How to chill out…
While it’s impossible to lead a completely stress-free life, finding ways to unwind and “chill out” are key to retaining your energy levels and ultimately your sanity when you have a demaning job.
There are as many techniques to decompress as there are human beings; but when it comes to finding inner calm, practices such as mindfulness, meditation and meditation are usually top of mind. Although these are great tools they don’t appeal to everyone. Personally I love both yoga and adult colouring books. But what can you do it none of these apeal.
My golden rule is any activity that is enjoyable and absorbs you to the extent that you aren’t aware of the time and you stop thinking about work helps you unwind and chill out. So you can choose any activity that helps you distracting your mind from everyday pressures and you love. Once you have choose your activity do it often, and put it in your diary and don’t feel guilty – we all need time out.
One free, easy activity is just going for a stroll. I don’t mean walking fast to hit your 10,00 steps per day target. Just go for a stroll for the sake of it.
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What is a muscle cramp?
What is a muscle cramp? Normal movement of our bodies involves muscles alternating between contract and relaxation. A muscle that contracts involuntarily and is unable to relax is a spasm; and a forceful and prolonged spasm becomes a cramp. A muscle cramp can last anywhere from a few seconds to up to 15 minutes or occasionally longer. Any muscle can develop a cramp, but the most common site for muscle cramps are the legs, particularly the front of the thighs (quadriceps), back of the thighs (hamstrings) and calf muscles (gastrocnemius & soleus). Unfortunately almost everyone, one estimate is 95% of the population will experience a muscle cramp at some time in their life. Muscle cramps are one of those things that also increases as we get older. Those of you that have already had a muscle cramp will undoubtedly remember the unrelenting pain! Tip: Most muscle cramps can be stopped if the muscle can be stretched. Muscle spasms & cramps are one of the most common complaints that massage therapists deal with.
Is slouching that bad for you? – part 3
Modern man is born to slouch. But he rarely considers the long term potential consequences:
In addition it may also make you... Sad and Shy A study of 110 students by San Francisco State University last year found those who walked with a slouched body posture reported feeling more depressed and having lower energy levels than those who were more upright. Study leader Erik Peper, a professor of health education at the university, says sitting or standing up straight with shoulders back does not just give other people a good impression, but also sends a message to the brain that makes us feel better about ourselves. ‘We tend to think the brain and body relationship goes one way. In fact, the passages go both ways. ‘When you choose to put your body in a different mode, it’s harder to drop into depression.’ Meanwhile, in a 2007 study at Colorado College, students with the best sitting posture felt more confident — and scored significantly higher on tests — than those who sat slumped. Interestingly, though, the trend was only true for male students. Women felt more confident if they’d slouched, possibly because men tend to determine how they feel according to internal cues, while women think more about how they look to others — for them an upright posture made them feel pressured and self-conscious. So sit up straight!
