Aerocise - Exercise for the airplane traveller

Author A.S. Padgett

Have you noticed that, when you sit still for too long, your joints and muscles start to feel stiff? It’s because your body needs to move!

If you are someone who travels by airplane, you might be curious to hear that being in a seated position for more than 40 minutes, as you are forced to on long and short haul flights, can induce numerous back and posture problems. The human body simply was not designed to sit still for hours at a time. It was designed to be very active – which is why the body is made up of so many joints! Sitting still does not promote good circulation and muscle tone, two essentials of a healthy working body.

Furthermore, the risks and effects of DVT (deep vein thrombosis) have been hugely publicised and well documented in the media, so keeping relatively active during airplane travel will help you keep your risk to a minimum.
‘Aerocise’ has been designed to provide exactly that – movement and stretching for your body in a series of simple-to-perform exercises, to help you gently tone your muscles and maintain mobility in your joints. They will also help to relieve you of some of the boredom of sitting with only the view of the seat in front of you to amuse you!

Let’s get started. First, though, here are some basics:

YOUR SEATED POSITION:

Try always to sit with the spine in neutral posture. "Neutral posture" refers to the resting position of each joint - the position in which there is the least tension or pressure on nerves, tendons, muscles and bones. The spine naturally assumes an S-shaped curve. The upper spine (thoracic region) is bent gently out; the lower spine (lumbar region) is bent gently in. The spine is not rotated or twisted to the left or right, and it is not bent to the left or right. The trunk does not bend forward (flexion) or backward (extension) by very much –adjusting the back of your seat to provide your back with the necessary support may help.

A simple guide to help you decide if you are sitting with the desired posture is this: Imagine that you have a drop of water falling from the chin…. It should land directly onto the top of the sternum (chest bone). If you are bending or slouching forward the water will land somewhere in your lap instead!

Position yourself so that your:

· Head is balanced on the spinal column. It is not tilted forward, back or to either side. It is not rotated to the left or right.

· Shoulders are relaxed, neither hunched up nor pulled down, and upper arms hang normally at the side of the body.

· Elbows stay in close to the body, with your Hands resting on your knees.

· Knees are about the same height as the hips with the feet slightly forward and fully supported by the floor (presuming the seat height allows this!)

Now you are ready to begin. Ideally, repeat each of the exercises twice, and repeat the whole routine about every two hours, but feel free to perform more repetitions than this – the toes and ankles exercises can be performed so discreetly no one else will realise they are happening!

One further point – as I have already explained, sitting still for even only 40 minutes at a time is far from ideal, so, if you are able (without upsetting the airline staff!), get up and have a walk along the aisle every half an hour or so. Your body will feel grateful to stretch your legs!

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