July 31, 2025 • 57 mins
This episode is for anyone who uses a screen… which is just about all of us.
From the subtle aches in your neck and wrists to the fatigue behind your eyes, our digital lives are having very real physical effects. In this episode of 1,000 Waking Minutes, we’ll explore what the constant scrolling, clicking, craning, and typing is doing to our bodies—and more importantly, what we can do about it. You’ll hear real stories, evidence-based tips, and simple but powerful stretches you can do in just a few minutes a day, no equipment needed.
Together, we’ll walk through 7 body tension zones, share a refreshing mindful minute for your eyes, and a few easy ways to reset and restore—even between meetings or emails.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
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(00:00):
Today we're spending a few
of our waking minutes together
on something most of us
don't even realize we're doing
until our body reminds us.
We're going to be addressing
something most of us do
for way too many of
our waking minutes every day
and that is doing what
(00:21):
I'm doing right now, staring.
We experience 1,000 waking
minutes on average every day.
How are you spending yours?
I'm Dr. Wendy Bazilian and
you're listening to 1,000
Waking Minutes.
I can't wait to connect
with you here with practical
ways to eat well, move
daily, and be healthy to
(00:43):
optimize every waking minute you
live for a happier, healthier
life.
Thank you for sharing some
of your waking minutes with
me today.
Let's get started.
I'm saying yes to better
days, yes.
I'm on my way, yes.
It's gonna be okay, yeah.
(01:10):
Welcome to 1,000 Waking
Minutes.
I'm Dr. Wendy Bazilian, your
host.
Today we're spending a few
of those waking minutes on
something most of us don't
even realize that we're probably
overdoing until our body reminds
us.
We're addressing something that most
(01:31):
of us spend a lot
of waking minutes each day
on and that is staring
at screens.
From phones to laptops, our
tablets, our TV, we spend
hours each day tethered to
our tech.
It connects us, of course.
It entertains us.
(01:52):
It informs us.
It helps us get our
work done and it exhausts
us mentally for sure, but
physically too.
Our necks, our wrists, our
eyes, they're all feeling it.
So this is the digital
life that we live in
and it's so key to
(02:14):
the way we operate today.
It's created so many efficiencies.
It allows us to be
on the go and still
connected.
It allows us to accomplish
things, check in on things
that we need, check in
on others.
It allows us to order
our groceries, our clothing, make
appointments online.
(02:35):
Think of all the things
that has changed the way
that we can be efficient
and navigate the world.
We can make our doctor's
appointments, even our oil changes,
we can schedule that way
without even picking up the
phone.
We can plan meals, we
can order taken and it
just shows up.
We can sign up for
exercise classes and we can
(02:57):
actually do those exercise classes
when we're looking at a
screen, interacting with a real
live human being or a
class that's been recorded and
instructs us.
We correspond, we watch movies,
we learn, and we scroll.
So I want to talk
today about the modern world
and how it meets our
(03:19):
very human bodies.
It's an episode about what
our digital life is sort
of doing to us physically
with all the clicking and
the scrolling, the cradling, the
craning of our eyes and
our neck, and I mean
what we can do to
help us recover and also
(03:39):
reduce its physical impact gently
and powerfully.
I don't know if you've
thought about this before unless
you've suffered some kinds of
strain from it that have
been directly attributed, but we
can all benefit from helping
our bodies handle the usage
(04:00):
that we put it under
under this kind of physical
and cognitive stress.
So this sort of fits
in the pillar of 'move
daily'.
I'm going to put it there
because I'm going to teach you
a few exercises and stretches
that we can do and
remember my sort of guiding
professional and personal mantra (04:19):
eat
well, move daily, be healthy.
The three pillars of a
well-lived life that you
can practice during your waking
minutes each day.
So the goal here is
going to be simple.
It's to offer you some
small and meaningful movements and
moments of relief right where
(04:40):
you are.
You don't need a gym
for this.
You won't need to even
stand up for all of
them unless you care to,
which it's a good idea
to get up and stand
up, but just a few
minutes and a little attention
for our very human physical
body that's interacting with our
very digital world.
(05:01):
We weren't built to spend
so much time in this,
imagine whatever this position is,
the one sitting with your
hands on a keyboard perhaps.
Maybe your eyes are straight
ahead.
Maybe you do have ergonomics
set up in your office.
That's great.
A lot of us are
tipping our heads down to
(05:23):
phones and laptop screens and
tablets, and we weren't designed
to be locked in on
one screen, one device for
such long periods of time.
Just not the human design
that we could have ever
imagined.
But what we can do
and design is build in
some small practices that make
us feel a whole lot
(05:43):
better in the process.
So this is what it's
about today.
Easy resets, mini stretches that
actually make a difference.
So whether you're working right
now or you're staring at
a screen, maybe you're resting
or listening while multitasking while
you catch this episode, and
(06:03):
maybe you're even walking, hopefully
with one headphone in outside.
Keep on listening here because
I'm planning on helping give
your eyes, your neck, your
hands a little love before
this episode is over.
So I wanted to share,
I've been thinking about do
(06:23):
I share this or don't
I, but I decided to
share a personal medical story
time for a moment.
Those of you who know
me know that I sometimes
share things that are a
little off the wall and
hopefully you'll appreciate this, maybe
relate to it even with
your own kind of medical
(06:44):
story.
So this is the story
of my cyst, a wrist
cyst in fact, and it's
not one that I've really
shared before beyond my family.
So maybe I'm taking a
wrist cyst risk, but I'm
happy to do it in
the name of what we're
doing today and why I
(07:05):
wanted to do this episode
so imminently, so now.
So very recently, within the
last probably eight weeks, I
recognized, I noticed a ganglion
cyst on my wrist.
It was right at the
connection of my wrist along
(07:26):
the line of my thumb,
the inner crease where you
bend.
And it's definitely as annoying
once you see it there
and feel it there as
it sounds.
It's one of those things
that shows up on people
and apparently me.
I've had one before and
I'll tell you about that.
(07:47):
When you use an area
of your body and it
tries to like contain and
create something inside as a
mechanism of defense or protection,
it's like a little balloon
and it was near my
wrist joint and just hangs
around.
Especially if you use your
hands a lot, you're more
(08:08):
inclined to get them, but
not everyone gets them.
And of course, most of
us use our hands a
lot.
So this was the size
of a pea, if you
can imagine that.
Actually a little bigger than
a pea and it was
hard, maybe like a pearl.
Yeah, that would be a
good way to think about
it.
And a big one.
It was like, let's say
(08:28):
eight or nine millimeters.
It was almost a centimeter.
It was pretty big and
it was hard like a
pearl.
Perfectly round if you felt
it under the skin.
And it was a good
size and it was noticeable.
All of a sudden, I
saw it pop up.
I hadn't seen it emerging,
curiously enough.
We get into our life.
It's not something that you're
assessing or looking all over.
(08:49):
And then it was there
and then I couldn't not
notice it.
I couldn't unnotice it.
It didn't hurt.
And when I would touch
it, it would sort of
roll around a little bit,
but it stayed put like
sort of near your ligaments
and tendons that are there.
I had one of these
once before.
I can't remember exactly when,
(09:09):
maybe close to a decade
ago.
And I was sent actually
to a hand specialist, an
orthopedic surgeon, to check it
out.
And he helped me then.
And he did an outpatient
procedure.
So this is where my
brain was going as soon
as I started seeing this.
An outpatient procedure was really
fast.
(09:30):
He was really wonderful.
And it was a forgettable
amount of pain.
I recall it being painful,
but it was outpatient.
It was right there at
his desk.
He numbed it.
He put a pretty sizable
needle in through my wrist
into it.
And boom, it popped like
a balloon.
A little strange.
(09:50):
It didn't ooze.
It didn't have anything.
In fact, when he pulled
the needle out, it was
just skin.
I just needed a band
-aid just from the puncture
of the needle.
He had told me then
that while cosmetically it was
unappealing, and again, once you
see it, you can't unnotice
this sort of hard pearl
that is on your wrist
(10:10):
that grows, but it could
become problematic if it interferes
with your movement or if
it starts pressing on things
like nerves.
But generally, they're harmless.
So he told me at
the time, and sort of
as he was sort of
relaying to me, I'm like,
what is this odd thing
(10:31):
in my body?
What's going on?
He told me that, and
maybe you've heard about this,
there's like old folklore that
says when you get these
type of cysts that you
slam it with a textbook
to get rid of it.
And believe it or not,
there are many people, you
might be hearing and nodding,
there are many people since
that time who have heard
(10:52):
that or said that when
I mentioned a cyst or
talk about it.
Oh, that's what you do.
It was sometimes even called
a "Bible Bump", these ganglion
cysts, I came to find
out, because people would take
the Bible, I guess, and
bang it on the wrist.
Folklore or not, this is
a sort of remedy that
(11:12):
I heard about in, let's
call it medical legend.
So anyway, I don't know
about you, but when something
weird is going on in
my body, I check on
it.
And because it was at
my wrist, I checked on
it regularly.
And I would sort of
press on it, I would
sort of move it, I
would put it on my
(11:32):
to-do list for the
day to call and get
the medical appointment scheduled.
But it would drop off
because, again, it wasn't hurting
me, it was just sort
of annoying to be there.
I sort of knew that
I'd had this before, it
wasn't going to be harmful.
The first time it made
me really nervous when I
got it.
So I got right in
there years ago.
(11:54):
And this is where I'm
going to put myself out
there a little bit.
I didn't try the book
approach.
I was tempted, although I
didn't quite know how I
could wing that on myself.
And I didn't think that
my family members would be
willing to sort of come
down hard on my wrist
with a book.
But I would occasionally press
(12:14):
it, I'd squeeze it, and
just wouldn't budge.
It felt solid.
It's like it was it's
a really weird thing to
describe that it's hollow, but
it's really hard and round.
So I would do that
occasionally, I would just sort
of check on it and
squeeze it.
And it wasn't the first,
but maybe the 10th, maybe
(12:35):
the 12th, I don't know
over a number of days.
And into my procrastinating on
making that appointment, I was
mindlessly checking it out.
I remember talking to my
daughter just having a general
conversation.
And all of a sudden,
my eyes sprung wide open.
And I started laughing.
(12:55):
And I felt this "pop"
and this weird sensation come
over me.
It finally burst.
I'm sorry, I'm telling you
this.
It's a little too close
for comfort, maybe.
But it popped.
And then I felt relief.
And then I kept checking
it.
(13:15):
And everything was completely flat.
