Field Notes #30: Feel-great neck stretches, 4-7-8 breathing, the magic of writing a poem
Hello, friends! If you are new here, this is the weekly Field Notes edition of Odyssey of the Body, which collects 3 (or so) interesting things I’ve run across lately. There’s also a longer piece occasionally on Sundays. If you spot your own Field Notes, please send them my way. I really do love hearing from you.
I subscribe to a pile of newsletters, and some of them have been building up little communities and connecting with readers. Some pose questions as a post — a thread — and many readers chime in. It’s been fun to read the thoughts, suggestions, and wisdom of other readers of the same newsletter. One newsletter has a new feature on the Substack app where readers can connect to each other there, like a mass chat. Several newsletters have started book clubs or writing groups that meet monthly on Zoom.
One of the things that seems to make this work is to have a more private community. Most of these newsletters offer a paid version, for something like $6 or $7 a month, and only paid subscribers can comment or attend the Zoom gatherings. This helps virtually eliminate spam and mean, anonymous comments. I’ve been amazed. So, I’m wondering: Would you be interested in a paid option and weekly threads, only open to paid subscribers? Or a monthly book club or writing gathering? Field Notes and the occasional Sunday newsletter would stay free. Let me know. Thank you!
1} How to write a poem
Writing poetry is good for your health. I don’t have any stats to back this up (but I bet someone has studied it), so take it as a grand hunch. Expressing yourself, being creative, having fun with words — all fantastic for your body!
I loved how artist Grant Snider instructs us to write a poem:
You can follow Grant on Instagram at @grantdraws or learn more about him on his website. I have his books on my can’t-wait-to-read list, including The Art of Living, The Shape of Ideas, and I Will Judge You By Your Bookshelf.
I thought I only discovered Grant’s work this month myself, but then I realized that he drew “The Writer’s Block” (gift link; it’s a delightful illustration: Grammar Police! Final Draft Lofts, Coming Soon! Garbage of Ideas!), which I pinned up in 2019 to my bulletin board at work.
2} Stretches that feel great
Looking at animals stretched out splooting last week reminded me how stiff and compact we humans can be, often tucked into our typing pose at the computer.
I found this splendid compilation of simple stretches to combat the effects of sitting from The New York Times (gift link, free from me to you).
Here’s one example for “a sore neck and tense shoulders.”
“Typing on a computer or tapping on a phone — whether standing or sitting — draws our focus and our head forward as we look down. As that happens, the upper trapezius muscle and neck lengthen and tense, and the muscles in the front of our body contract and shorten. Over time, that causes tension in the neck, shoulders and upper back.
This self-massage technique immediately releases neck tension: Start by looking over each shoulder and noticing where your gaze lands. Now, start the stretch on the right side by dropping your right ear to your right shoulder. Take two fingers to the top of your neck behind your left ear and find the sternocleidomastoid muscle, the little valley that runs down your neck. Gently walk your fingers down this muscle, palpitating as you go. [Editor’s note: This feels fantastic.] Repeat on the other side. Now look over your shoulders again and notice how far you can see. You can do this stretch standing or sitting.”
I had trouble picturing the sternocleidomastoid muscle, so I found this video, which shows the muscle clearly and offers another stretch:
And, wow, both exercises felt splendid. I didn’t realize my neck needed them!
Other exercises in the same NYT collection include eye exercises for sore eyes and a suggestion for a tight back. Absorb the full list of exercises.
3} Andrew Weil’s 4-7-8 breathing exercise
How we breath matters more than we realize. There are many books and resources on this, including the marvelous book Breath:The New Science of a Lost Art by James Nestor. I mentioned in Field Notes #10 how one alternate-nostril breathing method — breathing in your right nostril and out of your left — can elevate your focus. (It’s shocking to me still how this really works.)
This week I ran across the 4-7-8 breathing exercise on a podcast interview with Dr. Andrew Weil on The Tim Ferris Show Podcast.
Dr. Weil is a pioneer of integrative medicine, an approach to healthcare that encompasses body, mind, and spirit. He is the founder and director of the Andrew Weil Center for Integrative Medicine at the University of Arizona, where he also holds the Lovell-Jones Endowed Chair in Integrative Rheumatology, and is Clinical Professor of Medicine and Professor of Public Health. And he is a prolific author.
Here’s the 4-7-8 breathing exercise:
Breathe in for 4 counts through your nose.
Hold your breath for 7.
Breathe out audibly for 8 through your mouth.
Repeat 4 times. Over time, you can go up to 8 times, several times a day.
“Eventually you can go up to eight breath cycles, but no more than that, and to do this religiously at least twice a day,” explained Dr. Weil. “And the real effects come after doing this regularly for four to six weeks. And they’re really remarkable. This is the most powerful method I’ve found to access the relaxation response, and it’s the most powerful anti-anxiety measure I’ve ever come across.”
Fascinating, right?
I hope you have a lovely, relaxing weekend ahead.
To our journeys,
Brianne
Great tips! Thank you.