Holiday Traveling Tips

With the Holiday season coming up lots of you may be traveling for the holidays. Whether it's driving back and forth to the mall or taking long  trips to visit family, you are putting new and in many cases unusual stresses on your body that it is not used to going through. Here are a couple tips to help reduce those stresses that you may encounter during travel over the holidays.

In the car:

Adjust your seat: Move as close to the steering wheel as comfortably possible. Your knees should be a little bit higher than your hips. You should be able to place four fingers in and out of the space under your thigh closest to your knee.

Use back support: The use of a low back support can decrease the risk of low back pain or injury. You should place the widest part of the support between the bottom of your rib cage and your waistline.

Keep moving: This can reduce the risk of swelling, fatigue, or discomfort. Move your toes up, down, in, and out.  Count to five while you tighten your calf muscles, then your thigh muscles, and then your gluteal muscles. Also roll your shoulders forward and back, but mak sure to keep your hands on the steering wheel and your eyes on the road!

Loosen your grip: To decrease arm and hand tension hold the steering wheel at about 3 o'clock and 7 o'clock, with periodically switching to 10 o'clock and 5 o'clock. Also don't hold the steering wheel so tight. By loosening your grip you can improve hand circulation and decrease fatigue in the arms, wrists, and hands.

Take breaks: Taking breaks periodically can help with fatigue. Don't forget to stretch while taking that break to help relieve tension in those areas that may have tightened up over the duration of the ride.

In an Airplane:

Keep the legs moving:  Prolonged sitting can cause a build-up of pressure in the blood vessels of your lower leg.  Contracting and relaxing the muscles, as if you were pumping your car breaks, helps the blood flow properly.

Keep back tension to a minimum: Your spine has a natural "S" curve. So before you settle in use rolled up pillows or blankets to help maintain that curve when you sit and take some tension off your back. Put a pillow behind your back just above the beltline and use another small pillow or blanket for the gap between your neck and the headrest. For worn down seats uses folded blankets to help raise you up.

Check heavy bags: Check bags that are heavier than 5-10% of your body weight. When you lift overhead you want to avoid lifting any significant amount of weight. This can reduce the risk of pain in the lower back and neck. Make sure that you stand right in front of the overhead compartment so the spine and neck is not rotated when you lift your bags.

Bag stowing: Be nice when stowing bags under the seat. Do not force the bags using an awkward motion or angle of your legs, feet, or arms as this may cause strains or spasms in the upper thighs and lower back. Instead sit in your seat first and using your hands and feet gently guide your bags into the area.

Vary your position: Vary your position in your seat occasionally to improve circulation and avoid leg cramps. You should massage your legs and calves and move your legs in and out, up and down. Also try propping your legs up on a book or a bag under your seat.

Watch where you sit: Do not sit directly under the air controls. The draft can increase tension in your neck and shoulder muscles.

The holidays should be enjoyed and there is no need to put a damper on these joyous times with friend and family because you're in pain. Make sure that you take care of your body in these times of long and stressful travel, so you can have a happy and safe holiday.