Somehow I had either through
the repeated motion or just
squeezing or it was just
that time I heard enough,
it popped, it dissipated, and
it was gone.
You I know, but guess
what?
It was such a great
relief.
I did call and mention
(13:36):
it to my primary doctor
just to be sure she's
so wonderful.
And she I could hear
a smile in her voice
and just she confirmed basically
what the orthopedic surgeon and
with the needle what that
accomplishes.
And just to be mindful
that my personal constitution that
I may be more prone
(13:56):
to this because of something
about me personally, maybe my
posture also, and also my
work and my digital life.
So I'm not saying you
should try this at home.
But it did remind me
how very physical tech use
can be.
(14:16):
And how our bodies will
absolutely tell us when enough
is enough.
And it's why I thought
now was a good time
to share some of the
exercises that I've done, and
taught others as well, not
just recently, but over many
years.
(14:36):
So I've re upped and
recommitted to my routine, you
know, admittedly, sometimes we get
lazy on some of these
if they're if it's not
heard, or if it's not
bothering you, you just go
on with your day.
And sometimes we forget, but
I hope you find them
helpful and worth a few
of your waking minutes and
on a regular basis, too.
(14:59):
So why do we need
a digital reset, or to
have some opportunities to stretch
and exercise ourselves out of
this constant contact?
Well, this is what I
like to call the ROIs,
the returns on investment.
(15:20):
So before I share some
exercises today, I want to
underscore why having some digital
rescue moves, some remedies like
targeted stretches, some exercises, why
it's important to our now
our daily and our long
term health.
So here are some of
(15:42):
the benefits I want to
paint before you.
Your body is, of course,
what you're investing in when
I'm talking about the returns
on investment toward a healthy,
well lived life.
And hopefully, not just today,
but many vital years to
come.
So why should we take
breaks from tech?
And also why should we
(16:03):
do some moves and stretching
to strengthen and support our
digital life?
Whether you're texting or emailing,
Facebooking, scrolling the internet, researching,
working, it's constant that we're
on it.
And one of the major
problems with the tech era,
as opposed to the typewriter
(16:23):
times is how long we
stay on it without taking
breaks.
So as much as we
love them, our devices have
a tricky way of wreaking
havoc, of drawing us in,
wreaking havoc on our bodies.
And enter evidence a my
wrist cyst.
That was relatively minor in
(16:45):
the scheme of things, though.
So repetitive movements, number one,
like grasping your phone, keyboarding,
texting, they can cause muscle
tension and irritate your tendons.
Tech and terrible posture go
together.
They're like, linked up, like,
(17:06):
I've been visiting a lot
of sort of specialty cafes,
and they have overpriced lattes.
So maybe we can think
of tech and terrible posture.
They go together like those
specialty lattes that cost a
fortune in those very fancy
coffee shops that we love
to go.
They go together.
They're a pair.
We tilt forward toward our
(17:26):
tablets and our phones.
We put undue pressure on
our necks and back.
So some of the ROIs,
I'm going to do this
sort of by body part
or body region.
Number one, by doing some
of these rescue moves, you
can save your spine.
When you look down at
a 60 degree angle, you
(17:49):
inadvertently are putting nearly 60
pounds of pressure on your
neck.
So the average head is
about 8 to 10 pounds
in weight.
But as you tip, as
you use an angle, the
pressure, this is back to
physics back in high school
(18:09):
or college if you studied
there, becomes nearly 60 pounds
of pressure, like a 60
pound dumbbell pulling on your
neck muscles every time.
So over time, it adds
up and it leads to
something that some have called
tech neck.
Even in the peer reviewed
research, this isn't just the
(18:30):
media headlines I'm talking about,
tech neck or text neck
and possibly chronic neck and
back pain over time.
On the extreme side, the
meta, I just chuckled, I
shouldn't, this is this is
dead serious, but I can't
believe the evolution here.
The medical community has even
observed that some people even
(18:51):
grow an extra horn-like
bone at the base of
their necks.
According to some research out
of Australia, it's like a
mutation of sorts to, I
guess, the body intention to
support the head which weighs
that 8 to 10 pounds.
But fortunately, better posture and
(19:12):
neck exercises can counteract the
effects and I'm going to
show you just a couple
today.
Another benefit or return on
our investment from engaging in
this way, just a few
minutes every day and taking
some smart strategic breaks, is
you can help protect your
(19:33):
thumbs, your hands, and your
wrists.
Do you remember when we
used to call it blackberry
thumb?
I always think of Little
Jack Horner when I think
of the thumb and blackberry.
I think of pie.
I don't think it was
a plum pie.
He pulled out a plum.
But anyway, I always think
of that when I think
of blackberry thumb.
But this was related, of
(19:55):
course, to the early smartphones,
the blackberries, and the chronic
pain that people started experiencing.
And it was a strain
injury that sort of evolved
into what we now know
is carpal tunnel syndrome and
carpal tunnel injury.
It's a strain that affects
the tendons on the thumb
side of our wrists and
(20:15):
it's really brought on by
constant smartphone use.
Additionally, being heavy on the
keyboard, meaning longtime use, constant
use, wrong angles.
You know, now we have
pads in front of some
of the keyboards, which is
good, but not all laptops
have them or maybe you're
on the go and you
forgot to bring it.
But it can also exacerbate
(20:38):
some of the carpal tunnel
and different wrist symptoms as
well.
And rippling pain through the
wrist, some get numbness, some
really can't even touch the
keyboard after a few minutes.
Actually, a study in Muscle
and Nerve Journal found that
students who overuse electronic devices
are more likely to suffer
wrist and hand pain as
(21:01):
well as changes to particular
nerves in their hands.
So ultimately, it's the repetitive
movement, like scrolling and typing
and texting, that can cause
our tendons to become irritated.
And it's very real.
The positive news is that
targeted exercises and some stretches,
(21:23):
a couple that I'll share
with you and show you
today, can help keep the
nerve channels open, they can
offer some rest and relief,
they can help reduce pain
and inflammation, among other benefits.
So how about our eyes?
Just really think about your
eyes.
All this visual lockdown, in
(21:46):
other words, restricting our vision
at a fixed distance for
long periods of time, it's
taking a toll on everyone's
eyesight, young and old.
It causes eye strain, it
can cause dry eyes.
We actually blink less when
we're staring at the screen,
research has shown.
It can cause blurred vision
(22:07):
and even headaches on nearly
a constant basis.
So we need to give
our eyes a break.
Nearly 60% of adults
report symptoms related to digital
eye strain, and this includes
things like dryness and blurred
vision, like I mentioned, burning
eyes, difficulty focusing, and of
(22:30):
course those headaches.
And even kids are feeling
it.
I have an easy way
to help us remember and
practice something that will help
us with that fixed gaze,
and I'll share that in
a few minutes.
But one more quick did
-you-know moment that I
learned recently about, that impacts
(22:50):
the eyes, is that professional
esports, in other words, video
gaming, are now Olympic recognized
and will debut in a
side Olympic esport game in
2027.
So they are run by
the IOC, the International Olympic
(23:11):
Committee, along with a partner
organization.
And esports are organized, competitive
video gaming, and they're also
solo athletes and there are
teams involved.
I'm just learning this, it
blows my mind, not a
judgment, a fascination.
But, and I need to
(23:31):
mention this part, guess what
the top health complaint is
among these athletes?
Eye fatigue.
That's what it is.
Eye fatigue.
They're staring at screens, they're
intently focused, they're athletes of
their own kind, their own
sport, the esports.
Eye fatigue, the number one
(23:52):
complaint.
And then there's headaches.
This is another thing that
digital overuse or repetitive use
can create for us.
You can prevent or at
least minimize the frequency, severity,
and duration of headaches if
you do certain strategies to
(24:14):
help relieve digital use strain.
So tension headaches, stress headaches,
the kind that show up
right behind your eye or
across your forehead, if you've
ever had those, screen time
and eye strain play a
role here.
And so does neck posture,
of course, they are all
(24:34):
interrelated when it comes to
headaches.
And if you suffer migraines,
I suffer migraines, while it
may not be a primary
trigger for you, it's definitely
a contributor, all this digital
use.
And let's face it, when
you have a headache, and
you have to work through
it somehow, because your work
is using the screen.
(24:54):
Wow, oh, wow, that is
such a difficult scenario.
It's another reason why we
really need to attend to
this.
So taking screen breaks can
help quell some of that,
the tension headaches, often brought
on by digital eye strain.
And adding stretches and relaxing
breathing can also help reduce
(25:17):
some of the debilitating stress
headaches and symptoms from the
excess illumination of the screens,
from the eye strain from
the computer screens.
In addition to moving, and
reducing some of that prolonged
sitting and the potentially poor
posture that comes with it.
Okay, so now you know
(25:38):
the why some of the
reasons and the why we're
going to put some of
these stretches and exercises and
breaks into our lives.
Now I need to give
you the how.
And when I was preparing
for today, I realized I
do have a lot of
exercises that I've used and
taught over the years, and
(25:59):
a whole sequence even that
you can follow.
So I imagine I will
have to come up with
some good ways, starting today,
but throughout the episodes to
come to build in some
of those and maybe create
some new materials that I
can share out to you
to help bring some of
these to life.
And if you're interested in
that, please encourage me by
writing and dropping me a
(26:21):
line or coming on the
Instagram to tell me about
it, because it really helps
me create things that are
meaningful, which is my whole
goal here with the podcast,
for us to create a
community for me to lend
my expertise, but also lend
my real life experience and
learn from you as well.
(26:41):
So today in this episode,
I want to focus on
just a few key exercises,
though.
But in order to do
that, I wanted to share
a way to scan our
body a bit and recognize
how tech can affect us
physically, really from head to
toe.
We're going to focus sort
of on the waist up
today.
(27:01):
But hopefully this is not
too surprising once I plant
the seed in your mind,
since we are connected, our
bodies, that is, in so
many ways, our blood vessels
run throughout our body from
our heart back to our
heart.
Our nerves, our muscles, our
tendons, our ligaments, our organs
(27:22):
are all interrelated, but they're
actually connected, our tissue.
And of course, our largest
organ, our skin, it holds
us all in in a
nice little package.
It's all connected.
So I like to think
of sort of seven body
zones for screen relief, and
(27:43):
I'll introduce them to you
by showing you the exercises.
I will do like one
round of each, but then
tell you how to take
it into your own experience.
And then I'll do some
posts so that we can
get them and I'll put
some in the show notes
so that you know what
they are.
