Walking (gliding)

I read an interesting article on day to day activities that one can do to reduce back pain. I also have a physiotherapist, whom I see less and less (thank-you), who puts more emphasis on posture and walking than I have heard since I was a kid!

Makes perfect sense. What you do repetitively has a dramatic impact on how you feel. This physiotherapist analyzed my stride and movement as I walked.

My hips were immobilized, I was very weak on one side, and I walked without using my glutes and relied heavily on my quadriceps.

The information in the article added further to the information I received from my physiotherapist. The article termed walking as “gliding”.

One should glide as they walk. Energy should be focused on forward movement, pulling the leg back with the glutes, and also using the muscles in ones feet to propel forward.

This term “gliding” really helps provide an accurate description of how one should walk. The walk should be quiet (pounding sends stress through the knees, hips and back), and the leg that is up should hang loose in the hip, relaxed, not stressed and tight as is typical in North America.

When the foot meets the ground, the knees should be slightly bent. Also, you may feel like you are leaning forward. But intentionally leaning forward slightly will help you perform the gait.

I have found just concentrating on my walk for even five minutes has alleviated muscle spasms and extreme tenderness that typically follows activities such as shoveling snow.

I will continue to work on my walk, until gliding becomes second nature