Beyond taking frequent short stops to stretch your legs, what things do you do on a long drive to stay comfortable and minimize stiffness?
Long drives are often a challenge for people who experience back pain, sciatica, neck soreness, shoulder strain, etc. Some small adjustments can help improve your comfort.
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- Scoot your hips as far back in the seat as you can and stack up onto your Sitz bones. Your sacrum should be quite vertical so that there is no pressure on your tailbone. Note this may make your legs seem a bit shorter so you may have to adjust your seat.
- From here, walk your spine up the seat until the back of your head is in contact with the seat. While you may not keep your head in contact with the head rest at all times, you can frequently come back to this position throughout your drive. You may find your head travels forward into a chin poke the longer you sit.
- Tuck your shoulder blades behind you. Are your arms still at a good length to easily reach the steering wheel with elbows slightly bent?
- Whether you are from the days of “10 & 2” or “9 & 3”, using both hands so that the arms are symmetrical will help to minimize the tendency for you to lean your trunk to the side as you sit. Additionally, the shoulder prefers a ‘thumbs up’ position rather than being rotated inward as shown in this photo:
- And what about the legs? On your driving foot, take note of the line between your heel and toes. Is it straight or are the toes pointing outward? Try walking the heel out wider so that you have a relatively straight line from your hip, through your knee, to your heel and toes.
- Wiggle about to move your joints and maybe even wake yourself up! Start at your feet and ankles and work your way up one by one to your shoulders. Do mini circles or pulse your joints, open your mouth wide, push your back into the seat, etc. Motion is Lotion!