We're going to look at
our neck, our shoulders, our
wrist, hands and thumb, our
(28:04):
posture overall.
And on our mindful minute,
we're going to talk about
and talk through and do
a little something with our
eyes.
So in other words, these
are our primary tech tension
zones.
So I want to move
through them together in succession.
I'll do them briefly.
(28:25):
But I encourage you to
spend one to five minutes
on each of these one
or more times a day
and focus a little more
on the ones that you
really feel or you know
that you need.
So the first is neck
relief.
And there are a number
of exercises for the neck.
(28:47):
But this is just a
simple stretch.
And what we're going to
do, I don't want to
call it this, this is
neck relief.
But what we're going to
do is smell our armpit.
And I'm not kidding.
So what I want you
to do is sit tall,
feet on the floor, and
tilt your head slightly one
direction, let's say to the
(29:07):
left, approximately 45 degrees, and
use your hand to guide
your nose toward your armpit.
So the goal is guiding
your nose toward your armpit.
It's not pulling, but it's
(29:27):
guiding.
If it feels a little
tight or tense, breathe into
it.
You can come up to
center and readjust.
Sometimes we get little crinks
and clicks and everything.
This is not about adjusting
your neck.
Please don't do that.
This is about gentle stretching.
(29:49):
But sometimes we come up
and we just need to
like move just a little
bit and then do it
again.
And basically, smell your armpit.
And then we're going to
do the other side.
(30:09):
And as you do these,
what I encourage you to
do is hold the stretch
and do five slow, easy,
deep breaths.
So let's do the other
side because I feel out
of balance if I don't
do that.
Tilt and smell your armpit.
(30:36):
Simply breathe.
Five breaths.
Drop your hand and bring
your head upright.
So I hope I do
put this on video on
YouTube, but I hope that
the way I'm verbalizing it,
you're getting the idea.
And you do both sides.
You can do it again
even.
This should feel really good.
(30:57):
And I haven't come up
with a better way of
describing it because if you
direct your nose toward your
armpit, you really get that
angle that I'm talking about
that we really need.
Number two, our shoulder rolls.
So again, we're sitting easy
and gently.
We're sort of tipping our
chin in just a little
bit, sort of trying to
(31:19):
check your ears over your
shoulders.
And we're going to get
to that with our posture
check in a moment as
well.
But just simple shoulder rolls.
First, roll them forward five
times.
One, two, three, four, five.
(31:39):
As you do this, I'm
speaking, so you can't hear
me breathing naturally, but you're
breathing naturally as you do
this.
And then you reverse five
times back.
One, two, three, four, five.
Maybe take a pause for
five or 10 seconds and
(32:00):
then do another couple repetitions
of that if you wish.
The third, and this one's
really critical, and it will
surprise you.
And hopefully you'll feel better
and better over time, but
you'll be surprised at how
tight you may be in
(32:21):
your wrists.
Okay, so this is one
where I want you to
extend your arm, so let's
say the right arm, out
straight in front of you.
Don't overstretch it.
And with your other hand,
take your fingers and pull
them up.
So you're going to create
a flex where your palm
is facing straight ahead as
(32:42):
if you're saying stop.
And pull it gently just
beyond comfort and then back
off a little bit.
Don't overstretch it.
And while we're breathing, we
just hold it five to
eight seconds.
I'm going to keep the
number five in your mind
so that you have some
different options on how to
remember.
How many times?
How many seconds?
How many breaths?
(33:02):
Five.
And then we're going to
flex it downward.
We're going to point our
fingers downward, the opposite direction,
as if your fingers are
pointing straight toward the floor.
And hold that for five
to eight seconds, or about
five breaths.
(33:23):
Five very slow seconds.
Do you have a slow
second?
I guess it's just a
second.
Five slow counts.
And then we're going to
repeat that with the other
arm.
So let's do it.
We'll do one time.
And I encourage you to
do this more times to
repeat this because it really
is so good.
(33:44):
Take your left arm right
out in front of you.
You're going to make the
stop halt symbol with your
hand with your fingers pointing
toward the ceiling.
Take your right hand and
gently pull back your fingers
to sort of articulate the
stretch a little bit further.
When you're at the point
of tension, just back up
(34:05):
a little bit.
You're getting a stretch even
you don't have to pull
really hard.
We're not trying to create
inflammation or create pain.
We're just stretching.
Five to eight seconds.
Five breaths.
You get the idea.
And now fingers down.
(34:25):
Keep your arm outward.
Fingers toward the ground.
Gentle.
Pull.
Feel.
You should feel it up
your forearm even.
So you might feel it
on the back of your
wrist some.
But this particular stretch, you
feel sort of run up
your forearm, the muscles that
connect into the tendons and
(34:47):
ligaments around your elbow.
And that's the wrist.
Next.
I love these.
Next are our hands.
And we're going to do
jazz hands.
So with your hands comfortably
in front of you, your
elbows can be bent.
(35:07):
Hands can be out.
Whatever is comfortable.
I want you to make
some fists and hold them.
Fist tight.
Hold them.
And you're going to do
this.
How many breaths?
Probably five.
Five to eight seconds.
And then you're going to
stretch your fingers wide out
(35:29):
like jazz hands.
I guess you can give
a shake if you want.
If you were a dancer
and you like to do
jazz hands.
But really this is about
the stretch out wide.
And you'll repeat this five
times.
So fists.
We'll do it just a
couple times.
Hold and spread them wide.
(35:54):
Give them a little shake.
Shimmy.
Makes you smile.
And that's jazz hands.
So that's our hands.
Now number five of the
seven point scan we're doing
with our body for our
digital relief is our thumb.
We're going to give it
a little TLC.
So I want you to
(36:14):
spread your fingers out, but
relax.
So if you're watching or
if you're listening and not
watching, I'm just sort of
showing a halt sign, like
stop where you are, but
my fingers are outstretched.
Now, what I want you
to do is to stretch
your thumb gently across your
palm, reaching toward your pinky
really, but on your palm
(36:36):
for about five seconds or
five breaths.
Good.
Now I want you to
stretch it wide the opposite
way and make sort of
that jazz hand, but we're
really focusing on our thumb.
There's other things you can
do here, but this is
a really good PT move,
a physical therapy move that
(36:56):
I've been given as an
exercise in the past when
I've had thumb issues.
And actually, interestingly, as I
just did it, my thumb
sort of cramped up.
I'm going back to my
pinky again across my palm.
My thumb sort of cramped
up a little bit.
I really needed this right
now as I was doing
it and then spread it
wide.
(37:17):
And you want to repeat
that about five times on
each side.
So while we're here, I'm
going to do the left
hand.
I'm really all about balance.
You might have one area,
one side that you need
more attention to, and that's
fine as well, but it's
really good when you're doing
these exercises to do both.
So my thumb is on
my palm against my pinky,
(37:39):
pointing toward it now.
My hand is outright stretched,
and now I'm back in
sort of the jazz hands,
but focusing, putting attention on
my thumb.
Do that just a couple
times and we'll move on.
This is a circuit you
(37:59):
could do.
Six is a posture check.
On your chair, so this
is an important one, sit
where you sit and with
your feet uncrossed.
I want you to sit
back, put your back against
the chair.
I want you to tuck
your chin in a little
bit and gently down.
I tend to extend my
(38:20):
neck upward when I'm looking
at my screen.
It's my natural inclination, and
I do have and suffer
from some neck issues because
of it and neck tension
that I have to often
address in a number of
ways like these stretches.
But you tuck your neck,
your chin gently down, and
sort of feel the back
of your neck elongate just
a little.
Again, this is not a
stretch, this is just a
(38:41):
gentle tuck.
Then readjust your head, which
for me is like bringing
it back a little bit
to get your ears over
your shoulders.
And with that, you start
to feel a change.
It should feel a little
easier on your whole body.
While you're there, bring yourself
(39:01):
into a very erect, tall
posture, sort of pushing your
head toward the ceiling.
This isn't to maintain this
as your posture, it's just
to check and then let
yourself come back to a
little more relaxed position, maintaining
your chin a little tucked
and your ears over your
shoulder.
When you're doing that, you
pull in your abs a
little bit, you straighten your
(39:22):
spine, and then you're relaxed
again, and you're a little
bit more aligned and more
comfortable, hopefully, as well.
Finally, in our seven-point
body scan, I'm going to
focus on the eyes.
They are so important.
By the way, you don't
have to do all seven,
you don't have to do
them in this order, but
I put the eyes last
(39:42):
because I'm going to roll
them into our mindful minute.
I'm going to eye roll
them into our mindful minute
today, which of course is
a time where we take
typically a minute together to
sort of assess and be
aware of our time, to
be aware of our bodies,
our breathing, and give ourselves
a little self-care.
(40:03):
In doing that, this will
take a little bit more
than a minute.
If you do it on
your own, it's just a
minute of your time.
This will require you to
be somewhere safe so that
you can be seated or
standing, but if you are
driving, you won't be able
to do this right now,
(40:23):
so you can breathe and
gain the benefits of just
some purposeful breathing over the
minute as you listen to
the description because we are
going to be covering our
eyes.
So, you know how we
talk about 2020 as perfect
vision, or our eye doctors
especially do.
They put us to the
literal test and they have
(40:44):
us look at the line
and see if we can
read it, and we correct
our vision to 2020 or
thereabouts, and metaphorically speaking, we
say hindsight is 2020.
Well, there is a rule
out there for our eyes
to help us with relieving
digital eye strain, and it's
called the 20-20-20
(41:05):
rule.
I didn't invent this.
It's a practice that's recommended
by the American Academy of
Ophthalmology and the American Optometric
Association as well, and this
20-20-20 means every
20 minutes, take a 20
-second break and focus on
(41:28):
something 20 feet away.
Our eye muscles, like most
of our muscles, are designed
to move, and our eye
muscles are designed to refocus
and shift points of focus
and look side to side,
and many of us these
days sit in fixed positions
(41:48):
at fixed distances, staring at
a glowing screen, and even
blinking less, researchers have observed,
blinking less than we should
for hours on end, and
so it's really no surprise
that we get this digital
eye strain, that our muscles
weaken and become at risk,
(42:10):
our eyes do, of becoming
impaired or weak.
So we're going to do
this mindful minute.
It will take us a
little bit more than a
minute.
I'll set my stopwatch so
I keep track just in
the describing of it, but
the 20-20-20 is
going to be our now
and our ongoing goal.
So in preparation of this,
(42:30):
let's do one of those
preparatory breaths that we do,
where we take a nice
deep breath in through our
nose and out through our
mouth.
