Stressed and Tense? Unlock Your Body With This 60-Second Routine
Five easy, no-brainer movements to save your day.
Welcome to The Feel Good Life! A newsletter about health, prevention, empathy, and hope. Join me, Dr. Mariana, as I explore all sides of good health and a good life. New here? Get started.
Tell me something:
Do you find yourself sitting a lot? In front of screens all day?
Or maybe with a clenched jaw and stiff shoulders?
How about waking up in the morning with a tight neck or a mild headache?
If so, you’re probably more tense and stressed out than you think.
Stress shows up in endless ways throughout the body, and most of the times we are not aware of it. Symptoms include neck pain, teeth and jaw pain, ear ringing, stiffness, muscle cramps, eye-twitching, bloatedness, fluid retention, constipation, headaches, migraines, sciatica, you name it. Stress is everywhere and it can show up anytime.
Ideally, we should all have super zen and perfect morning-bedtime routines, plus regular exercise habits, right? But the reality is quite different.
Life is too overwhelming already, I know. So how could anyone think of relaxing or stretching during the day? Who even has actual time for that, right?! But we all know our modern stressful and sedentary lifestyles aren’t going to take us far into the future before something goes wrong.
For this reason, I am bringing you:
The easiest, laziest, no-brainer stress-release routine to save the day.
You’d be amazed at what 60 seconds can do for your body if you allot some time to actually take breathers throughout the day.
Ready? Just stay calmly where you are, whether sitting, standing, in a meeting, or on a long-haul flight, and take the follow simple steps:
RELAX YOUR TONGUE. Most likely, your tongue is more or less glued to your palate (the mouth’s ceiling) right now. Did you just check? This happens out of habit and it’s a sign of muscle tension. When your tongue is tense, mouth, throat and neck muscles will also be tense. Unstick your tongue from the roof of your mouth, take one deep breath IN and…exhale through your mouth. Can you notice the difference? Repeat 3 times in a row. Now - spend the rest of the day occasionally checking in on where your tongue is in your mouth, Your mind will be blown when you realise how most parts of the day, your tongue is stuck all the way up there (as it were).
UNCLENCH YOUR JAW. Put the tips of your fingers on the sides of your mandibles, right behind the softest part of your cheek. Softly press your fingertips in, move them up and down, then in tiny circles. Does it hurt? That’s the masseter muscle you’re pressing. If it hurts, it means it’s been working extra hours, aka. jaw-clenching galore! Did you know that the masseter is considered the strongest muscle in the body? Alongside other small chewing muscles, it can put up to 68 kgs of force into your teeth, even more when we sleep. No wonder we wake up with pain after a jaw-clenching night!
BRING YOUR SHOULDERS DOWN FROM YOUR EARS! (Common phrase we hear in dancing classes all the time - for good reason!) First, pull your shoulders slightly up towards your ears. Now push them back as if you were moving your wings - as you do this, you’ll notice your spine correcting its posture into a more straight position (this is good). Finally, let your shoulders fall down and away from your ears. A simple move that will instantly release the areas most affected by stress: neck, shoulders and upper back. Can you feel the release? Repeat and see for yourself.
RELAX YOUR STOMACH. Do you feel a shortness of breath when talking fast, giving a speech or trying to explain something for an extended time? This has a lot to do with your diaphragm (the muscle between your abdomen and your chest). This massive muscle has many functions - helping in the breathing and digestive processes being among the most important ones. When you’re not mindful of your eating or speaking habits, your diaphragm tenses up, putting pressure on your abdominal organs affecting their natural function. Take a calm, deep breath. Hold it for a few seconds. Exhale slowly and gently. Repeat this cycle several times and observe if your abdomen becomes less tense as you do it.
UNCLENCH YOUR BUTTHOLE. (Sorry.) Yes, you heard that right. Your perineal and perianal muscles are among the most tense in the body, especially when we sit for long hours. This can put pressure on your pelvic organs, particularly the bowel, resulting in slow intestinal movements and difficult evacuation (hello constipation!). So just relax, take a deep breath and focus on relaxing your butthole, while avoiding…erm, any accidents that this may lead to. ;)
Here I’m demonstrating all five of these things (ok, not really number five):
One last reminder: DRINK YOUR WATER.
Hydration is key to overall health. With proper hydration, the body’s cells and tissues can recover and do their thing. Without proper hydration, it’s much more likely that your tissues will suffer, affecting basic bodily functions in the long run and even in the short term.
OK. Done all that? How did it make you feel? Better?
Amazing, right?
Five simple tricks that will change your day as you go. The best part? They are easy to remember, and you can do them anywhere you are, whether at home, at work, at social gatherings, while standing or sitting down.
To make it even easier for you to remember:
Here’s a sticky note for you to download, screenshot, print or save on your phone to remind yourself daily of this easy 1-minute anti-stress routine:
Curious for more? I made an Anti-Stress course and it’s right here on Substack.
If you want to learn more on how to understand and manage your stress and improve your daily habits, PLUS you’re ready to take action, then you’re in for a treat. Check my easy 8-part course, do it at your own pace and get ready to be amazed!
Are there any other tricks you know to release stress in 60 seconds or less? Share them in the comments.
If you found this helpful, save it for later so you can repeat. Also, why not share it with someone you care about. You might just save their day!
See you next time. ;)
Hugs,
Dr. Mariana
Image Credits: Keenan Constance, Karolina Kaboompics
I love these. What would really help me unwind is a video of Mike Sowden doing each one especially releasing his butthole
I love these! And I realise I do some more than others 🙄 so it is the perfect reminder. One extra one I do regularly as I work so much on the computer is to unfocus the eyes. I was taught that peripheral vision activates the PNS so it is instant relaxation. Besides, Pitta gets into the body through the eyes and I certainly don’t need anymore!