Sometimes I become exhausted looking at people. If you observe a person and bring your focus onto them with some knowledge of anatomy and just basic empathy, you can see their pain, weaknesses in the musculoskeletal system, giving you a window into where they have been and their life history. A body in a substantial amount of stress and inefficient postures sort of reminds me of someone wearing clothes that has become far too small, restricting motion. Muscles become shortened and weak, protesting alignment. The head pulls forward, spine curves, hips lose range of motion and every step looks like it takes incredible effort. People are under the mistaken assumption that they were just "made" that way. You can see some of these compensations passed down through family members. We tend to adopt movement patterns from parents and people we interact with in daily life. Some of us are gifted with flexibility, but few and far between and inevitably it is lost as we age. Sometimes habits can be deciphered through posture alone.
The beautiful thing is that you don't have to live in a musculoskeletal prison. Like I've mentioned before, professional athletes stretch for hours in order to give them as much energy and versatility as possible (not to mention to prevent injury).
The body can feel much "lighter" than it does as you sit and read this. I practice what I preach and over the past few months, I've been doing my own system of intense stretching and lean muscle building. I was born with juvenile bunions that presented noticeable deformity at age 1. My entire foundation (feet) developed grossly out of alignment and I had two surgeries in my teens that in my opinion caused even more damage. My feet literally "pull" my body to the ground due to weakness and joint rotations. The abnormality has affected me all the way up to the jaw and it has gotten much worse over the years. I once had a massage on my calves and my jaw so drastically relaxed that my face and neck felt like it gained a good centimeter. So I spend at least 4-5 days (30-45 min per session) a week doing very slow intensive stretching including not just the arms and legs, but the chest, torso, neck, hips and feet. Pigeon pose, gluteus medius exercises, and ankle strengthening are my salvation. When I'm on top of my routine I feel much lighter and the every day tasks seem effortless and natural. However if I skip more than two days, the hard work starts unraveling. It's like brushing your teeth. You don't arrive at some place where your teeth are clean forever--it's maintenance and bodywork are just as important as brushing your teeth and I'd argue the financial cost is higher. I will never be perfect--in fact I'll be lucky if I get anywhere near "normal." But comfort and function is a spectrum and it's about progress and how you feel at the end of the day.
You do NOT have to be relegated to dragging your body around. The body is meant to work for you where you may draw upon its energy to do what you want in life. Regular bodywork such as massage and challenging the body in to proper alignment over a long period of time are essential to overall health, immune function and emotional security. YOU ARE THE DRIVER! Not your body. Be a master and not a slave to it.