Okay, and as we begin,
just follow along with this
little bit of this script
that I will share with
you verbally.
(42:50):
So first, I want you
to blink slowly for a
few seconds.
Purposeful blinks.
Blinking is actually something that
is both automatic, unconscious, and
a conscious choice.
So blink purposefully a few
times.
Feel your eye muscles as
(43:11):
you do that.
Maybe a little bit of
tears start to form even.
Now, I want you to
take your hands and rub
them together palm to palm.
Rub them together to warm
them up.
Once there's a bit of
friction, a bit of warmth,
then we're going to gently
cup your palms over your
(43:33):
eyes.
You can close your eyes.
You're not pressing.
You're just covering them.
You're creating some darkness.
You're putting a little warmth
toward your eyes and close
your eyes.
As you do that, breathe
in through your nose, out
through your mouth about five
(43:53):
times.
Picture the warmth in your
mind.
Don't look at it.
Picture it.
And then we're going to
repeat it a few times.
As the warmth leaves and
dissipates, gently create friction on
your hands again.
Warm your hands up and
do this cupping again.
(44:14):
When you've gone through a
few cycles of that, maybe
two to three cycles or
so, it feels really good.
Do some more.
Uncover your eyes and look
across a room, across the
space, 20 feet away if
you can.
And I encourage you to
actually measure this out.
You can gain a sense
(44:34):
not only in your spaces
that you spend a lot
of time, but also just
a sense when you're out
and about what 20 feet
looks like.
It might surprise you.
And let your eyes refocus
at that distance and breathe
in about five times in
and out before bringing your
eyes back front and center.
(44:55):
And you can repeat that.
You come front and center
and then shoot your eyes
out 20 feet, breathe in
and out five times, come
back to center, and you're
done.
Just like that, you've done
the 20-20-20 rule.
And it's a nervous system
reset at the same time.
(45:16):
So that was a couple
minutes in explanation, but you
can see how that would
just take about a minute
to do on your own.
And that's our mindful minute
for today.
So thank you for sharing
that mindful minute with me.
So before we wrap up
this episode, I want to
give you a bonus exercise
actually for your eyes.
(45:37):
It's something that I really
love to do.
And well, it's not really
that I love it so
much.
It's that I love the
way it makes me feel
after I do it.
So maybe that's more accurate
there.
I tend to call this
the silly eye stretches.
And it's not silly in
why you do it or
(45:57):
how it makes you feel,
but it's sort of silly
in how it makes you
look, especially if other people
are around and catch you
doing it, especially people like
you, my daughter, when I'm
doing it.
But it can make you
smile.
And of course we know
smiles are good for our
health too.
And it's very straightforward, actually.
(46:18):
And you might remember it
by thinking of it as
a looking star.
I think of it like
a star.
So I'm going to walk
you through this briefly.
And I'll do the brief
version, but I will cover
both sides so that we
get the complete exercise together.
So again, you're going to
always sit forward in your
(46:38):
chair comfortably in good posture,
feet on the floor, knees
and legs uncrossed, your head
straight above your shoulders.
Remember that big weight that's
sitting above your shoulders.
When you tip it forward,
it can be up to
60 pounds of pressure.
So we're bringing our chin
in, our ears over our
shoulders.
(46:59):
And this is an exercise
for your eyes.
So you're not going to
move your neck or your
head while you do this,
just your eyes.
And if you find yourself
moving your head, as I
often do, I get myself
confused and sort of tongue
-tied in my brain, just
bring it back to center
and start again.
So first, with your head
still, you're going to just
(47:21):
look as far left as
you can, as far left,
feel the muscles of your
eye socket, far left, and
you're going to breathe into
that look and hold it.
Again, about five breaths, five
seconds, five is the number
of the day.
And then you're going to
come back to center.
Next, you're going to do
(47:41):
the same on the right,
look right.
If your head got away
from you and you start
tipping, or if you lose
where you're looking, if you're
watching on YouTube, you might
get a few laughs at
me doing this.
It always makes me sort
of chuckle.
Look to the right, hold
it, take some breaths.
Of course, I'm speaking, so
I'm not doing proper breathing
(48:02):
right now.
But breathe in through your
nose, out through your mouth,
come back to center, and
you focus.
Next, we are going to
look up to the ceiling,
all the way to the
ceiling.
Try to look up to
the ceiling without tipping your
head up, straight up to
the ceiling, hold it.
You should actually feel your
muscles engage here, your eye
(48:22):
muscles as you look up
and breathe.
And always come back to
center before you go to
the next move.
Next, down to the floor.
Try to avoid tipping your
chin down and look down
to the floor.
Sort of feels like you're
going cross-eyed, but straight
down to the floor as
much as you can.
Hold and breathe, back to
center.
(48:43):
Next, there's four more.
Hold up a five if
you're on YouTube.
Four more that we do
to create the star, and
those are the diagonals.
Next, you're going to shoot
your eyes up and left
to the diagonal as high
as you can toward the
ceiling at the diagonal to
the left and center.
(49:04):
Shoot your eyes up to
the right at a diagonal.
Try to see the ceiling
at the side.
Come back to center.
Lower left diagonal.
You're looking down at the
floor, across the room, to
the left, back to center,
and down to the right,
(49:27):
diagonal, and come back to
center.
Now, just two add-ons
if you choose to do
it.
That was eight points of
a star that we just
did, but you can do
eye rolls.
You roll them around to
the left five times, one,
two, three, four, five, and
(49:47):
to the right, one, two,
three, four, five, and that's
it.
Now, I don't know about
you, but that sort of
gets me smiling, for one,
but it also gets me
re-centered.
It feels a little rusted.
My eyes get brighter, like
my vision gets a little
brighter, and it feels good.
(50:09):
It's just so wow about
being able to engage those
muscles in a purposeful way,
and most of us aren't
doing that on a regular
basis unless you're doing exactly
what I just described.
To me, it feels so,
so good.
It feels needed even when
I finish it, and sometimes
I forget how much until
(50:29):
I do it.
I'd love to hear how
it feels for you.
You might want to try
it a few cycles a
few times to get it
down, and to share with
me.
It should be purposeful, but
it shouldn't strain or hurt,
so you might not realize
just how much more room,
how much more focus, how
(50:50):
many more things you can
look at when you engage
your eye muscles, not just
straightforward as we typically do
when we're staring at screens
during our day.
So all of this is
important, and we covered a
lot today from eye strain
and caring for them, our
posture, and some hopefully satisfying,
(51:13):
if not surprising, also stretches
that we can do, like
smell your armpit.
It just feels so good.
So how do we turn
this into something real and
doable right now?
Here are a few reminders,
let's say, and small shifts
that you can start today,
even between meetings, or if
you take a restroom break,
(51:35):
or right after your next
scrolling session when you take
a break from that.
The first is setting reminders,
plain and simple.
Set reminders to get up
every 30 minutes on average.
If you're really locked into
a screen, make that 20
minutes and apply that 20
-20-20 rule.
(51:55):
Just a quick stretch, or
a posture check, or the
20-20-20, the eye
exercise and refocus can really
make a difference.
Another thing to try is
to pick a stretch or
two that we did today,
the neck roll, the neck
turn, the smell the armpit,
shoulder rolls, the wrists, remember
(52:17):
those, or maybe even just
jazz hands to stretch out
your hands before you get
back to the keyboard or
your smartphone.
One minute is better than
none, so everything counts.
Do those posture checks, that's
another thing to remind you
about doing now and again
in your day.
You will be amazed at
(52:38):
how much just sort of
resetting your head over your
shoulders over your body can
make a difference on how
much energy you have, how
much less fatigue you feel
later in the day, and
how much less muscular stress
and tension you feel as
well.
So do that and practice
that, and then of course
give your eyes some love.
(52:58):
Do the 20-20-20,
do the star stretch that
we just did together.
And if your eyes are
still feeling strain, I didn't
talk about this today, I
could do this in another
episode, but I might just
mention now that you might
try some of those blue
light glasses that are available.
Some people have really found
benefit at like softening the
(53:18):
glare on the screen, especially
later in the day they
just sort of filter the
digital glow that comes off
of your screens.
So this isn't about a
whole new set of things
to do, but hopefully ways
to make the most of
your waking minutes by taking
some moments to renew and
(53:40):
rest and stretch and recognize
how important these are to
your effectiveness as a human
being and to your vital,
well, life.
So in effect, we are
navigating a world nowadays that
doesn't always have our body
in mind, but we have
(54:01):
to deal with it.
And we can't delete technology,
and it helps us in
so many ways, but you
can, shall we say, delete
some of the negative effects
and the stress that it
can cause.
So thank you for sharing
a few of your waking
minutes with me today.
I'll be sure to put
a summary and these tips
(54:22):
and exercises in the show
notes.
And I think I'll also
start working on making some
handouts and perhaps some little
videos that walk us through
some of these exercises so
you can have a guided
circuit perhaps to bring this
more to life.
And if that's something meaningful
to you, please reach out
and tell me because my
goal is in our community
(54:44):
to create content and educational
and evidence-based strategies that
can help us as a
group, but you individually too,
get toward your goals to
eat well, move daily, and
be healthy.
You can always find me
at wendybazilian.com and you
(55:04):
can access the contact page
or that method.
And please, on Instagram, I'm
at @1000wakingminutes.
Please join, follow, share with
a friend.
I appreciate it so much
as we share our health
-inspired lives together.
I hope this episode leaves
(55:25):
you feeling a little more
limber, maybe, a little more
refreshed, and a little more
aware of how small shifts
can add up to bigger
relief, especially over time, and
especially given how much we
rely on our digital tools.
So with that in mind,
I'm going to get off
(55:45):
the tech now a little
and go get myself some
fresh air, natural lighting, and
a little real movement.
I'm Wendy Bazilian, your host
of 1,000 Waking Minutes, and
until next time, be well.
Thank you for tuning in
(56:06):
to 1,000 Waking Minutes.
A huge thank you to
our amazing collaborators, including our
production and marketing teams, and
Gabriela Escalante in particular.
To the ultra-talented Beza
for my theme music, my
lifelong friend and artist, Pearl
Preis Photography and Design.
To Danielle Ballantyne, Jen Nguyen,
Joanna Powell, and of course
(56:27):
my family, and everyone working
tirelessly behind the scenes.
And to you, our valued
listeners, I so appreciate your
support.
If you enjoyed today's episode,
please consider leaving a comment,
writing a review, and giving
1,000 Waking Minutes, that's us,
a five-star rating.
