All posts tagged: Stiff

Celine Dion set for comeback shows four years after Stiff Person Syndrome diagnosis

Celine Dion set for comeback shows four years after Stiff Person Syndrome diagnosis

Published by Daniella Wilson

Get the inside track from Roisin O’Connor with our free weekly music newsletter Now Hear This Get our free music newsletter Now Hear This Get our free music newsletter Now Hear This Celine Dion is set to return to the stage for her first concerts since she was diagnosed with Stiff Person Syndrome (SPS) in 2022. The 57-year-old is reported to be preparing a twice-weekly residency this September and October at Paris La Défense Arena. The French-Canadian newspaper La Presse broke the news Sunday, and by Monday posters had gone up around the French capital displaying the titles of various Dion songs including “Pour que tu m’aimes encore” and “Power of Love.” The singer has not yet officially commented on the reports. The Independent has approached her representatives for confirmation. Dion, who is the best-selling Canadian musician of all time, last headlined a show in Newark, New Jersey on March 8, 2020. Her “Courage” tour was subsequently cut short by the outbreak of the Covid pandemic. Celine Dion made a rare recent public appearance to …

Do you get stiff calf muscles after a long walk? A physical therapist recommends trying this stretch as a cool-down

Do you get stiff calf muscles after a long walk? A physical therapist recommends trying this stretch as a cool-down

Published by Jenni Sidey

If you walk a lot, particularly up and down hills, you may find your calf muscles feel stiff and sore the day after. This is a common complaint for hikers and can be alleviated by warming up and cooling down properly with targeted stretches. Physical therapist Troy Hurst tells Fit&Well that two variations of a simple wall calf stretch—targeting both the gastrocnemius and soleus muscles in the calf—can help. Article continues below You may like “While the standard calf stretch against the wall that most of us think of targets the larger gastrocnemius muscle, the soleus is also important for endurance and stability when the knee is bent.” Image credit: Getty Images / VectorMine Image credit: Getty Images / VectorMine Hurst explains that the gastrocnemius is the big calf muscle that visibly forms the shape of your calves. The soleus sits under the gastrocnemius. Both muscles are responsible for the movement of your ankle. The ankle is often a weak point for walkers and ankle sprains are one of the most common injuries people get …

‘Stiff’ Bowels May Explain Young People’s Higher Cancer Risk

‘Stiff’ Bowels May Explain Young People’s Higher Cancer Risk

Published by Sam Flores

Recent research showed that almost half of bowel cancer cases happen among under-65s. It wasn’t always that way. Since the ’80s, doctors have noticed that over-50s are getting the condition less, while younger people are seeing more and more cases. We aren’t sure exactly why that is, though some doctors have shared some possible causes, like “ultra-processed diets, sedentary behaviour, stress, and disrupted sleep”, with HuffPost UK previously. But now, bioengineers from the University of Texas, Dallas, have found a “distinctive feature of tissues from young patients diagnosed with colorectal [bowel] cancer, a disease that typically affects older patients”. Are young people’s bowels different to older people’s? This research, published in the journal Advanced Science, found that a lot of younger people’s colon tissue is “stiffer” than their older counterparts’. This was true regardless of whether the tissue itself had bowel cancer, though all participants had been diagnosed with either early-onset bowel cancer (under 50s; 14 patients) or average-onset bowel cancer (over 50s; 19 patients). The colon is a tube-shaped part of the digestive system …

Is your desk job making you stiff? A doctor swears by this simple stretch for soothing his achy shoulders

Is your desk job making you stiff? A doctor swears by this simple stretch for soothing his achy shoulders

Published by Jenni Sidey

Is modern life causing havoc for your posture? You’re not alone. Prolonged periods sitting at our desks—or on couches—straining over devices is one of the prime culprits of shoulder pain and slouching. “We spend much of our day not accessing the full range of motion in our shoulders,” explains physical therapist Dr Robbie Mann from Fyzical. “For example, most of our daily tasks involve our arms being forward in front of us, such as working on a computer, eating or working out. You may like “It’s essential to take your shoulders through a full range of motion in all directions, but especially in overhead reaching. Rarely do we fully extend our arms over our heads.” He recommends doing a simple stretch to reset posture and relieve stiffness and tension in the shoulders. “I started to notice in myself a slouch posture—especially by the end of the day when I was wrapping up computer work—as well as neck muscle tightness,” says Mann. “I found that stretching overhead helped to relax my shoulders and it became easier …

Are you feeling stiff after starting to exercise in January? A dietitian and personal trainer shares her top tips to reduce muscle soreness and recover faster

Are you feeling stiff after starting to exercise in January? A dietitian and personal trainer shares her top tips to reduce muscle soreness and recover faster

