Siegel, M.D., described this spectrum in his book Whole-Brain Child. Because living on either end of the spectrum can be problematic, it is important to find integration, or a harmonious place somewhere in between rigidity and chaos. This finding of balance can be described by considering floating down a river in a canoe. On one side of the river, there is no flow, only still stagnant water. This side represents rigidity- it is safe and predictable, but unfulfilling and devoid of energy. On the other side is white rapids, rocks, and dangerous currents. This side represents chaos, overwhelm, constant change and even danger. In this extreme, we can lose our footing and get lost without any sense of control. A good place to be is the center of the river. This area is a system that has flow and energy, while still allowing us to maintain a sense of control. This allows us to explore, experience new things, learn and grow. How can we find this in our lives?

It is important for anyone to practice self-study, which in yogic philosophy is known as “svadhyaya” (sva meaning “own” or “self”, adhyaya meaning “lesson” or “study”). Can you feel when you are moving more towards a state of chaos, or stagnating into rigidity and mindless repetition? Our emotional state can be an excellent barometer of where we are at. In the middle of the two extremes we find a state of flow, in which we experience the most joy, discovery, and creativity. We should all seek to build a resilient self in which we are strong and stable, but also adaptable, flexible, and open to positive change. 

Our self-care and movement practices are excellent strategies to direct ourselves towards this state of balance. The low hanging fruit is… are we taking care of ourselves? Are we sufficient in sleep, nutrition, hydration, movement, relaxation, and social connection? What are we doing a little too much of, and what are we doing not enough of? Within the context of our movement practice, we can find even greater finesse.

Consider the following: 

During many functional movements, we have to find a balance between mobility and stability, which can be likened to chaos and rigidity, respectively. Our hips are essential for providing mobility (ability to move in all directions) and also stability (ability to maintain or control joint position). If our hip has too much mobility and not enough stability, our movement would be out of control (chaos). If we have too much stability and not enough mobility, our movement would be stiff and inefficient (rigidity). The middle of the river is an excellent place to be, which allows us to move with both fluidity and strength. 

Consider the examples of unilateral movements in our previous blog. The single leg stand to reverse lunge is an example of how the weight-bearing leg must stabilize, but also allow for controlled movement to occur. A similar phenomenon happens every time we walk, go up stairs, and even kick a ball. Our weight-bearing leg must provide stability so we do not fall or strain our tissues, while also allowing our pelvis to move relative to our thigh bone, so we can move and participate in life. Consider this “movement snack”. Can you feel how the weight-bearing leg is controlling the movement with a balance between mobility and stability? When the stabilizing leg is well organized for mobility, that is referred to as skilled movement, and is a necessary component for moving with efficiency and ease. 

At the Wellness Station, we will help you become more in tune with your natural rhythms, and provide opportunities to help you find your balance between chaos and rigidity. 

Written by Jacob Tyson, DPT - Physical Therapist, Yoga Instructor and The Wellness Station Team

References:

1. https://www.mindfulwisdom.ca/blog/2021/8/26/finding-flow-between-chaos-and-rigidity 

2. https://rhettsmith.com/2013/07/brain-integration-finding-the-balance-between-chaos-and-rigidity/

3. https://www.ekhartyoga.com/articles/philosophy/the-niyamas-svadhyaya-or-self-study