And please hit subscribe on
(56:47):
Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever
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Please follow and stay connected
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Your support helps us grow
and bring you more great
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Until next time, find some
simple opportunities to optimize those
1,000 Waking Minutes each day.
(57:40):
I'm saying yes!
Today we're spending a few
of our waking minutes together
on something most of us
don't even realize we're doing
until our body reminds us.
We're going to be addressing
something most of us do
for way too many of
our waking minutes every day
and that is doing what
(00:21):
I'm doing right now, staring.
We experience 1,000 waking
minutes on average every day.
How are you spending yours?
I'm Dr. Wendy Bazilian and
you're listening to 1,000
Waking Minutes.
I can't wait to connect
with you here with practical
ways to eat well, move
daily, and be healthy to
(00:43):
optimize every waking minute you
live for a happier, healthier
life.
Thank you for sharing some
of your waking minutes with
me today.
Let's get started.
I'm saying yes to better
days, yes.
I'm on my way, yes.
It's gonna be okay, yeah.
(01:10):
Welcome to 1,000 Waking
Minutes.
I'm Dr. Wendy Bazilian, your
host.
Today we're spending a few
of those waking minutes on
something most of us don't
even realize that we're probably
overdoing until our body reminds
us.
We're addressing something that most
(01:31):
of us spend a lot
of waking minutes each day
on and that is staring
at screens.
From phones to laptops, our
tablets, our TV, we spend
hours each day tethered to
our tech.
It connects us, of course.
It entertains us.
(01:52):
It informs us.
It helps us get our
work done and it exhausts
us mentally for sure, but
physically too.
Our necks, our wrists, our
eyes, they're all feeling it.
So this is the digital
life that we live in
and it's so key to
(02:14):
the way we operate today.
It's created so many efficiencies.
It allows us to be
on the go and still
connected.
It allows us to accomplish
things, check in on things
that we need, check in
on others.
It allows us to order
our groceries, our clothing, make
appointments online.
(02:35):
Think of all the things
that has changed the way
that we can be efficient
and navigate the world.
We can make our doctor's
appointments, even our oil changes,
we can schedule that way
without even picking up the
phone.
We can plan meals, we
can order taken and it
just shows up.
We can sign up for
exercise classes and we can
(02:57):
actually do those exercise classes
when we're looking at a
screen, interacting with a real
live human being or a
class that's been recorded and
instructs us.
We correspond, we watch movies,
we learn, and we scroll.
So I want to talk
today about the modern world
and how it meets our
(03:19):
very human bodies.
It's an episode about what
our digital life is sort
of doing to us physically
with all the clicking and
the scrolling, the cradling, the
craning of our eyes and
our neck, and I mean
what we can do to
help us recover and also
(03:39):
reduce its physical impact gently
and powerfully.
I don't know if you've
thought about this before unless
you've suffered some kinds of
strain from it that have
been directly attributed, but we
can all benefit from helping
our bodies handle the usage
(04:00):
that we put it under
under this kind of physical
and cognitive stress.
So this sort of fits
in the pillar of 'move
daily'.
I'm going to put it there
because I'm going to teach you
a few exercises and stretches
that we can do and
remember my sort of guiding
professional and personal mantra (04:19):
eat
well, move daily, be healthy.
The three pillars of a
well-lived life that you
can practice during your waking
minutes each day.
So the goal here is
going to be simple.
It's to offer you some
small and meaningful movements and
moments of relief right where
(04:40):
you are.
You don't need a gym
for this.
You won't need to even
stand up for all of
them unless you care to,
which it's a good idea
to get up and stand
up, but just a few
minutes and a little attention
for our very human physical
body that's interacting with our
very digital world.
(05:01):
We weren't built to spend
so much time in this,
imagine whatever this position is,
the one sitting with your
hands on a keyboard perhaps.
Maybe your eyes are straight
ahead.
Maybe you do have ergonomics
set up in your office.
That's great.
A lot of us are
tipping our heads down to
(05:23):
phones and laptop screens and
tablets, and we weren't designed
to be locked in on
one screen, one device for
such long periods of time.
Just not the human design
that we could have ever
imagined.
But what we can do
and design is build in
some small practices that make
us feel a whole lot
(05:43):
better in the process.
So this is what it's
about today.
Easy resets, mini stretches that
actually make a difference.
So whether you're working right
now or you're staring at
a screen, maybe you're resting
or listening while multitasking while
you catch this episode, and
(06:03):
maybe you're even walking, hopefully
with one headphone in outside.
Keep on listening here because
I'm planning on helping give
your eyes, your neck, your
hands a little love before
this episode is over.
So I wanted to share,
I've been thinking about do
(06:23):
I share this or don't
I, but I decided to
share a personal medical story
time for a moment.
Those of you who know
me know that I sometimes
share things that are a
little off the wall and
hopefully you'll appreciate this, maybe
relate to it even with
your own kind of medical
(06:44):
story.
So this is the story
of my cyst, a wrist
cyst in fact, and it's
not one that I've really
shared before beyond my family.
So maybe I'm taking a
wrist cyst risk, but I'm
happy to do it in
the name of what we're
doing today and why I
(07:05):
wanted to do this episode
so imminently, so now.
So very recently, within the
last probably eight weeks, I
recognized, I noticed a ganglion
cyst on my wrist.
It was right at the
connection of my wrist along
(07:26):
the line of my thumb,
the inner crease where you
bend.
And it's definitely as annoying
once you see it there
and feel it there as
it sounds.
It's one of those things
that shows up on people
and apparently me.
I've had one before and
I'll tell you about that.
(07:47):
When you use an area
of your body and it
tries to like contain and
create something inside as a
mechanism of defense or protection,
it's like a little balloon
and it was near my
wrist joint and just hangs
around.
Especially if you use your
hands a lot, you're more
(08:08):
inclined to get them, but
not everyone gets them.
And of course, most of
us use our hands a
lot.
So this was the size
of a pea, if you
can imagine that.
Actually a little bigger than
a pea and it was
hard, maybe like a pearl.
Yeah, that would be a
good way to think about
it.
And a big one.
It was like, let's say
(08:28):
eight or nine millimeters.
It was almost a centimeter.
It was pretty big and
it was hard like a
pearl.
Perfectly round if you felt
it under the skin.
And it was a good
size and it was noticeable.
All of a sudden, I
saw it pop up.
I hadn't seen it emerging,
curiously enough.
We get into our life.
It's not something that you're
assessing or looking all over.
(08:49):
And then it was there
and then I couldn't not
notice it.
I couldn't unnotice it.
It didn't hurt.
And when I would touch
it, it would sort of
roll around a little bit,
but it stayed put like
sort of near your ligaments
and tendons that are there.
I had one of these
once before.
I can't remember exactly when,
(09:09):
maybe close to a decade
ago.
And I was sent actually
to a hand specialist, an
orthopedic surgeon, to check it
out.
And he helped me then.
And he did an outpatient
procedure.
So this is where my
brain was going as soon
as I started seeing this.
An outpatient procedure was really
fast.
(09:30):
He was really wonderful.
And it was a forgettable
amount of pain.
I recall it being painful,
but it was outpatient.
It was right there at
his desk.
He numbed it.
He put a pretty sizable
needle in through my wrist
into it.
And boom, it popped like
a balloon.
A little strange.
(09:50):
It didn't ooze.
It didn't have anything.
In fact, when he pulled
the needle out, it was
just skin.
I just needed a band
-aid just from the puncture
of the needle.
He had told me then
that while cosmetically it was
unappealing, and again, once you
see it, you can't unnotice
this sort of hard pearl
that is on your wrist
(10:10):
that grows, but it could
become problematic if it interferes
with your movement or if
it starts pressing on things
like nerves.
But generally, they're harmless.
So he told me at
the time, and sort of
as he was sort of
relaying to me, I'm like,
what is this odd thing
(10:31):
in my body?
What's going on?
He told me that, and
maybe you've heard about this,
there's like old folklore that
says when you get these
type of cysts that you
slam it with a textbook
to get rid of it.
And believe it or not,
there are many people, you
might be hearing and nodding,
there are many people since
that time who have heard
(10:52):
that or said that when
I mentioned a cyst or
talk about it.
Oh, that's what you do.
It was sometimes even called
a "Bible Bump", these ganglion
cysts, I came to find
out, because people would take
the Bible, I guess, and
bang it on the wrist.
Folklore or not, this is
a sort of remedy that
(11:12):
I heard about in, let's
call it medical legend.
So anyway, I don't know
about you, but when something
weird is going on in
my body, I check on
it.
And because it was at
my wrist, I checked on
it regularly.
And I would sort of
press on it, I would
sort of move it, I
would put it on my
(11:32):
to-do list for the
day to call and get
the medical appointment scheduled.
But it would drop off
because, again, it wasn't hurting
me, it was just sort
of annoying to be there.
I sort of knew that
I'd had this before, it
wasn't going to be harmful.
The first time it made
me really nervous when I
got it.
So I got right in
there years ago.
(11:54):
And this is where I'm
going to put myself out
there a little bit.
I didn't try the book
approach.
I was tempted, although I
didn't quite know how I
could wing that on myself.
And I didn't think that
my family members would be
willing to sort of come
down hard on my wrist
with a book.
But I would occasionally press
(12:14):
it, I'd squeeze it, and
just wouldn't budge.
It felt solid.
It's like it was it's
a really weird thing to
describe that it's hollow, but
it's really hard and round.
So I would do that
occasionally, I would just sort
of check on it and
squeeze it.
And it wasn't the first,
but maybe the 10th, maybe
(12:35):
the 12th, I don't know
over a number of days.
And into my procrastinating on
making that appointment, I was
mindlessly checking it out.
I remember talking to my
daughter just having a general
conversation.
And all of a sudden,
my eyes sprung wide open.
And I started laughing.
(12:55):
And I felt this "pop"
and this weird sensation come
over me.
It finally burst.
I'm sorry, I'm telling you
this.
It's a little too close
for comfort, maybe.
But it popped.
And then I felt relief.
And then I kept checking
it.
(13:15):
And everything was completely flat.
Somehow I had either through
the repeated motion or just
squeezing or it was just
that time I heard enough,
it popped, it dissipated, and
it was gone.
You I know, but guess
what?
It was such a great
relief.
I did call and mention
(13:36):
it to my primary doctor
just to be sure she's
so wonderful.
And she I could hear
a smile in her voice
and just she confirmed basically
what the orthopedic surgeon and
with the needle what that
accomplishes.
