Three years ago I started suffering from low back pain. I did my daily yoga in the evening, my frequent laps at the pool 3-4 times a day, I saw osteopaths, but the pain persisted. For the first time in my life I could not bend forward without the help of my hands on my legs. I thought this was getting serious and decided I was too young to get this stiff. I have always had a pretty flexible body, this could not be the end of it yet!
I needed to better the condition, thus I needed to find the cause. Stress, fatigue, overwork: many reasons like these were suggested to me. But what was the most obvious was that I had radically changed my life, going back to study 6-8 hours a day, glued to my desk, books and computer to get my new degree. And I was not 18 like during my first degree! I finally graduated, and hop!, as by magic, my back pain disappeared. I stopped sitting insanely for those long hours with no interruption and I went back to a more healthy life. Further, I could now offer help to others!, in this and other health issues thanks to that degree.
That the human body was not designed for a sitting position is obvious to everyone: after all, we do not have a number 4 shape. What happens to the body when one sits for long hours is deep.
The body is composed of 206 bones that articulate through many joints that allow us to move and produce very complicated actions, thanks to the coordination of our muscles that insert on these bones. Such body has evolved for a very active life, for movement and not for stillness. If one keeps a position for a long time, muscular tensions appear. So sitting and being static for long hours create contractions and tensions that appear as pain: back, neck, shoulders, buttocks, wrist pain… The lack of movement slows and blocks the flow of blood and body lymph which are necessary for hydrating and nourishing all tissues, including muscles, tendons and ligaments. Keeping a fixed position for a long time creates a progressive lack of oxygen to the tissues, and this repeats the cycle of pain.
A sustained sitting position produces:
- A long-term restriction of the hip joint
- A softening of the abdominal belt, especially at the level of the transverse muscle, and a weakening of the paravertebral muscles that keep our vertebral column erect.
- Modification and limitation of our breathing action.
- Removal of our natural lumbar curve which place the vertebral disks under a huge strain and cause lumbar pain.
- Inhibition of the large gluteus muscles that are not stimulated to extend the hip, their normal action, used in walking, running, etc. Such extension is supplied by the paravertebral muscles which can cause overcharging of the back.
- Creation of a bending of shoulders and head towards the front, weakening the shoulder-blade muscles and shortening the neck and pectoral muscles.
- Change of our center of gravity due to these muscular tensions.
When it is necessary to sit for long hours, it is important to move every 15-20 minutes, to get up, stretch, walk and breath at full capacity. Small, short by frequent pauses allow the circulatory movements and the relaxation of unconscious tensions.
So, set up an alarm system on your computer, and get up. Stretch your arms to the ceiling extending your whole body vertically. Rotate your waist left and right with the help of your arms, by keeping your hips fixed. Take a few long steps. Rotate your legs around the hips. Breath deeply for 5 minutes. And go back to work well oxygenated and with well lubricated joints!
I just came back from a fantastic trekking tour in the marvelous forests and mountains of South Islands of New Zealand. We did a Routeburn + Greenstone + Caples trek of 7 days and 6 nights, camping in the most beautiful spots that nature offers in this part of the planet.
Three of us, one tent, a total of 148 years of age, all fit but not athletes, normally spending most of our time on books, computer or in labs, being three scientists in different disciplines: fisheries, genetics and natural medicine.
While planning for things to put into the packs before leaving Matapouri, one of the major issues was the weight that food items for 7 + 1 (emergency day!) would have and if we could manage more than 100 km charged like donkeys. We browsed the different possibilities for feeding while tramping in the market of camping food (very few options indeed: one brand in New Zealand?) and we distorted our noses from reading labels on freeze-dry food packages for campers. I am after all a nutritionist and things like preservatives, artificial flavors, thickeners, sugar, salt, vegetable oil (not better identified), hydrolysed vegetable protein from maize and soy, glucose, fruit oil (?), milk powder, acidity regulators…did not have the sound of healthiness.
I decided to ask Google for help in finding the easiest, lightest, and healthiest way to feed three hard walking people in the bush. I ended up preparing my own menu, using my knowledge of what is a real good food (for your belly and for your arteries), my Italian cooking tradition and a little bit of creativity, along with tidbits from Universities on how to dry your own food! It took a few hours of shopping in supermarkets, bulk shops and health food shops and a day in the kitchen and our meals were ready, individually packed in ziplock bags for each of us, breakfast, snack, lunch and dinner, and even a dessert and cordial for the harshest days!
I did it for fun, economy (freeze-dry food IS expensive – this is the common comment you get on the web), and to test if we could construct a good enough diet to feed and satisfy ourselves in our little camping-trekking adventure! What I did not expect was the enthusiasm and acclamation form my trekking buddies (well, a bit of a skewed sample of reviewers since one is my husband and the second one a dear friend of mine who came all the way from UK to visit NZ!). Nevertheless everybody enjoyed the fresh gingeroot tea and sweet and spicy sugarless porridge in the morning, the fruity-chocolaty-nutty snacks, the lovely hearty homemade cookies, the buckwheat and quinoa with veggies as well as the polenta with mushroom for the cold nights! Not to speak about our dark chocolate and finally grappa…for when a herbal tea was not enough to put us to sleep!
I loved everything about this trip, the people, the environment, the forest – rivers – mountains – bush, sleeping out, and eating our funny savory and nourishing meals!
I am also grateful to Kinesio-tape that protected my usually fragile knees and the back of my thighs. No lactic acid could stop us with the help of this protective and corrective tool!
