There is a belief that if nothing hurts we do not need to visit therapists and use their services. However, if we have a toothache, we should not go to the dentist for regular check-ups either? Whether it is worth it or not it is worth going for a so-called "check-up", this is what today's post is about.
How do we take care of our health? Mainly through diet, exercise, hydration, supplementation or relaxation. We go regularly to the dentist, we do all sorts of check-ups such as blood tests, women go regularly to the gynaecologist, etc.
Muscles and their effect on the body
All these activities are correct, BUT I want to stress that we are forgetting one of the very important systems of our body - the musculoskeletal system. Why is it so important? Because it is the most abundant in our bodies, with the average in men ranging from 38%-58% and in women from 28%-39%. This is a significant advantage over other tissues if we also include bone and connective tissue (tendons, ligaments, fascia). Therefore, we can say that it can influence our body in a large percentage.
Posture
Incorrectly functioning postural muscles can affect many of our body's processes, causing all sorts of effects or dysfunctions. Take, for example, an office worker who puts a daily strain on the muscles of the back and neck by sitting in front of a computer. By hunching, the muscles of the back of the neck shorten, the back muscles weaken, the shoulders move forward, the diaphragm shortens, and the upper back rounds out, creating the so-called thoracic kyphosis.
The posture adapting to the nature of the work, in the long term, most situations leads to neck pain, headaches, pain in the thoracic and lumbar spine, breathing problems, pain in the jaw, neuralgia or migraines. To me, this is as much a syndrome of repetitive strain injury as it can be. It doesn't matter if we are athletes, manual or office workers, we are exposed to overload every day. That is why it is so important to take breaks, I would even say 1-2 minutes, every hour in front of the computer.
The human body is not accustomed to repetitive movements, activity and a static lifestyle. Have you ever wondered why, when sitting in front of a computer, we start to slouch after a while? For a simple reason, the muscles that keep us in a correct posture start to get tired, because we rest in one position for too long, putting strain on them.
Static posture leads to fatigue of the postural muscles, the strain on the joints, reducing their mobility, as well as arthritis of the spine and other dysfunctions and degeneration. Also, our diaphragm can become 'shortened' in a sitting position. Causing impaired breathing, and leading to hypoxia, of our tissues and brain. It is already known that hypoxia affects our mood negatively and can even cause anxiety disorders. In addition, innervation of the diaphragm can be reduced if we have problems with the cervical spine by affecting the phrenic nerve (C3-C5), reducing the respiratory process and bringing us closer to the formation of various respiratory disorders.
Tips. That is, what to do to feel better at work and at home:
Take regular 1-2 minute breaks preferably every hour.
Stretch or roll regularly.
Strengthen your body - I recommend strength training with kettlebells or Pilates.
Train body awareness while working.
Adapt your workspace to suit your preferences, i.e. desk, chair, etc.
Visit your therapists regularly.
So is it worth doing regular maintenance treatments?
The answer is YES. I am an osteopath myself and my work is largely physical and sometimes static. Many people think that I am an osteopath then I am indestructible. Unfortunately, I am not a superman. I also have various problems myself which I try to fix regularly but often someone else does it for me. Some of my techniques require force and put a lot of strain on my body. Sometimes, after eight hours of work, I feel as if I have thrown a few tons of coal. Therefore, I believe that it is worth doing a regular "check-up" for several reasons:
it keeps us away from the back and joint problems
removes excessive tension and pain in muscles
reduces discomfort and pain at work/sport
has a relaxing and restful effect
improves circulation and innervation
improves efficiency at home, at work and in sport
reduces headaches
it saves money
I DO NOT RECOMMEND!
To fall in love with the opinion that pain "will pass by itself", in smaller cases it probably will, but it will take longer. But, biomechanical compensations can occur, overloading another part of the body. Leading to new issues with our body.
Older injuries can create scar tissue at the site of the injury. These scars can reduce mobility or chronic pain, depending on where they originated. And instead of spending less, we spend more and devote more of our time, which we often unfortunately lack.