And just to be mindful
that my personal constitution that
I may be more prone
(13:56):
to this because of something
about me personally, maybe my
posture also, and also my
work and my digital life.
So I'm not saying you
should try this at home.
But it did remind me
how very physical tech use
can be.
(14:16):
And how our bodies will
absolutely tell us when enough
is enough.
And it's why I thought
now was a good time
to share some of the
exercises that I've done, and
taught others as well, not
just recently, but over many
years.
(14:36):
So I've re upped and
recommitted to my routine, you
know, admittedly, sometimes we get
lazy on some of these
if they're if it's not
heard, or if it's not
bothering you, you just go
on with your day.
And sometimes we forget, but
I hope you find them
helpful and worth a few
of your waking minutes and
on a regular basis, too.
(14:59):
So why do we need
a digital reset, or to
have some opportunities to stretch
and exercise ourselves out of
this constant contact?
Well, this is what I
like to call the ROIs,
the returns on investment.
(15:20):
So before I share some
exercises today, I want to
underscore why having some digital
rescue moves, some remedies like
targeted stretches, some exercises, why
it's important to our now
our daily and our long
term health.
So here are some of
(15:42):
the benefits I want to
paint before you.
Your body is, of course,
what you're investing in when
I'm talking about the returns
on investment toward a healthy,
well lived life.
And hopefully, not just today,
but many vital years to
come.
So why should we take
breaks from tech?
And also why should we
(16:03):
do some moves and stretching
to strengthen and support our
digital life?
Whether you're texting or emailing,
Facebooking, scrolling the internet, researching,
working, it's constant that we're
on it.
And one of the major
problems with the tech era,
as opposed to the typewriter
(16:23):
times is how long we
stay on it without taking
breaks.
So as much as we
love them, our devices have
a tricky way of wreaking
havoc, of drawing us in,
wreaking havoc on our bodies.
And enter evidence a my
wrist cyst.
That was relatively minor in
(16:45):
the scheme of things, though.
So repetitive movements, number one,
like grasping your phone, keyboarding,
texting, they can cause muscle
tension and irritate your tendons.
Tech and terrible posture go
together.
They're like, linked up, like,
(17:06):
I've been visiting a lot
of sort of specialty cafes,
and they have overpriced lattes.
So maybe we can think
of tech and terrible posture.
They go together like those
specialty lattes that cost a
fortune in those very fancy
coffee shops that we love
to go.
They go together.
They're a pair.
We tilt forward toward our
(17:26):
tablets and our phones.
We put undue pressure on
our necks and back.
So some of the ROIs,
I'm going to do this
sort of by body part
or body region.
Number one, by doing some
of these rescue moves, you
can save your spine.
When you look down at
a 60 degree angle, you
(17:49):
inadvertently are putting nearly 60
pounds of pressure on your
neck.
So the average head is
about 8 to 10 pounds
in weight.
But as you tip, as
you use an angle, the
pressure, this is back to
physics back in high school
(18:09):
or college if you studied
there, becomes nearly 60 pounds
of pressure, like a 60
pound dumbbell pulling on your
neck muscles every time.
So over time, it adds
up and it leads to
something that some have called
tech neck.
Even in the peer reviewed
research, this isn't just the
(18:30):
media headlines I'm talking about,
tech neck or text neck
and possibly chronic neck and
back pain over time.
On the extreme side, the
meta, I just chuckled, I
shouldn't, this is this is
dead serious, but I can't
believe the evolution here.
The medical community has even
observed that some people even
(18:51):
grow an extra horn-like
bone at the base of
their necks.
According to some research out
of Australia, it's like a
mutation of sorts to, I
guess, the body intention to
support the head which weighs
that 8 to 10 pounds.
But fortunately, better posture and
(19:12):
neck exercises can counteract the
effects and I'm going to
show you just a couple
today.
Another benefit or return on
our investment from engaging in
this way, just a few
minutes every day and taking
some smart strategic breaks, is
you can help protect your
(19:33):
thumbs, your hands, and your
wrists.
Do you remember when we
used to call it blackberry
thumb?
I always think of Little
Jack Horner when I think
of the thumb and blackberry.
I think of pie.
I don't think it was
a plum pie.
He pulled out a plum.
But anyway, I always think
of that when I think
of blackberry thumb.
But this was related, of
(19:55):
course, to the early smartphones,
the blackberries, and the chronic
pain that people started experiencing.
And it was a strain
injury that sort of evolved
into what we now know
is carpal tunnel syndrome and
carpal tunnel injury.
It's a strain that affects
the tendons on the thumb
side of our wrists and
(20:15):
it's really brought on by
constant smartphone use.
Additionally, being heavy on the
keyboard, meaning longtime use, constant
use, wrong angles.
You know, now we have
pads in front of some
of the keyboards, which is
good, but not all laptops
have them or maybe you're
on the go and you
forgot to bring it.
But it can also exacerbate
(20:38):
some of the carpal tunnel
and different wrist symptoms as
well.
And rippling pain through the
wrist, some get numbness, some
really can't even touch the
keyboard after a few minutes.
Actually, a study in Muscle
and Nerve Journal found that
students who overuse electronic devices
are more likely to suffer
wrist and hand pain as
(21:01):
well as changes to particular
nerves in their hands.
So ultimately, it's the repetitive
movement, like scrolling and typing
and texting, that can cause
our tendons to become irritated.
And it's very real.
The positive news is that
targeted exercises and some stretches,
(21:23):
a couple that I'll share
with you and show you
today, can help keep the
nerve channels open, they can
offer some rest and relief,
they can help reduce pain
and inflammation, among other benefits.
So how about our eyes?
Just really think about your
eyes.
All this visual lockdown, in
(21:46):
other words, restricting our vision
at a fixed distance for
long periods of time, it's
taking a toll on everyone's
eyesight, young and old.
It causes eye strain, it
can cause dry eyes.
We actually blink less when
we're staring at the screen,
research has shown.
It can cause blurred vision
(22:07):
and even headaches on nearly
a constant basis.
So we need to give
our eyes a break.
Nearly 60% of adults
report symptoms related to digital
eye strain, and this includes
things like dryness and blurred
vision, like I mentioned, burning
eyes, difficulty focusing, and of
(22:30):
course those headaches.
And even kids are feeling
it.
I have an easy way
to help us remember and
practice something that will help
us with that fixed gaze,
and I'll share that in
a few minutes.
But one more quick did
-you-know moment that I
learned recently about, that impacts
(22:50):
the eyes, is that professional
esports, in other words, video
gaming, are now Olympic recognized
and will debut in a
side Olympic esport game in
2027.
So they are run by
the IOC, the International Olympic
(23:11):
Committee, along with a partner
organization.
And esports are organized, competitive
video gaming, and they're also
solo athletes and there are
teams involved.
I'm just learning this, it
blows my mind, not a
judgment, a fascination.
But, and I need to
(23:31):
mention this part, guess what
the top health complaint is
among these athletes?
Eye fatigue.
That's what it is.
Eye fatigue.
They're staring at screens, they're
intently focused, they're athletes of
their own kind, their own
sport, the esports.
Eye fatigue, the number one
(23:52):
complaint.
And then there's headaches.
This is another thing that
digital overuse or repetitive use
can create for us.
You can prevent or at
least minimize the frequency, severity,
and duration of headaches if
you do certain strategies to
(24:14):
help relieve digital use strain.
So tension headaches, stress headaches,
the kind that show up
right behind your eye or
across your forehead, if you've
ever had those, screen time
and eye strain play a
role here.
And so does neck posture,
of course, they are all
(24:34):
interrelated when it comes to
headaches.
And if you suffer migraines,
I suffer migraines, while it
may not be a primary
trigger for you, it's definitely
a contributor, all this digital
use.
And let's face it, when
you have a headache, and
you have to work through
it somehow, because your work
is using the screen.
(24:54):
Wow, oh, wow, that is
such a difficult scenario.
It's another reason why we
really need to attend to
this.
So taking screen breaks can
help quell some of that,
the tension headaches, often brought
on by digital eye strain.
And adding stretches and relaxing
breathing can also help reduce
(25:17):
some of the debilitating stress
headaches and symptoms from the
excess illumination of the screens,
from the eye strain from
the computer screens.
In addition to moving, and
reducing some of that prolonged
sitting and the potentially poor
posture that comes with it.
Okay, so now you know
(25:38):
the why some of the
reasons and the why we're
going to put some of
these stretches and exercises and
breaks into our lives.
Now I need to give
you the how.
And when I was preparing
for today, I realized I
do have a lot of
exercises that I've used and
taught over the years, and
(25:59):
a whole sequence even that
you can follow.
So I imagine I will
have to come up with
some good ways, starting today,
but throughout the episodes to
come to build in some
of those and maybe create
some new materials that I
can share out to you
to help bring some of
these to life.
And if you're interested in
that, please encourage me by
writing and dropping me a
(26:21):
line or coming on the
Instagram to tell me about
it, because it really helps
me create things that are
meaningful, which is my whole
goal here with the podcast,
for us to create a
community for me to lend
my expertise, but also lend
my real life experience and
learn from you as well.
(26:41):
So today in this episode,
I want to focus on
just a few key exercises,
though.
But in order to do
that, I wanted to share
a way to scan our
body a bit and recognize
how tech can affect us
physically, really from head to
toe.
We're going to focus sort
of on the waist up
today.
(27:01):
But hopefully this is not
too surprising once I plant
the seed in your mind,
since we are connected, our
bodies, that is, in so
many ways, our blood vessels
run throughout our body from
our heart back to our
heart.
Our nerves, our muscles, our
tendons, our ligaments, our organs
(27:22):
are all interrelated, but they're
actually connected, our tissue.
And of course, our largest
organ, our skin, it holds
us all in in a
nice little package.
It's all connected.
So I like to think
of sort of seven body
zones for screen relief, and
(27:43):
I'll introduce them to you
by showing you the exercises.
I will do like one
round of each, but then
tell you how to take
it into your own experience.
And then I'll do some
posts so that we can
get them and I'll put
some in the show notes
so that you know what
they are.
We're going to look at
our neck, our shoulders, our
wrist, hands and thumb, our
(28:04):
posture overall.
And on our mindful minute,
we're going to talk about
and talk through and do
a little something with our
eyes.
So in other words, these
are our primary tech tension
zones.
So I want to move
through them together in succession.
I'll do them briefly.
(28:25):
But I encourage you to
spend one to five minutes
on each of these one
or more times a day
and focus a little more
on the ones that you
really feel or you know
that you need.
