4 Essentials of Spinal Care: #4 Increase Activity

In our last post we went over the 4 essentials of spinal care.

1. Head and Neck Alignment

2. Spinal Stability

3. Hip Mobility

4. Increase Activity

In this post we will dive into the details of #4 Increase Activity. Activity is simply the amount of time you are moving your body. Activity can be anything from walking, running, yoga to grocery shopping and cleaning, anything where your body is in motion. Inactivity is anything where you are stationary like sitting, working at a desk or watching tv. If you inactive all day at work for 8 hours and go to the gym for 1 hour. That 1 hour of activity does not make up for the 8 hours of inactivity. When you are inactive your metabolism slows, blood does not move throughout your body as efficiently and joints are not lubricated and get stiff.

3 Simple Solutions to Increase Activity:

1. Set a reminder or timer

Whether we are engulfed in our work, entranced by a show or mindlessly scrolling on our phone the concept of time can get lost. It is important to set a reminder or a timer to get up and get moving every 20-30 minutes. Apples watches can remind you every hour which is good but every 20-30 is ideal.

2. Be Intentional

There are many opportunities throughout the day to increase activity. For example next time take the stairs instead of the elevator, park further away next time you go shopping. These small increases in activity can make a huge difference. "Little by little, a little becomes a lot"- Tanzanian Proverb.

3. Mindset

I am guilty of this too! I used to believe that because I worked out earlier in the day or was planning on working out later in the day I didn't need to be as active. Don't get me wrong recovery is important but it is not an excuse to sit on the couch all day. But if you do sit on the couch all get just be sure to at least stand up every 20-30 minutes.

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