Taking care of your physical self
In more recent times, many of us are spending more time at home than we used to. Working from home in less than ideal seated positions, sitting around a lot more and much more confined than we're used to being.
Here's a few things that have helped me that may help you.
There's some stretches and some self-care massage methods which may find useful.
And stretch
Pilates or Yoga are great if you have that in your skills bank but if you don't, it's important to be doing some kind of movement to keep that energy flowing and your muscles moving.
Stretching can be done easily and within your own comfort levels. Remember though, never bounce within a stretch and never take it too far. A stretch, no matter how gentle is still a productive and effective stretch if it's done properly. Always hold a stretch for at least 12 - 15 seconds. You'll be amazed at how effective this is when you repeat it 2 or 3 times.
I've noted a few helpful stretches below if you'd like to try a few.
Legs and lower back
This one is great one for so many things. If you’ve been sitting a lot, whether that’s in your normal work space, an unusual work space, driving lots or sitting on your couch more than usual. It’s also great if you’ve been walking more than the norm, standing on your feet all day or running. It stretches the muscles and connective tissue all the way from the tips of your toes, up the backs of your legs, through the lower back and up into your neck. Perfect if your legs are feeling a bit tight or you have an ache in the lower back.
Stand with your feet hip width apart.
Bend forward at the waist keeping your knees straight and allow your arms to dangle slowly towards the floor.
Bend forward until you feel any form of gentle stretch anywhere.
Hold this position for at least 12 - 15 seconds.
Take a breath in, breathe out and see if your body wants to go any further simply with gravity. Don’t push this, your body will go at the pace it’s ready for.
Again, hold this for at least 12 – 15 seconds.
Continue doing this as many times as you like, each time, feeling that gentle stretch in a different part of your body.
Once you’re done, as you breathe out, gently roll yourself back up to a standing position.
Deep lower back ache / sore knees
Sometimes our lower back discomfort can either be added to or actually coming from muscles at the front of the hips. This one takes a little patience and you may not feel this as much as some stretches but it’s incredibly effective in releasing that band of tightness around your lower torso. Obviously if you’ve got very sore knees please do use your own judgement as to whether this is suitable for you. It may cause some slight discomfort but should never be painful.
Sit on a padded surface on the floor on your knees with your ankles also flat on the floor.
Feel yourself sitting down with gravity into your heels.
Take a moment for your body to settle into this position and you should feel some gentle stretching probably at first, just above the knees or in the front of the ankles. Remember, this may take some time and is a gentle stretch.
As you breathe in and out, allow gravity to take your body lower into your heels.
As you sit further and longer into this stretch, you’ll feel it move from your ankles, into your knees, up into the quads at the front of your thighs, up into the hips.
If you feel you’d like to take this stretch further and your have a high level of flexibility, you can take the heels further apart to be able to sit closer down into the floor – please do not do this if you have serious medical issues with your knees.
You may hold this position for 30 seconds the first time before it becomes uncomfortable but that’s fine. See if you can extend on that each day.
If this is particularly uncomfortable in the fronts of the ankles then try resting more forwards leaning on your hands to begin with.
Sore neck
If you’re staring at a screen too much that’s not at eye level or looking down at your phone or tablet, you may feel the back of your neck down into the shoulders. There’s a couple of things you can do here:
Looking straight forward, put your finger on your chin
Think about that finger pushing your chin directly backwards so your head shifts straight back. I know, not the most attractive pose but it’s effective!
You’ll most likely feel this in your upper neck and around the base of the skull
Another thing you can do:
Gently and slowly, roll your head around on it’s axis.
When you feel a tight spot just hold that position. Breathe in and out and see if your body relaxes into more of a stretch. Again, don’t push this, just allow it to stretch as it wants.
Hold this 12 – 15 seconds then gently allow your head to roll into a slightly different position and feel for the next tight spot.
You’ll feel this around the front of your neck, down into the shoulders, down the back and down the sides of your neck.
Self Care Massage
If you can't get a massage session at the moment, here's a few things you could be doing for yourself.
Using a tennis ball or massage ball is great for self-care. You can use it against a wall or for certain areas lying on the floor for those hard to reach places like between the shoulders, the neck or the lower back.
You can also roll your feet over them if they're tired and sore.
You can do trigger point work for yourself. This basically means finding a specific point in the body that relieves the pain your feeling. If you find one of these areas the discomfort you feel from it should never be above a 7 out of 10 (1 being the lowest, 10 being the most pain).
Headaches
If you’re getting headaches above the eyes and at the front of the head or at the base of the skull:
Using your index finger, gently feel around your forehead working from around 1cm above the eyebrow (one side at a time) from the inside of the eyebrow to almost where it arches. If you feel an area of tenderness, gently press here until it feels less easier, this may be for around 10 or 15 seconds at the most.
For headaches around the sides of the head:
Imagine there’s an arch at about 1.5 cm around outside of your ear from the front of your hairline to the back. Again, using your index finger, gently feel around the line of that arch to see if there’s any tender areas. Gently press on each one till it feels easier for around 10 – 15 seconds at the most. You can always go back and do them again if they’re still tender.
For headaches towards the back left or right of the head:
For the left, turn your head slightly to the left. Using your left hand, pinch the bulky slightly tender part that feels like a rope just under the jawline. Pinch here till it’s a 6 out of 10 for 12 – 15 seconds.
For the right, do the same on the other side.
Sore neck
Support your left arm by the elbow.
Using your left hand, pinch along the top of your right shoulder line between the shoulder and the neck.
Swap hands and do the other side.