Sotai seen in the video – Part3
“Review movements of daily life”

Table of contents

Prologue

In Japan, activities of daily living are called behaviors, and movements with correct behaviors are called manners. Manners are not superficial to make movements look beautiful, but rational and lean movements to properly use and protect the body and tools. It also leads to the movement of ancient Japanese martial arts.

This behavior has a lot to do with the Japanese sense of beauty. The basis of activities of daily living is the behavior in daily life, that is, the correct way of standing, sitting, walking, holding things, and sleeping.

Rehabilitation and prevention of existing symptoms can be achieved by consciously reviewing the behavior of daily living. Rather than making time for special strength training, you can strengthen your muscles sufficiently by reviewing your daily movements.

I. How to stand and standing posture

① How to stand up

The movement of getting up from the chair and from the floor is repeated many times a day.

The bad way to move is to lean forward, stand up and stretch your hips. If you lean forward and stretch your body, it will put a strain on your lower back. Then, before you stretch out, you start walking, and your leaning forward (cat back) becomes your normal posture.

When getting up from the chair, first pull the heel heel to your body, then stand up straight up without tilting your body forward, paying attention to the muscles in front of your thighs. The strain on the hip joint is reduced, and the muscle strength in front of the thigh (quadriceps) is used.
When standing up from the floor, first sit with your toes upright, then raise your left knee, advance your left foot, and move your foot back and forth. From that position, keep your back straight and stand straight up.

If your muscles are weak at first and you can’t stand up well, try to stand up while holding on to the support so that you don’t lean forward.

By consciously standing up, your muscle strength and return posture will improve.

② Standing posture

As for the standing posture, first create a posture in which the spine rests neatly on the pelvis. Stand with your legs wider than your shoulders. Bend your knees slightly and make sure your weight is in front of your thighs.

If you lean forward from this position with your middle waist, your weight will be placed in front of your thighs, and your posture will be easier from your waist to your upper body, and you will be able to work very comfortably. In addition, it is easy to swing from side to side, and it also exercises the lower body, so swelling of the legs is less likely to occur.
If you have a kitchen knife or other utensil in the kitchen, pull the leg on the side of the handle a little. It is the same as the stance of judo. The kitchen knife can be pulled straight back, making it easier to move your arms and shoulders.

II. Sitting motion and sitting posture

① Sitting action

The sitting motion is the opposite of the standing motion.

Sit slowly in front of your thighs so that you do not lean forward from a straight standing position. When you sit down like that, the muscles in your buttocks are still taut after you sit down, and they support your upper body from the pelvis in a good posture. You can maintain a comfortable posture without stiff shoulders. If you get sick, stand up straight and sit straight, rather than bending your back and straightening.

When you sit on the floor, it’s the opposite of standing up. Instead of leaning forward, pull your right leg slightly, straighten your back, bend your knees, and lower your hips.

Be conscious of standing and sitting using the muscle strength in front of your thighs (quadriceps).

② Sitting posture. Sitting posture on chairs, floors and tatami mats

In today’s world, where people spend more time sitting in chairs, such as when working on a computer, sitting posture is a very important lifestyle habit. To keep your back straight and sit clean for a long time, cushion the back half of your seat so that your knees are slightly below your hips.

By escaping the weight below the knee, it becomes easier to stretch your hips.

Even when sitting cross-legged or sitting sideways, it is easier to stretch your back if you sit with a thick cushion under your buttocks.

③ Sitting posture. When driving a car

Driving posture can also cause your body to lose balance. What you should be especially careful about when driving for a long time is how to sit.

First left foot. Sit deeply while stepping on the footrest on the left side of the brake and adjust the seat position. Keep your feet on the footrests while driving and step on them from time to time to reposition your hips in the middle of the seat.

Get in the habit of putting your right heel on the accelerator side. It seems that many people who drive in the city for a short time put their heels on the brake side and open their toes to the outside to step on the accelerator. This is not a good shape. Even when driving long distances, if you step on your right toe outward for a long time, it will put a strain on your hips, knees, and hip joints, which may cause chronic inflammation.

III. How to walk

If you walk consciously and cleanly, your body’s imbalance will return to a neutral state. Walking consciously even when walking indoors with 5 steps and 6 steps will lead to rehabilitation and strengthening of muscle strength. We have summarized the points of how to walk, so please step up from ①.

Do not decide the speed or stride to be more than a few centimeters from the beginning, but first be aware of the posture of walking cleanly.

① Get your feet on your heels.

If you are conscious of getting your feet on your heels, your toes will naturally rise. It also helps prevent you from tripping while walking.

② Remember the big toe

I remember my big toe. A consciousness that reminds you is enough. If you put too much weight on it, you will lose your balance. If you remember your thumb and walk repeatedly from your heels to your toes, your toes and kneecaps will turn forward and you will feel that you are using the muscles above your knees.

By walking with muscular strength, the burden on the ankles, knees, and hip joints is reduced, and the instability of the X-legs, O-legs, and ankles can be rehabilitated.