So the first is neck
relief.
And there are a number
of exercises for the neck.
(28:47):
But this is just a
simple stretch.
And what we're going to
do, I don't want to
call it this, this is
neck relief.
But what we're going to
do is smell our armpit.
And I'm not kidding.
So what I want you
to do is sit tall,
feet on the floor, and
tilt your head slightly one
direction, let's say to the
(29:07):
left, approximately 45 degrees, and
use your hand to guide
your nose toward your armpit.
So the goal is guiding
your nose toward your armpit.
It's not pulling, but it's
(29:27):
guiding.
If it feels a little
tight or tense, breathe into
it.
You can come up to
center and readjust.
Sometimes we get little crinks
and clicks and everything.
This is not about adjusting
your neck.
Please don't do that.
This is about gentle stretching.
(29:49):
But sometimes we come up
and we just need to
like move just a little
bit and then do it
again.
And basically, smell your armpit.
And then we're going to
do the other side.
(30:09):
And as you do these,
what I encourage you to
do is hold the stretch
and do five slow, easy,
deep breaths.
So let's do the other
side because I feel out
of balance if I don't
do that.
Tilt and smell your armpit.
(30:36):
Simply breathe.
Five breaths.
Drop your hand and bring
your head upright.
So I hope I do
put this on video on
YouTube, but I hope that
the way I'm verbalizing it,
you're getting the idea.
And you do both sides.
You can do it again
even.
This should feel really good.
(30:57):
And I haven't come up
with a better way of
describing it because if you
direct your nose toward your
armpit, you really get that
angle that I'm talking about
that we really need.
Number two, our shoulder rolls.
So again, we're sitting easy
and gently.
We're sort of tipping our
chin in just a little
bit, sort of trying to
(31:19):
check your ears over your
shoulders.
And we're going to get
to that with our posture
check in a moment as
well.
But just simple shoulder rolls.
First, roll them forward five
times.
One, two, three, four, five.
(31:39):
As you do this, I'm
speaking, so you can't hear
me breathing naturally, but you're
breathing naturally as you do
this.
And then you reverse five
times back.
One, two, three, four, five.
Maybe take a pause for
five or 10 seconds and
(32:00):
then do another couple repetitions
of that if you wish.
The third, and this one's
really critical, and it will
surprise you.
And hopefully you'll feel better
and better over time, but
you'll be surprised at how
tight you may be in
(32:21):
your wrists.
Okay, so this is one
where I want you to
extend your arm, so let's
say the right arm, out
straight in front of you.
Don't overstretch it.
And with your other hand,
take your fingers and pull
them up.
So you're going to create
a flex where your palm
is facing straight ahead as
(32:42):
if you're saying stop.
And pull it gently just
beyond comfort and then back
off a little bit.
Don't overstretch it.
And while we're breathing, we
just hold it five to
eight seconds.
I'm going to keep the
number five in your mind
so that you have some
different options on how to
remember.
How many times?
How many seconds?
How many breaths?
(33:02):
Five.
And then we're going to
flex it downward.
We're going to point our
fingers downward, the opposite direction,
as if your fingers are
pointing straight toward the floor.
And hold that for five
to eight seconds, or about
five breaths.
(33:23):
Five very slow seconds.
Do you have a slow
second?
I guess it's just a
second.
Five slow counts.
And then we're going to
repeat that with the other
arm.
So let's do it.
We'll do one time.
And I encourage you to
do this more times to
repeat this because it really
is so good.
(33:44):
Take your left arm right
out in front of you.
You're going to make the
stop halt symbol with your
hand with your fingers pointing
toward the ceiling.
Take your right hand and
gently pull back your fingers
to sort of articulate the
stretch a little bit further.
When you're at the point
of tension, just back up
(34:05):
a little bit.
You're getting a stretch even
you don't have to pull
really hard.
We're not trying to create
inflammation or create pain.
We're just stretching.
Five to eight seconds.
Five breaths.
You get the idea.
And now fingers down.
(34:25):
Keep your arm outward.
Fingers toward the ground.
Gentle.
Pull.
Feel.
You should feel it up
your forearm even.
So you might feel it
on the back of your
wrist some.
But this particular stretch, you
feel sort of run up
your forearm, the muscles that
connect into the tendons and
(34:47):
ligaments around your elbow.
And that's the wrist.
Next.
I love these.
Next are our hands.
And we're going to do
jazz hands.
So with your hands comfortably
in front of you, your
elbows can be bent.
(35:07):
Hands can be out.
Whatever is comfortable.
I want you to make
some fists and hold them.
Fist tight.
Hold them.
And you're going to do
this.
How many breaths?
Probably five.
Five to eight seconds.
And then you're going to
stretch your fingers wide out
(35:29):
like jazz hands.
I guess you can give
a shake if you want.
If you were a dancer
and you like to do
jazz hands.
But really this is about
the stretch out wide.
And you'll repeat this five
times.
So fists.
We'll do it just a
couple times.
Hold and spread them wide.
(35:54):
Give them a little shake.
Shimmy.
Makes you smile.
And that's jazz hands.
So that's our hands.
Now number five of the
seven point scan we're doing
with our body for our
digital relief is our thumb.
We're going to give it
a little TLC.
So I want you to
(36:14):
spread your fingers out, but
relax.
So if you're watching or
if you're listening and not
watching, I'm just sort of
showing a halt sign, like
stop where you are, but
my fingers are outstretched.
Now, what I want you
to do is to stretch
your thumb gently across your
palm, reaching toward your pinky
really, but on your palm
(36:36):
for about five seconds or
five breaths.
Good.
Now I want you to
stretch it wide the opposite
way and make sort of
that jazz hand, but we're
really focusing on our thumb.
There's other things you can
do here, but this is
a really good PT move,
a physical therapy move that
(36:56):
I've been given as an
exercise in the past when
I've had thumb issues.
And actually, interestingly, as I
just did it, my thumb
sort of cramped up.
I'm going back to my
pinky again across my palm.
My thumb sort of cramped
up a little bit.
I really needed this right
now as I was doing
it and then spread it
wide.
(37:17):
And you want to repeat
that about five times on
each side.
So while we're here, I'm
going to do the left
hand.
I'm really all about balance.
You might have one area,
one side that you need
more attention to, and that's
fine as well, but it's
really good when you're doing
these exercises to do both.
So my thumb is on
my palm against my pinky,
(37:39):
pointing toward it now.
My hand is outright stretched,
and now I'm back in
sort of the jazz hands,
but focusing, putting attention on
my thumb.
Do that just a couple
times and we'll move on.
This is a circuit you
(37:59):
could do.
Six is a posture check.
On your chair, so this
is an important one, sit
where you sit and with
your feet uncrossed.
I want you to sit
back, put your back against
the chair.
I want you to tuck
your chin in a little
bit and gently down.
I tend to extend my
(38:20):
neck upward when I'm looking
at my screen.
It's my natural inclination, and
I do have and suffer
from some neck issues because
of it and neck tension
that I have to often
address in a number of
ways like these stretches.
But you tuck your neck,
your chin gently down, and
sort of feel the back
of your neck elongate just
a little.
Again, this is not a
stretch, this is just a
(38:41):
gentle tuck.
Then readjust your head, which
for me is like bringing
it back a little bit
to get your ears over
your shoulders.
And with that, you start
to feel a change.
It should feel a little
easier on your whole body.
While you're there, bring yourself
(39:01):
into a very erect, tall
posture, sort of pushing your
head toward the ceiling.
This isn't to maintain this
as your posture, it's just
to check and then let
yourself come back to a
little more relaxed position, maintaining
your chin a little tucked
and your ears over your
shoulder.
When you're doing that, you
pull in your abs a
little bit, you straighten your
(39:22):
spine, and then you're relaxed
again, and you're a little
bit more aligned and more
comfortable, hopefully, as well.
Finally, in our seven-point
body scan, I'm going to
focus on the eyes.
They are so important.
By the way, you don't
have to do all seven,
you don't have to do
them in this order, but
I put the eyes last
(39:42):
because I'm going to roll
them into our mindful minute.
I'm going to eye roll
them into our mindful minute
today, which of course is
a time where we take
typically a minute together to
sort of assess and be
aware of our time, to
be aware of our bodies,
our breathing, and give ourselves
a little self-care.
(40:03):
In doing that, this will
take a little bit more
than a minute.
If you do it on
your own, it's just a
minute of your time.
This will require you to
be somewhere safe so that
you can be seated or
standing, but if you are
driving, you won't be able
to do this right now,
(40:23):
so you can breathe and
gain the benefits of just
some purposeful breathing over the
minute as you listen to
the description because we are
going to be covering our
eyes.
So, you know how we
talk about 2020 as perfect
vision, or our eye doctors
especially do.
They put us to the
literal test and they have
(40:44):
us look at the line
and see if we can
read it, and we correct
our vision to 2020 or
thereabouts, and metaphorically speaking, we
say hindsight is 2020.
Well, there is a rule
out there for our eyes
to help us with relieving
digital eye strain, and it's
called the 20-20-20
(41:05):
rule.
I didn't invent this.
It's a practice that's recommended
by the American Academy of
Ophthalmology and the American Optometric
Association as well, and this
20-20-20 means every
20 minutes, take a 20
-second break and focus on
(41:28):
something 20 feet away.
Our eye muscles, like most
of our muscles, are designed
to move, and our eye
muscles are designed to refocus
and shift points of focus
and look side to side,
and many of us these
days sit in fixed positions
(41:48):
at fixed distances, staring at
a glowing screen, and even
blinking less, researchers have observed,
blinking less than we should
for hours on end, and
so it's really no surprise
that we get this digital
eye strain, that our muscles
weaken and become at risk,
(42:10):
our eyes do, of becoming
impaired or weak.
So we're going to do
this mindful minute.
It will take us a
little bit more than a
minute.
I'll set my stopwatch so
I keep track just in
the describing of it, but
the 20-20-20 is
going to be our now
and our ongoing goal.
So in preparation of this,
(42:30):
let's do one of those
preparatory breaths that we do,
where we take a nice
deep breath in through our
nose and out through our
mouth.
Okay, and as we begin,
just follow along with this
little bit of this script
that I will share with
you verbally.
(42:50):
So first, I want you
to blink slowly for a
few seconds.
Purposeful blinks.
Blinking is actually something that
is both automatic, unconscious, and
a conscious choice.
So blink purposefully a few
times.
Feel your eye muscles as
(43:11):
you do that.
