Stop Crossing Your Legs while Sitting!
Part 1: The Pelvis as a Bong Ring
Do you cross your legs when sitting? Are you experiencing low back pain, hip pain, and possibly some pelvic floor symptoms? More importantly, how are all of these related and how can we fix it?
I would have to argue that posture is one of the single most important factors and objective measurements of a physical therapy treatment. Our body wants to be in a certain position and when it is far from “neutral” we can experience pain, tightness, and weakness.
Working From Your Desk can Cause Postural Dysfunction
In the past few months, physical therapy cases in the clinic related to abnormal posture have increased significantly. Why you may ask? I would personally have to blame this on the increases in sedentary behavior and working from desks and work spaces that are not optimized ergonomically for our bodies. We spend over 8 hours compensating with our posture because it is convenient for our lifestyle or we might not know how to change it to decrease the static stress of gravity on our bodies.
The Pelvis as a Bony Ring
If you add rotation of the pelvis to the mixture (crossing our legs or sitting on a wallet), normal activities of daily living can become complicated and painful. The pelvis is a bony ring and when it rotates, it can translate that rotation to the spine and hips/legs. Something as simple as getting up from your chair may now cause symptoms, and a simple activity such as going up/down stairs can be hard due to weakness and decreased core stability. When our pelvis isn’t in the right position the core is unable to contract and create strength the way that it normally can. When we restore the pelvis to its normal position, the low core can now activate properly and create strength within our postural system and stability for our arms and legs to move freely and without pain (within reason of course).How can we correct Postural Dysfunction with Physical Therapy?
At the Center for Spine Care and Mobility, we use a piece of exercise equipment that targets our postural core called Gravity Fit. It helps activate many of these muscles and systems that get shut down with prolonged sitting. We also use simple mat pilates techniques to de-rotate the pelvis and restore it to it’s normal position. Lastly, there are a few “muscle energy” techniques that help restore this position we can use as well. Check out the video below for an example of the pelvic clock and bridge exercises we use in the clinic.
Feel free to try these exercises at home, but if you are experiencing trouble or pain with these movements, please stop immediately. Give our office a call to schedule an appointment with a physical therapist to evaluate your symptoms and determine if these exercises are the best for you. Also, if you feel like what I described sounds familiar, you may be experiencing postural related dysfunction. Here at the Center for Spine Care and Mobility, we can evaluate this and prescribe you movement and exercises to help correct any dysfunction we find.
