Neck Pain + Gravity (Continued)
Now, some of these suggestions are going to seem too simple. Why is it that as we live in the world of complexity, we tend to not value the simple solutions as if they are too impotent to really change something? Well, when it comes to solutions and the body, the simple answers often are without side effects and actually address the cause of the problem. The simplest recommendation is to just do the opposite of the posture you are persistently in which is usually being flexed forward. Here are a few ideas: a. Stand up and gently reach your arms back behind you, open your hands and squeeze your shoulder blades together, you should feel some stretching in your chest/pectorals (big pulling down muscle). Hold for 5-10 seconds and do often b. While sitting (safer), place your hands behind your lower neck (prisoner position) and look up at the ceiling, hold for 5 – 10 seconds and do this often as long as it does not create pain, dizziness, or numbness. Younger necks tolerate this better, older necks may need PT or guidance due to more arthritis and neck rigidity. c. Go for a walk at lunch and move your arms, look around at the world, move your neck from being forward and straight for hours. d. Come home and lay on the floor with your knees bent 90 degrees and propped on a chair or couch, have enough pillow or towel under your head to feel comfortable and lay there for 10-15 minutes to allow your spine to straighten and head to slowly retract. This is a skillful process for the older neck which may be quite forward, think about having a PT help you.
e. Learn how to use pillows correctly so you are not contributing to a forward head while you sleep. We do that here too. Each of these suggestions just use the opposite positioning concept in different ways. The short-term actions are good to help avoid the effects of work on your neck, but laying for 10 minutes with the right understanding really gives one some opportunity to assist in the reversal of a forward head. There are many other tactics to help you and gravity get along better and help you maintain or improve your posture. The more centered your posture against gravity, the less hard your muscles have to work to compensate for what usually is occurring unconsciously until it is too late and we then are forced to use pain to motivate us to take action. At Full Potential, we believe the body is made right. You know, a really good engineer put this thing together, unfortunately we just use it incorrectly over time. We have the answers, techniques and tools for you to maximize the engineer’s design over your lifetime. We are here to help when you are ready to learn. Knowledge is understanding, and understanding is everything when it comes to prevention. If you have a neck or musculoskeletal problem that is robbing you of your enjoyment of life, family and friends, call us today, get a free consult or get a referral from your doctor; get some help, life is too short to live it in pain.Health and Happiness,
Vincent Hanneken, PT
Healthy Recipe
G R I L L E D S H R I MP TA C O S W I T H S I R A C H A S L AW
INGREDIENTS • 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil • 3 tbsp. freshly chopped cilantro • juice of 3 limes, divided • kosher salt • 1 lb. large shrimp, peeled & deveined
• freshly ground black pepper • 1/4 head red cabbage, shredded • 1/4 c. mayonnaise • 1 tbsp. sriracha • 4 medium tortillas
DIRECTIONS In a small bowl, mix together olive oil, cilantro, and 1/3 of the lime juice. Season with salt and pepper. Add shrimp to a baking dish and pour over mixture. Toss until completely coated and let marinate 20 minutes. Meanwhile, make slaw: In a large bowl, toss cabbage with mayo, remaining lime juice and sriracha. Season with salt. Heat grill to high. Skewer shrimp and grill until charred, 3 minutes per side. Grill tortillas until charred, 1 minute per side. Serve shrimp in tortillas with slaw.
www.fullpotentialpt.com
www.fullpotentialpt.com
Made with FlippingBook Learn more on our blog