Stretches and Exercises

• a. Chin Tuck: Hold for 3 – 5 seconds.
• b. Shoulder (Scapular) squeezes: squeeze your shoulder blades together. Don’t squeeze up, squeeze down & back – for 5 to 10 times.
• c. Posture Correction Brace: not for long-term use. Use it as how you would put on a backpack – to prevent your shoulders from rolling forwards.
• d. Use a resistance band. Wrap the band around your feet. Have a thumbs up and elbows close to your sides. Then do your shoulder (scapular) squeezes again. Go nice, slow, and controlled movements. Start with 10 – 15 times.
• e. Stretch out your pec (chest) muscles: Take your hands and clasp them behind your back. Push down and out, and at the same time, push your chest down. Hold for 30 seconds, relax, and the repeat. Do for a total of 3 times.

• Do not stand with your knees locked. Bend your knees a little bit when you stand.
• Do not stand on one leg. Alternate. Place inserts in your shoes (squishy kind).
• Have a high stool, and have a half-sit, half-stand – Sit-Stand Station.
• If you sit a lot – every half an hour, bend your knees.
• If you sit a lot – have your knees bent at 90 degrees (not more than 90 degrees). Healthy for your knees and your back as well. Do 5 fast kicks every half an hour. Kick them out as straight as you can, and hold for a second. – A little bit of stretch, and a little bit of strengthening.
• If you sit in Lotus position for too long, then you can get back pain, and knee pain.
• If you sit in Frog position, then you can get knee pain.
• Don’t kneel for too long.
• Walking – take shorter strides. When heel strikes occur, it puts a lot of stress on the knee joints. Hit on the forefoot, or forefoot & backfoot at the same time. Get cushioned-shoes as well.
• Sleeping – don’t have legs straight all night long. Have a wedge below your knees. Or some pillows under your knees. Put the pillows between your knees if you sleep on your side.

Part 1:

• If you stare at a computer screen for hours every day, then you might develop a condition called “Computer Vision Syndrome“, which is characterized by several signs and symptoms – squinting, blurred vision, dry and red eyes, itchy eyes, watery eyes, double vision, headaches, neck pain and back pain.
• It will be very helpful to do some yoga for your eyes every day to strengthen your eyes
• a. Practice Palming:
• Rub your palms together to create some heat in your hands, then gently set them over your eyes in a “cupping” position. Allow your eyes to rest in the darkness.
• Relax and breathe here for a few minutes, enjoying the peace and solitude this brings.
• b. Blink Rapidly:
• Blinking helps to nourish the eyes while relaxing the muscles and preventing dryness. Ideally, we would all blink 25 times per minute.
• Loosen your jaw, separate you lips from one another, release any tension in your face or forehead.
• Find a point of focus, then blink rapidly 10 times in a row. Close your eyes for 20 seconds, then repeat this exercise three more times.
• c. Gaze Up and Down:
• Now that your eyes are warmed up, imagine a clock in front of you.
• Shift your gaze up towards 12pm then down towards 6pm.
• Make sure you are relaxed and breathing deeply. Do not move your neck. Do this up and down eye stretch 10 times, slowly back and forth.
• After you’re done, try the same exercise looking left and right.
• d. Do Eye Circles in Both Directions:
• Think of this as flexibility training for your beautiful eyes.
• Move your eye gaze around in as big a circle as possible, without using any help from your neck or spine. Breath deeply.
• Send your eye gaze up towards the ceiling, and slowly work your way around in a clockwise circle – at least three deep breaths per circle.
• When you’ve reached the top, rest your eyes with the “Palming Method”.
• Try the same sequence again, moving counter clockwise this time.
• e. Shift Your Focus:
• This will help to retrain your eyes to see detail at different perspectives.
• Hold your right arm out one full length in front of you and stick the thumb straight up. Focus your eye gaze on your thumb.
• Slowly move your thumb towards your face until it appears blurrly.
• Pause, then slowly move your thumb away from you back to the starting position.
• Repeat this a few more times, being mindful of your pace and breathing.
• f. Try “Trataka” – Fixed Gazing at a Candle
• This will help sharpen the focus of your eyes and send energy to your third eye – the point between the eyes on the forehead that guides intuition. It also enhances concentration, improve memory and quiets the restless mind.
• Trataka – set up a candle three feet away from you. Find a comfortable seated position, where you can keep your spine erect and the flame is level with the eyes.
• Next, using a fixed gaze, stare into the flame and focus only on your breathing. Listen to the thoughts that enter your mind, without judgment. Simply let them float by like clouds.
• When your eyes begin to water, close them and rest in the darkness.
• You can practice this exercise for up to 40 minutes.
• Always Give Your Eyes a Break
• a. Follow the 20-20-20 rule – every 20 minutes look at something 20 feet away for 20 seconds.
• b. Reduce the glare on your screen by angling your computer away from the window or adding a glare filter to your monitor.
• c. Rearrange your monitor so that it is 20 – 28 inches from your face and 15 – 20 degrees below eye level. You shouldn’t have to stretch your neck or squint your eyes to see what’s on the screen.
• d. Adjust the brightness on your monitor away from factor settings especially if you’re working after dark.

Source(s): https://www.thealternativedaily.com/how-to-do-yoga-for-your-eyes/

This workout is all about loosening up your body and getting rid of the tension we end up storing in our shoulders, neck, and upper body. 

• Workout:⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⠀⁣⁣⠀⁣⁣⁣⠀
• Shoulder Rolls
• Cross-Body Stretch
• Triceps Stretch
• Cow Face Arms
• Bound Forward Fold

While developing and maintaining good core strength is extremely helpful to protecting the spine and surrounding tissues against injury, it’s equally important to work at improving usable strength of the trunk toward its end ranges.

When we have good control of our spine throughout its full range of motion, we are less susceptible to injuring the ligaments, tendons, and muscles that control spinal movement during everyday activities.

This is especially true of the tissues involved when we rotate our trunk, as the discs and ligaments between our vertebrae and the muscles that control spinal range of motion are more susceptible to being sprained and strained when they are under more tensile load during active and passive spinal rotation.

Source(s): https://drbenkim.com/essential-healthy-back-rotation.htm

Chair Yoga – Yoga poses done either on a chair or with the assistance of a chair. It helps to improve your flexibility in a gentle, yet effective, manner. You will strengthen your muscles and, over time, improve your balance as well. It also helps to support mental health.

1. Upward Salute – Hold for a count of three. Repeat 5 times.
2. Forward Fold
3. Chair Twists – Breathe deeply for a few breaths.
4. Pigeon Pose – An excellent way to stretch the hips.
5. Warrior Pose
6. Cat-Cow Pose – Repeat 10 times, breathing in as you look up, and breathing out as your contract.
7. Goddess Pose – This pose will provide you with a great stretch, not only through the hips and groin areas but also through your chest, shoulders, arms, and sides.

Source(s): https://blog.biotrust.com/5-chair-yoga-benefits-poses/

Better Sleep Yoga Workout (darebee.com) – https://darebee.com/workouts/better-sleep-yoga-workout.html