By raising your toes and stepping on from your heels, the muscles behind the peach are stretched from the owl, and the back muscles are stretched, so your walking posture is naturally clean.

③ Bend your elbows a little and shake your arms back and forth with your elbows in mind.

Bend your elbows slightly and swing your arms back and forth with your elbows in mind. By being aware of the elbows, movement around the shoulder blades is created, and the amount of exercise of the upper body increases. Also, as the swing of the arm increases, the stride naturally increases.

Just walking with your heels, thumbs, and elbows in mind will improve your posture and improve your walking style. Let’s review how to walk a little more.

④ Be aware of the space between your left and right legs

When walking, be aware of the distance between your left and right legs, not your stride length. Do not cross your legs like a model walk.

The width of the white line on the road is about 12 cm. If you walk with the width of your feet so that the inside of your feet runs along both ends of the white line, you will feel stable, and even if you carry a heavy bag or luggage, you can walk comfortably and cleanly without shaking your shoulders.

If pregnant women also walk with an awareness of the width of 12 cm, they will be able to walk in a stylish manner without walking with a crab crotch, and back pain will be reduced. You can also prevent pelvic opening after childbirth, so start during pregnancy.

Normally, you can walk cleanly by walking along the soles of your feet along both ends of the line of about 5 cm.
If you want to look cool, you can get a stylish feeling by walking along a thin line of 1 cm and 2 cm.

If you can walk up to this point, you can easily widen your stride by twisting your pelvis to the left and right while being aware of your navel.

Walking is an important opportunity to restore balance. Even walking indoors for a short distance can be rehabilitative and preventive. Since humans are animals that live with tools, there is always a bias in their movements. Walking exercise is a simple and efficient method that allows you to create a symmetrical exercise by being aware of how you walk, and to restore the movement in which each part of the body is linked. In the morning, you can take a short walk, restore your body balance by conscious walking, and carry serotonin to your brain by aerobic exercise, so that you can spend a healthy and comfortable day.

IV. How to lift / unload things

If you suddenly reach out and lift something, you will upset your lower back and body balance. The basis of the lifting and lowering movements is to bend the knees and start moving from the legs. As with standing and sitting movements, bend your knees, sit down, and then put your hands out so that you can be aware of the muscle strength in front of your thighs.

Once you have a basic posture for standing and walking, the lifting and working movements will naturally change into reasonable movements.

Strained back

When you hold something unconsciously, even a light object causes the hip joints to become unstable, causing the upper and lower joints to move slightly out of alignment, straining the ligaments that support them, and causing inflammation. I have a backache. Similar to a sprained ankle, the inflammation around the hip joints can cause more instability, pain, and weakness and difficulty walking.

Acute pain such as bruise and sprain, not limited to tight back, should be cooled immediately. Immediate cooling reduces swelling and speeds healing. Even if you have a tight back, you can heal better by reducing the burden on your lower back with crutches.

V. How to sleep

Western bed culture and Japanese futon culture tend to have different sleeping styles.

In Western cultures, soft beds tend to be preferred, whereas in Japan, too soft beds are often uncomfortable.

In a soft bed where the body sinks, large pillows and cushions are put from the back to the head to make a posture that fits the body and sleep, whereas Japanese traditionally make a futon that suits them in advance, and not much. It was common to sleep straight on your back with a small pillow on your head.

It seems that many people are worried that the pillows don’t fit, but nowadays, people often sleep in beds and the bedding is diversified. There is none.

Because it is a high-priced futon and mattress, it may not fit your body, and the difference in the thickness of the sheets in summer and winter may cause a slight sense of discomfort. If you often turn over and often have a pain in your lower back or neck when you wake up, this is evidence that your bedding is not suitable for you.

If the futon / mattress is hard, there will be a gap at the waist between the buttocks and back. There is also a gap on the back of the knee. The back muscles and the back of the knees become tense to support this gap, and the pillows do not fit.

In this case, fold the face towel in four and put it in the waist gap. Once you’ve found the right place and thickness, put it under the sheets. Below the knees, it is easier to roll a large bath towel into a cushion.

If the duvet mattress is soft and sinks, your buttocks and back will sink deeply and your lower back will bend, straining your lower back joints throughout your sleep.

In this case, put a four-fold face towel around your hips and back and shoulder blades. Once you’ve found the right place and thickness, put it under the sheets. You may need to make fine adjustments depending on the season, but you will feel better when you sleep and when you wake up.

The above are the points of reviewing activities of daily living.

Epilogue

The accumulation of activities of daily living distorts and restores the body. Just as consciousness and unconsciousness work on the mind and body, habits and habits of daily living also work on the mind and body, changing your daily life.

From the time I wake up every morning, if I can consciously turn on the “maybe I’m in good shape”, go for a walk, adjust the conditions of the day, and repeat the correct activities of daily living, I need a lot of special time training and rehabilitation. It may not be there. Please pay more attention to your daily movements so that you can spend your days in good health.

It is you from today that will protect your body ten years from now. “Don’t get bored, don’t forget, don’t try too hard”. Even if it lasts only three days, if you do it ten times, it will be thirty days.