I've been thinking about this for about a week, mulling it over and trying to get a good post, but that's not happening, so I'll just post it anyway.
Dixie's very unbalanced to the right. I'm left handed. My instinct, when I ask her to circle, is to circle left. These things are obviously connected, and I've started deliberately adding more right-hand turns. It took a while for her to get this way, so it'll take a while to correct it.
I have a barn backpack. I carry apples, powerbars, the GPS with charger, that kind of crap in it. I always sling it on my right shoulder. Same with the Camelbak. Maybe I should try carrying them on my left shoulder?
In the dead of winter, my desire to go work out waned significantly. I just started going to the gym again last week, and I think I should spend more time doing yoga before and after lifting weights. Not sure what else will help me become more balanced, other than general awareness.
Carry backpacks over both shoulders always. I know it's a pain, but that is the only way to achieve a balanced load and, therefore, balanced muscle. This I learned from all the occupational therapists I know.
ReplyDeleteAlso be very careful about how you stand. Your weight should be equally distributed on feet, ankles knees etc. for best balance and posture. Most people tend to stick on leg out while at rest (like horses resting one foot), and it tends always to be the same leg. This I learned from the Wii fit, and have become very conscious of it.
We and our horses are both often crooked to a greater or lesser degree. And sometimes the two thing reinforce each other. Dawn's blanket always gets a twist to one side because of how she carries herself.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was young(er), I worked at a private 12-stall barn where we groomed almost every horse almost every day. My boss warned me early on to practice all the grooming maneuvers (and stall-cleaning maneuvers, too) with both hands to promote my body balance.
ReplyDeleteI now try to do as many tasks "both handed" as I can manage,including cleaning the windshield of the truck and using a computer mouse. Heck, it's cheap physical therapy, and it's really handy if you get injured on one side.
It was hard to do stuff on the "wrong" side at first, but it's easy now--and it helps!
Imbalance is common. Measure many peoples' calves or forearms, and the circumference will vary between sides. Pilots tend naturally to turn left rather than right, a factor exploited by fighter pilots in the old days. So you are not peculiar! One needs consciously to equalise stance and usage of muscles between left and right, though constant vigilance is needed.
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