Flying Flutistas

Flying Flutistas

Flying Flutistas
 

The Amazing Spine: Protect Your Back, Improve Posture & Enhance Movement

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Spine close Up.001If I had to pick one word to describe the spine it would be AMAZING!  The spine supports the body, moves, protects the spinal cord, and more!  I want to help you to understand and find your “neutral spine.”  Why?  Returning to neutral spine over and over helps protect your back from pain and potential injury, improves posture, and enhances movement.  Our modern lifestyle means that caring for your spine is more important than ever!

Important spine facts everyone should know:

  • The spine spans the distance from the base of the skull (right behind the earlobe) to the level of the hip joints.
  • 24 vertebrae, 23 discs, sacrum and coccyx comprise the spine.
  • Viewing the spine from the side, its shape includes 4 natural curves.
    • 2 internal: neck and lumbar (i.e. low back)
    • 2 external: thoracic and sacrum/coccyx (i.e. tailbone).
  • At neutral, the two internal curves curve 1/2 the depth of the body front to back. (WOW!)

Take a moment right now to familiarize yourself with your own spine.  Stand in front of a mirror, use your hands to locate the top and the bottom.  Notice just how long the spine is in your body.  Move around and imagine how the long, segmented spine contributes to the movements.

So what is neutral spine anyway?

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4 Natural Curves of Neutral Spine

Neutral spine honors the 4 natrural curves of the spine.  Think of neutral as a place to return to over and over throughout the day, kind of like home.  With the help of my excellent Pilates teachers I have learned to find and return to neutral spine, you can too…

3 Steps to finding neutral spine..spine pics labeled.001

  1. Lie on the floor with knees bent, feet flat on floor.  Knees and feet – hip joint width apart.
  2. Place the meaty part of your thumbs on the two ASIS bones (the bony points on the left and right of your pelvis, found slightly below your belly button to the left & right.)
    1. Connect the thumbs in a straight line between the two ASIS.
    2. Next connect the tip of each pointer finger on the pubis symphysis. This is where the two pelvic bones meet in the front.
    3. Your fingers outline a diamond, imagine a teacup sitting on the surface of this diamond.
  3. Tip your pelvis forward and back.  You are probably noticing that your spine and head move in response to this pelvic movement.  Gradually make the forward and back movement smaller and smaller until you come to a rest with the diamond parallel with the floor, so that the teacup will not spill.  Celebrate, you have found your neutral spine!

Ask yourself the following questions about neutral spine..

  • Does neutral spine feel familiar or strange to me?
  • Do I feel more or less curvature in the lower back?
  • Has my breathing changed?
  • What else do I notice?
  • Make a note of the changes.

Now that you have experienced neutral spine lying down, you can use it to compare to standing, sitting, exercising, flying through the air and more.  If you notice your spine isn’t in neutral, go ahead and restore neutral.  If you cannot remember what neutral feels like, repeat the steps above.  The more often you remind yourself about what neutral feels like, the easier it is to return to neutral!

When I began Pilates, my lumbar spine immediatley sunk down to the floor, similar to the picture on the left.  The natural curves had diminished and my muscles were working hard and there was pressue on the nerves.  With practice, the balance of my postural muscles changed and I naturally come to neutral, like in the picture on the right.

Neutral - notice the space between the low back and the floor.

Neutral – notice the space between the low back and the floor.

Distorted spinal curves. There is no space between the lower back and the floor.

Diminished spinal curves. There is no space between the lower back and the floor.

 

 

 

 

 

 

On the inside, my spine looks like this…

Distorted spinal curves.

Distorted spinal curves.

Natural curves of the spine!

Natural curves of the spine!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Discomfort and pain in your back and neck can be a signal to check in on your spine and restore neutral.  Neutral spine beautifully supports the head, arms and torso along with movement.

In terms of finding neutral spine, your “body map” is your guide.  This is your mind’s picture of the spine, and it has a lot to do with how you stand, sit, and move.  Scientists have found that how we think we are designed  (the body map) dictates how we actually move. The more you visit neutral, the more familiar it is, and the clearer your body map becomes.  One of the great things about body maps is you can update and refine them throughout your lifetime, and that is what you just did. Bravo!

