As every physical therapist knows, an adult’s posture depends on both the internal support offered by the muscles, ligaments and bones as well as external supports like braces, lumber cushions, and ergonomically correct furniture. Most adults have suffered some amount of trauma in their lives. Skiing, skateboarding, jogging, team sports all involve risks to the human body. After years of slow wear and tear on the joints, our bodies can become imbalanced, weakness on one side of a joint, tightness on the other. Outright strains, sprains, tears and breaks contribute to this combined weakness and restriction. The end result: pain.
Pain is a wonderful signal that something is not right. Our backs ache at the end of the day. They are saying: “You need to do some sit-ups! Lose the flab that’s pulling on me! How about stretching while you’re at it?” Our abdominals weaken with age and the pull of gravity. We forget to hold our stomachs in during the day, contributing to more weakness. Our hamstrings (muscles that run down the back of our thighs and bend our knees) and our hip flexors (muscles that run from our spines to our thighbones and bend our hips) become tight and tilt our pelvises too far forward. Our low back muscles shorten. The result: a beer gut posture whether we drink or not, and a painful low back.
The solution:
1.Stretch your low back muscles: Lie on your back, hug your knees. Hold for at least 30”.
2.Stretch your hamstrings: Standing, lean forward and let your upper body hang limply, keeping your knees straight. Don’t bounce or force yourself to touch the floor. Just hang there and your hamstrings will slowly unlock and stretch.
Alternative position #1: Place one foot about 15” in front of the other. Keep your knees straight and place your hands on the forward knee. Don’t twist. Stick your hips out to the back until you feel the stretch behind your forward knee. Hold for 30”.
Alternative position #2: Lie on your back with one leg through a doorway. Keep this leg flat! Place the other heel on the wall near the doorway and inch it up the wall until you feel a pull on the back of your knee when you straighten it. Hold for 30”.
3.Strengthen your abdominal muscles: Lie on your back and bend your knees, placing your feet flat on the floor. Reach for your knees and lift your head. Do not come all the way up, just hold the position. Count to 20. Repeat 10 times. Now lay with your head and arms flat and lift your knees up to your chest. Actively lift your legs. Hold to 20 and repeat 10 times.
4.Use a lap desk and other supportive furniture when you read, write, eat, hold a book, or use a laptop computer. To use a lap desks, scoot to the back of the armchair or bed. Place a small pillow behind your lumbar spine to support the curve. (A small curve in your low back is normal, as long as you can still contract your abdominal muscles. When relaxing, however, our abs will relax too, and then a small pillow is helpful.) Place the lap desk on your lap and then your books, paper, dinner, etc. The cushion will bring your work up closer to your eyes and decrease strain on the shoulders, neck, eyes and low back.
5.Eat less. Volumes have been written on nutrition, weight and health. These issues will not be covered here, except to say that researching your particular nutritional and caloric needs is always wise. Excess weight pulls mightily at our joints, increasing strain on already aging structures. Be kind to your body; stay at your ideal weight, stretch and exercise. Consult with a physical therapist. And use a lap desk when you work away from the table or desk.
Kathleen Hogan is the owner of Lap of Luxury Lap Desks, a website offering wooden lap trays hand-made in Eugene, Oregon.
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