Published by Jenni Sidey

One of the hardest parts of starting to exercise is discovering that it can be uncomfortable. Not just the effort of lifting a heavy weight for the first time, but the stiffness you experience the next day. But there’s a lot you can do to minimize that discomfort by helping your body prepare for, and bounce back from, exercise. Personal trainer and registered dietitian Jenna Braddock has five simple suggestions that will help. You may like 1. Start foam rolling A foam roller is a cheap and useful tool. It allows you to self-massage, which in turn helps reduce muscle soreness, improve blood flow and aids recovery by releasing tension in the muscles while also breaking up adhesions. “Foam rolling 24 to 72 hours after exercise has been found to reduce pain and improve range of motion,” says Braddock, who suggests foam rolling sore areas with gentle pressure for two minutes at a time. Here’s a popular follow-along foam roller routine if you need more guidance. 10 minute Full Body Foam Roller Routine I FOLLOW …

I’m a yoga teacher and this is the stretch I rely on to loosen up stiff muscles in the shoulders and upper back

I’m a yoga teacher and this is the stretch I rely on to loosen up stiff muscles in the shoulders and upper back

Published by Jenni Sidey

Most of us know that nagging feeling of stiff, unhappy shoulders. This discomfort can be caused by all kinds of things, but hunching over a laptop all day is a common culprit. I’m a yoga instructor and my go-to move for relieving tight shoulders at the end of the day is eagle arms. You may like You can instantly feel your muscles releasing as you enter the pose, which targets the shoulders, upper back and arms. How to do eagle arms How to Do Eagle Arm Pose – YouTube Watch On Eagle arms, known in Sanskrit as garudasana, can be practiced either sitting or standing. I like to do a few shoulder rolls before entering the pose. Here’s how to do it. Start your week with achievable workout ideas, health tips and wellbeing advice in your inbox. Inhale and lift your arms out to the sides to shoulder height. Exhale and bring your arms in front of your chest. Inhale and bend your elbows. Exhale and cross the right elbow over the left. If comfortable, …

I’m a certified trainer but even I struggle with stiff hips—this is the one move that made a difference to how they feel

I’m a certified trainer but even I struggle with stiff hips—this is the one move that made a difference to how they feel

Published by Jenni Sidey

As a certified personal trainer, I understand the importance of stretching, but like most people, I struggle to find the time to do it. However, when I returned to exercise after having my baby, I realized my hips and thighs had become super tight. This was impacting my ability to move freely, so I decided to get serious about flexibility training. You may like I wanted to find something straightforward that I could do regularly, and I thought the happy baby yoga pose looked ideal. “Happy baby is safe to do daily,” physical therapist Dr Karena Wu told me when I asked for her advice. “It’s a gentle stretch that opens up the lumbopelvic area and uses gravity to assist.” With the sign-off from the expert, I was ready to go. How to do the happy baby pose How to Do the Happy Baby Pose: A Guide from Physical Therapists – YouTube Watch On Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Bring your knees to your chest. Grab …

Back feeling weak or stiff? This is my favorite exercise to mobilize my spine first thing in the morning and last thing at night

Back feeling weak or stiff? This is my favorite exercise to mobilize my spine first thing in the morning and last thing at night

Published by Jenni Sidey

It’s a common misconception that we need to assume perfect spinal alignment 24/7 to keep our backs healthy. In reality, rigidly sitting or standing bolt upright fatigues the tiny stabilizer muscles supporting the spine, which can result in overuse injuries. A better approach is to move your back regularly, bending it forward, extending it back, twisting around and flexing side-to-side. You may like My favorite way to quickly mobilize my spine is the cat-cow exercise. This beginner-friendly stretch involves flexing and extending the spine while on your hands and knees, matching your movements with your breath. When feeling especially stiff, I’ll spend a couple of minutes at the start or end of the day performing this move to ease tension. I also use it with my coaching clients before a core workout and include it in full-body mobility flows to improve body alignment. Start your week with achievable workout ideas, health tips and wellbeing advice in your inbox. How to do the cat-cow stretch How to Do a Cat Cow Stretch: A Guide from Physical …

Stiff shoulders and back? This is my favorite stretch to reverse the damage from sitting at your desk

Stiff shoulders and back? This is my favorite stretch to reverse the damage from sitting at your desk

Published by Jenni Sidey

Sitting at a desk for hours plays havoc on your body, because it isn’t designed to be sedentary. Slouching and hunching over devices puts pressure on your neck, shoulders and back muscles, causing aches and pains in the short term and potentially more serious issues like obesity, type 2 diabetes and heart disease in the longer term. Studies have shown that sitting for too long can even reduce oxygen to the brain, impairing focus and problem solving. It has also been linked to anxiety and depression. “Sitting for long periods can increase loading of the spine and spinal discs, and at the same time, by not stimulating the muscles, it can work to decondition [weaken] your spine,” says Dr Rahul Shah, board-certified orthopedic spine surgeon at Premier Orthopaedic Associates. You may like “By simultaneously overloading the discs and deconditioning the back muscles, these long periods of abnormal loading and deconditioning can set us up for additional injury or backache,” he adds. If you’ve been stuck at your desk or hunched over your phone, take regular …