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Guest: Yogini Shinde – Physiotherapist, MPT in cardio respiratory system.

• How do you consult patients during lockdown?

-I’ve been consulting them online, sharing videos, teaching exercise techniques on a video call, giving diet advice via calls.

-What kind of patients are you getting during lockdown?

-There are client complaints with back pain as they spend their day working from home and they end up sitting in the same posture for a long time.

-They asked me what to do with it, I advised them to sit with the right posture. Have a full back support, the back should be rested so that the spine is relaxed.

-There were people with neck pain as they tend to slouch, their neck is bent, because it’s not getting proper support, that is why the muscles get strained and it causes pain.

-I advise them to take breaks every 20-25 minutes, sitting for a long time will give them pain in their back and neck.

• Stretching exercises to relieve pain

1. For neck: Sitting straight like you’re lifting your heart upward, try to touch your ear to the same side of the shoulder – hold 20 seconds – 3 times, take their chin towards the chest, then take it backwards till you see the ceiling – hold 20 seconds – 3 times, rotation in a slow speed – 3 times.
2. For shoulder: Clenching your fingers in front of you with the elbow straight, then take your fingers above your head and take a deep breath, exhale as you bring your arms in front of you – 20 seconds.
3. Back pain: It is due to the shortening of hamstring muscles, if the hamstrings are tight then the spine will go wrong in posture and that will give you a pain in the back. Stretching is very important, to stretch your hamstrings, you can sit – keep your legs straight in front of you and try to touch your toes while keeping your knees straight. Add exhalation with this so that you can reach more range – 20 seconds – 3 times.

• Uncommon issues 

-Elbow and wrist pain: I’ve had clients who have elbow and wrist pain due to typing continuously for longer durations, the main reason for this is because of their wrong position, muscles get strained and cause pain. To avoid this, keep your arms in a correct posture, height of the table should be good enough for elbows to rest.

-To avoid wrist and elbow pain, they can take breaks every 20-25 minutes and do some wrist and elbow rotations, it’ll help relax the muscles.

• Morning workout – stretches 

-The main issue with people right after they wake up is the back pain, so after they wake up, they can take their knees towards their chest and bend it so that the whole spine is curled up–hold it for 10 seconds and then relax it. Do it 10 times.

-When we sleep our joints get stiff, that’s why we feel pain right after we wake up, movement of joints after we wake up helps us get relieved of that pain.

-After stretching they can continue with their daily exercises or yoga.

-Maintaining core strength during lockdown

-For core, you can start with the planks – 15-20 seconds, leg raises, front and sides both – 10 times.

• 5 tips for a physical pain less life.

1. Taking breaks – while working, doesn’t matter if it’s home or your office, taking a break every 20-25 minutes is very important.
2. Keep your diet healthy – when you’re at home the whole day, there are chances that you’ll end up gaining weight, if your diet is healthy and your lifestyle is active then you won’t gain weight.
3. Drinks lots of water.
4. Do some exercises daily – even if it’s for 10 minutes, it’s very helpful.
5. Keep your elbows on the desk while typing.