Hey, hey !
Happy Friday! Good afternoon. How are you today?
Today, I wanted to pop in to talk about hips....
I sit a lot, due to work. How about you?
I went from training people on my feet all day in the gym 5-6 days a week, and in my garage studio, before I started my Online Strength and Nutrition Coaching.
I have to remind myself multiple times a day to get up. I even start my day with a walk most days before I pop down in my work chair to coach my clients.
Cause if I don't my hips be talking to me, as well as my right glute.
So, do you sit pretty often for work or road trips, etc.? - I do for road trips as well. When Jeff and I are traveling, we can be on the road for 6-8 hours at time for multiple days in a row.
Wooo, weeee!
When you finally get there, your body is so mad at you when you get out of the car!
Like, it almost refuses to straighten up all the way and let you walk like a normal human being!
Your hips and back feel soooo locked up and you end up shuffling like the Tin Man (one of my favorite movies) across the parking lot before you can move freely again?
As you know, the same happens with sitting a lot for work, or what have you.
Except not only do your hips and back feel locked, but also your shoulders and neck.
OUCHIE, right!
If this is something that happens on a regular basis, it can land you in a no-win cycle of aches & pains, and maybe even injury.
It goes something like this:
- You get aches & pains because your muscles are tight from not moving.
- So you end up moving even less, because you have aches & pains.
You can see how over time; this can put some real limits on your lifestyle and even your health!
The good news is that there are some SIMPLE things you can do to break the cycle (and even avoid it in the first place).
Here are a few quick ways to get the job done:
- Move! Every hour stand up and move around for a few minutes. Set a timer to make this happen. If you're on a road trip, take a little walk during rest stops - we get out at just about every truck & rest
stop.
- Get a Standup Desk or Portable Laptop Stand so that you can alternate between standing and sitting throughout the day!
- Roll. Use a foam roller to loosen up tight spots. Gently roll any trouble spots to help break up knots.
- A lacrosse ball or tennis ball works great for loosing up the glutes too!
- Stretch. Your hip flexors can get super tight when you sit a lot. This can cause a chain reaction in your other muscles, making them get tighter or weaker. Keeping them
flexible now can help you avoid injury in the future.
Here's a great sitting pigeon stretch to help your hip flexors!