Go forth and return to neutral throughout your day!  Don’t stop here, continue to learn about your amazing spine to uncover equisite freedom and ease as you put an end to back discomfort. I would love to know what you discover.

 

Releasing Trigger Points

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I have been trying to release trigger points in a couple of key muscles recently.  My trouble spots include the anterior deltoid, pectoralis minor and a back muscle (which I have not been able to identify.)  These triggers points have been the sources of some discomfort and limited movement lately.

The discomfort  is a signal for me to tune into my body using the kinesthetic sense, and encourage movement in the affected muscles in gentle ways.  Here is what I do…

  1. Use whole body awareness as I move through my day, approaching tasks in an ergonomic way.
  2. Map the location and function of the muscles affected by the trigger points.  Where are they located?  How are they designed to move?
  3. Perform gentle massage on the whole muscle, then target the trigger point by massaging across the muscle fibers & over the trigger point.  This can be uncomfortable, but I encourage the muscle to unwind  by using enough pressure.
  4. Rest!  Taking a few minutes out to lie on the floor and rest gives the whole body a break.  The Constructive Rest Guide is a great tool for rest that is rejuvenating and healing.
  5. Move!
  • Knowing a muscle’s function allows me to utilize a small range of motion to gently move the muscle as it is intended.  As I do this, I tune into the fine line between comfortable movement and uncomfortable movement. Over time the scope of comfortable movement increases, allowing the movements I use to increase as well.
  • Passive movement of the muscle is another great tool.  An example of this is holding one elbow with the other hand, and using the holding hand to rotate the upper arm. This allows the shoulder muscles to go along for the ride as the upper arm is being moved.

This week, the trigger points have or are beginning to release.  Hooray!   Integrating anatomically accurate movement into all that you do is one of the best ways to take care of yourself and avoid musculoskeletal injury.  If aches and pains persist it is essential to see an experienced health care professional to rule out more serious conditions.  Happy Moving!

Hip Joint Power

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Assisting people in finding their hip joints is one of my favorite things to teach!  I am always in awe of the changes throughout the body that emanate from simply releasing the hip joints.

Hip joints are powerful joints for moving (walking, running, doing a split), with global implications for ease or patterns of tension in the body.  Often misperceived as “hips” – a part of the body whose existence most would rather not acknowledge, the hip joints are the connection between the torso and the legs, the anatomical middle of the body from top to bottom.  One’s hip joints can be the source of movement joy or a source of movement misery.

I HATE MY HIPS! In an effort to create the illusion of smaller “hips” many people tighten their hip flexors, pulling the legs in, therefore restricting the natural range of motion of the joints. This wears the joint irregularly, and causes discomfort, aches and pains.

WHAT TO DO?  Find your hip joints!  Locate the place where the ball of the upper leg bone meets the socket on pelvis.  You can do this lying down in a semi-supine position, and palpating the “hip” area as you move a leg.  The front of the joint can be found in the angled crease between the leg and torso. Notice how far in from the outside of the leg your hip joints are located. (I bet they are closer to your midline than you thought.)  From these ball and socket joints, the leg moves forward, back, out to the side, across the midline and in rotation.  Explore movement!  This is also the place where the torso is designed to bow in relation to the legs.  (I like to use Pilates exercises such as “leg circles”, and “single leg stretch” to locate and increase hip joint awareness and range of motion.)

Now that you have located your hip joints, you can learn to move the legs with precision and ease, and you can release from a locked hip joint position into balance when standing.  To find balance from a locked position, simply allow the hip joints to move back in space an inch or two.  Notice how this frees muscles throughout the body, which can be the key to avoiding or healing from the tension that limits musical and athletic performance, and is often the root of back, neck and arm pain and injury.

Working on my “split gazelle” on the static trapeze, and performing reminds me again to move from my hip joints.  My split gazelle is not a full split yet, but the angle of my split increases each week. On stage, I return to balance at the hip joints over and over, in order to free the muscles of the pelvic floor for better breathing, and access the long arm lines that support my instrument and technique without unnecessary work.

