Long drives are an unavoidable part of life on the farm or in the country. Whether it is long days spent in a tractor or driving across the Prairies, we often have to put our bodies in sedentary positions just by the nature of our lifestyles.
Tension and pain in the lower body, spine and even the upper body can be associated with sedentary positions or postures. Research has shown it only takes 20 minutes for our connective tissues to begin stiffening into the shape of a held posture, which leaves most of us without a chance over an eight-hour day of driving!
My first recommendation for those having to do long days in a vehicle or in a seated position is working to do a small movement break at least every hour or two. These may only align with pit stops during a long drive or tractor session, but a few simple movements to break up the day can be valuable in maintaining healthy tissue tone.
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Essentially, the best way to move if you’ve been sitting for extended periods is by gently creating opposite movements in the body. Bending and straightening the legs, shaking the legs out, going up and down onto your tiptoes a few times, gently twisting through the spine in each direction with big inhales and exhales, arm circles in both directions and gently moving the head side to side are all great places to start. If it feels OK for you, standing with knees gently bent and folding forwards toward the ground is a great full body stretch that can be done anywhere (try widening the legs for a deeper version).
On top of taking regular breaks from driving, wherever possible, we can do a few things while seated to keep things moving on some level.
The mechanism of breathing through our diaphragm will support consistent cardiovascular and lymphatic function through the whole body. As I’ve mentioned in previous articles, breathing physically moves us from the inside out. Imagine you are inflating a balloon with the inhales — send the breath into the mid-body, working to inflate the balloon to the front, sides and back. Inhale for four to five seconds, and then on the exhales let the balloon deflate completely over six to eight seconds. If you’re feeling like you need a little extra energy, using the breath in an equal rhythm of four to five seconds in, then same count out, or creating a more connected breath of four in and four out with no pause between the two, can increase energy and focus levels when done over 10 to 20 rounds.
Moving our pelvis forwards and backwards, imagining you are tucking in your tailbone and then lifting it up, can be a lovely gentle movement for the spine and hips when we cannot do larger movements. Additionally, moving the shoulders, shrugging up with an inhale and releasing down with an exhale, can be a simple way to relieve tension in the neck and shoulders while keeping the area moving during longer stints of driving.
Keeping the body hydrated will also support less tension or stiffness overall. As much as we all like to rely on coffee, it acts as a dehydrator for our body. On longer drives it is important for adults to be drinking a minimum of two litres of water daily — and as an added benefit the potential extra pit stops will allow for a few movement breaks.