Maybe a little bit of
tears start to form even.
Now, I want you to
take your hands and rub
them together palm to palm.
Rub them together to warm
them up.
Once there's a bit of
friction, a bit of warmth,
then we're going to gently
cup your palms over your
(43:33):
eyes.
You can close your eyes.
You're not pressing.
You're just covering them.
You're creating some darkness.
You're putting a little warmth
toward your eyes and close
your eyes.
As you do that, breathe
in through your nose, out
through your mouth about five
(43:53):
times.
Picture the warmth in your
mind.
Don't look at it.
Picture it.
And then we're going to
repeat it a few times.
As the warmth leaves and
dissipates, gently create friction on
your hands again.
Warm your hands up and
do this cupping again.
(44:14):
When you've gone through a
few cycles of that, maybe
two to three cycles or
so, it feels really good.
Do some more.
Uncover your eyes and look
across a room, across the
space, 20 feet away if
you can.
And I encourage you to
actually measure this out.
You can gain a sense
(44:34):
not only in your spaces
that you spend a lot
of time, but also just
a sense when you're out
and about what 20 feet
looks like.
It might surprise you.
And let your eyes refocus
at that distance and breathe
in about five times in
and out before bringing your
eyes back front and center.
(44:55):
And you can repeat that.
You come front and center
and then shoot your eyes
out 20 feet, breathe in
and out five times, come
back to center, and you're
done.
Just like that, you've done
the 20-20-20 rule.
And it's a nervous system
reset at the same time.
(45:16):
So that was a couple
minutes in explanation, but you
can see how that would
just take about a minute
to do on your own.
And that's our mindful minute
for today.
So thank you for sharing
that mindful minute with me.
So before we wrap up
this episode, I want to
give you a bonus exercise
actually for your eyes.
(45:37):
It's something that I really
love to do.
And well, it's not really
that I love it so
much.
It's that I love the
way it makes me feel
after I do it.
So maybe that's more accurate
there.
I tend to call this
the silly eye stretches.
And it's not silly in
why you do it or
(45:57):
how it makes you feel,
but it's sort of silly
in how it makes you
look, especially if other people
are around and catch you
doing it, especially people like
you, my daughter, when I'm
doing it.
But it can make you
smile.
And of course we know
smiles are good for our
health too.
And it's very straightforward, actually.
(46:18):
And you might remember it
by thinking of it as
a looking star.
I think of it like
a star.
So I'm going to walk
you through this briefly.
And I'll do the brief
version, but I will cover
both sides so that we
get the complete exercise together.
So again, you're going to
always sit forward in your
(46:38):
chair comfortably in good posture,
feet on the floor, knees
and legs uncrossed, your head
straight above your shoulders.
Remember that big weight that's
sitting above your shoulders.
When you tip it forward,
it can be up to
60 pounds of pressure.
So we're bringing our chin
in, our ears over our
shoulders.
(46:59):
And this is an exercise
for your eyes.
So you're not going to
move your neck or your
head while you do this,
just your eyes.
And if you find yourself
moving your head, as I
often do, I get myself
confused and sort of tongue
-tied in my brain, just
bring it back to center
and start again.
So first, with your head
still, you're going to just
(47:21):
look as far left as
you can, as far left,
feel the muscles of your
eye socket, far left, and
you're going to breathe into
that look and hold it.
Again, about five breaths, five
seconds, five is the number
of the day.
And then you're going to
come back to center.
Next, you're going to do
(47:41):
the same on the right,
look right.
If your head got away
from you and you start
tipping, or if you lose
where you're looking, if you're
watching on YouTube, you might
get a few laughs at
me doing this.
It always makes me sort
of chuckle.
Look to the right, hold
it, take some breaths.
Of course, I'm speaking, so
I'm not doing proper breathing
(48:02):
right now.
But breathe in through your
nose, out through your mouth,
come back to center, and
you focus.
Next, we are going to
look up to the ceiling,
all the way to the
ceiling.
Try to look up to
the ceiling without tipping your
head up, straight up to
the ceiling, hold it.
You should actually feel your
muscles engage here, your eye
(48:22):
muscles as you look up
and breathe.
And always come back to
center before you go to
the next move.
Next, down to the floor.
Try to avoid tipping your
chin down and look down
to the floor.
Sort of feels like you're
going cross-eyed, but straight
down to the floor as
much as you can.
Hold and breathe, back to
center.
(48:43):
Next, there's four more.
Hold up a five if
you're on YouTube.
Four more that we do
to create the star, and
those are the diagonals.
Next, you're going to shoot
your eyes up and left
to the diagonal as high
as you can toward the
ceiling at the diagonal to
the left and center.
(49:04):
Shoot your eyes up to
the right at a diagonal.
Try to see the ceiling
at the side.
Come back to center.
Lower left diagonal.
You're looking down at the
floor, across the room, to
the left, back to center,
and down to the right,
(49:27):
diagonal, and come back to
center.
Now, just two add-ons
if you choose to do
it.
That was eight points of
a star that we just
did, but you can do
eye rolls.
You roll them around to
the left five times, one,
two, three, four, five, and
(49:47):
to the right, one, two,
three, four, five, and that's
it.
Now, I don't know about
you, but that sort of
gets me smiling, for one,
but it also gets me
re-centered.
It feels a little rusted.
My eyes get brighter, like
my vision gets a little
brighter, and it feels good.
(50:09):
It's just so wow about
being able to engage those
muscles in a purposeful way,
and most of us aren't
doing that on a regular
basis unless you're doing exactly
what I just described.
To me, it feels so,
so good.
It feels needed even when
I finish it, and sometimes
I forget how much until
(50:29):
I do it.
I'd love to hear how
it feels for you.
You might want to try
it a few cycles a
few times to get it
down, and to share with
me.
It should be purposeful, but
it shouldn't strain or hurt,
so you might not realize
just how much more room,
how much more focus, how
(50:50):
many more things you can
look at when you engage
your eye muscles, not just
straightforward as we typically do
when we're staring at screens
during our day.
So all of this is
important, and we covered a
lot today from eye strain
and caring for them, our
posture, and some hopefully satisfying,
(51:13):
if not surprising, also stretches
that we can do, like
smell your armpit.
It just feels so good.
So how do we turn
this into something real and
doable right now?
Here are a few reminders,
let's say, and small shifts
that you can start today,
even between meetings, or if
you take a restroom break,
(51:35):
or right after your next
scrolling session when you take
a break from that.
The first is setting reminders,
plain and simple.
Set reminders to get up
every 30 minutes on average.
If you're really locked into
a screen, make that 20
minutes and apply that 20
-20-20 rule.
(51:55):
Just a quick stretch, or
a posture check, or the
20-20-20, the eye
exercise and refocus can really
make a difference.
Another thing to try is
to pick a stretch or
two that we did today,
the neck roll, the neck
turn, the smell the armpit,
shoulder rolls, the wrists, remember
(52:17):
those, or maybe even just
jazz hands to stretch out
your hands before you get
back to the keyboard or
your smartphone.
One minute is better than
none, so everything counts.
Do those posture checks, that's
another thing to remind you
about doing now and again
in your day.
You will be amazed at
(52:38):
how much just sort of
resetting your head over your
shoulders over your body can
make a difference on how
much energy you have, how
much less fatigue you feel
later in the day, and
how much less muscular stress
and tension you feel as
well.
So do that and practice
that, and then of course
give your eyes some love.
(52:58):
Do the 20-20-20,
do the star stretch that
we just did together.
And if your eyes are
still feeling strain, I didn't
talk about this today, I
could do this in another
episode, but I might just
mention now that you might
try some of those blue
light glasses that are available.
Some people have really found
benefit at like softening the
(53:18):
glare on the screen, especially
later in the day they
just sort of filter the
digital glow that comes off
of your screens.
So this isn't about a
whole new set of things
to do, but hopefully ways
to make the most of
your waking minutes by taking
some moments to renew and
(53:40):
rest and stretch and recognize
how important these are to
your effectiveness as a human
being and to your vital,
well, life.
So in effect, we are
navigating a world nowadays that
doesn't always have our body
in mind, but we have
(54:01):
to deal with it.
And we can't delete technology,
and it helps us in
so many ways, but you
can, shall we say, delete
some of the negative effects
and the stress that it
can cause.
So thank you for sharing
a few of your waking
minutes with me today.
I'll be sure to put
a summary and these tips
(54:22):
and exercises in the show
notes.
And I think I'll also
start working on making some
handouts and perhaps some little
videos that walk us through
some of these exercises so
you can have a guided
circuit perhaps to bring this
more to life.
And if that's something meaningful
to you, please reach out
and tell me because my
goal is in our community
(54:44):
to create content and educational
and evidence-based strategies that
can help us as a
group, but you individually too,
get toward your goals to
eat well, move daily, and
be healthy.
You can always find me
at wendybazilian.com and you
(55:04):
can access the contact page
or that method.
And please, on Instagram, I'm
at @1000wakingminutes.
Please join, follow, share with
a friend.
I appreciate it so much
as we share our health
-inspired lives together.
I hope this episode leaves
(55:25):
you feeling a little more
limber, maybe, a little more
refreshed, and a little more
aware of how small shifts
can add up to bigger
relief, especially over time, and
especially given how much we
rely on our digital tools.
So with that in mind,
I'm going to get off
(55:45):
the tech now a little
and go get myself some
fresh air, natural lighting, and
a little real movement.
I'm Wendy Bazilian, your host
of 1,000 Waking Minutes, and
until next time, be well.
Thank you for tuning in
(56:06):
to 1,000 Waking Minutes.
A huge thank you to
our amazing collaborators, including our
production and marketing teams, and
Gabriela Escalante in particular.
To the ultra-talented Beza
for my theme music, my
lifelong friend and artist, Pearl
Preis Photography and Design.
To Danielle Ballantyne, Jen Nguyen,
Joanna Powell, and of course
(56:27):
my family, and everyone working
tirelessly behind the scenes.
And to you, our valued
listeners, I so appreciate your
support.
If you enjoyed today's episode,
please consider leaving a comment,
writing a review, and giving
1,000 Waking Minutes, that's us,
a five-star rating.
And please hit subscribe on
(56:47):
Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever
you enjoy your podcasts.
Please follow and stay connected
at wendybazilian.com and don't
forget to share with your
friends.
Your support helps us grow
and bring you more great
content.
Until next time, find some
simple opportunities to optimize those
1,000 Waking Minutes each day.
(57:40):
I'm saying yes!
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