Body Mapping is a great way to learn more about your hip joints and learn to release them.  If you or your performance suffers, the Flutistas can help you to learn more about the power (and freedom) of your hip joints!

Lower Back Strain

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Valentine’s Day!  I can think of so many things I would like to be doing for my loved ones, but alas I am flat on my back.  Shoveling 2 feet of snow, and sledding down bumpy hills has added up to a strained lower back.  What to do?  The most important thing I can do is listen to my body, and actively address the discomforts I am experiencing.  Ice, heat, alleve, electro stimulation and rest are the prescription!  This prescription is frustrating.  I can’t help my daughter pack for her upcoming trip, create special lunches for the girls, or go to rehearsal, or fly in trapeze class.  I keep in mind that this is temporary, inconvenient, but still temporary!  What I am doing at this time is finding ways to explore subtle movement of the spine, head, arms, and legs; encouraging muscles to move gently, accessing deeper layers of muscle, and showing the tight muscles the freedom they can enjoy too!  I am using the movements I learned in Bones For Life class.  Believe it or not I am learning a lot and enjoying this challenging process.

Later on today- muscles are releasing, movement is returning.

Stress

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I had a powerful reminder of the toll that stress takes on the body this week.  Tuesday was the deadline for an application.  I have felt anxious about completing the application for awhile.  Originally, I hoped we would be done before Christmas, but alas life got in the way, and it had to wait.  As we pulled the final pieces together this week, I noticed feelings of discomfort invading my body, particularly in my arms and hands.  By Tuesday, I was convinced the upper body workouts I  have been doing were too much for my delicate hands, and resigned to discontinue them.  Feelings of tingling and burning in my hands, along muscle fatigue in my arms were my cue to take ownership of wellness.  To do this,  I limited time at the computer, took regular breaks from playing, and increased my basic awareness of how I use my arms throughout the day.  Tuesday passed, and slowly over the next days, the discomforts subsided.  I am thankful that the tingling and fatigue are gone, but am reminded about the importance of self-care.  Going forward as I engage in activities I will continue to put my well-being first, by taking the time to stretch, taking time off when needed,  and caring for the incredible machine, my body, which allows me to swing through the air with the greatest of ease (sometimes.)

Recovering from Injuries

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I’m still recovering from my injury the other week, so I’ve been reflecting back on the advice I’ve received from teachers, mentors and doctors over the years about the process of recovery.

How do you know when it’s time to stop resting and get back to the activity?  Sometimes it’s difficult to know.  This last Friday I was feeling like I might be ready.  The pain had stopped, and I had full range of arm motion, though it seemed like I might have some residual stiffness that needed to be worked through.  I warmed up slowly and thoroughly, so my muscles would be warm and flexible.  I spoke to my teachers about my concerns and what had been going on since I last saw them.  I then very slowly and mindfully worked my way up to executing a trick.  First, I approached the static trapeze (reachable from the ground), and just tried hanging to see how it felt.  It felt ok.  Second, I did a plain old swing (no trick).  That also felt ok.  Next was a trick, so I gave my pullover pump shoot a try.  It went just fine the first time.  Second time on the pullover pump shoot was not as good.  So, upon the advice of my teacher I took a few minutes to lay down and allow the adrenaline to leave my system so I could see how my body really felt before I tried to go back up again.  I noticed some pain unfortunately, so I decided to quit for the day.

Sometimes it can be difficult to know when it’s time to hop back into an activity, be it flying trapeze or playing the flute.  At times rest is necessary, especially if there has been tissue damage.  In this instance there was inflammation.  If there is inflammation, what I’ve heard over and over from doctors and teachers (and confirmed in my own experience) is that it’s important to treat it ASAP (definitely within 24 hours).  Ice is always my first choice for helping to reduce inflammation.  Upon my doctor’s advice, I am also using ibuprofen which has an anti-inflammatory effect when taken at a dose of 600-800mg.  Since ibuprofen is a Cox-2 inhibitor, it also helps with pain.  Large doses of ibuprofen may not be a great choice if you’re going back to your activity, as it could prevent you from receiving important messages of pain from your body; but during my period of rest from activity, it’s working well to keep me comfortable 🙂

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