Good morning! Its beautiful here in Steamboat Springs, CO on this Monday morning. After two straight weeks of rain, the river is flowing, the mountains are green and we can be outside again and take advantage of this gorgeous area.
Its been a while since I posted a blog here on my home page. Since I last wrote I've visited the DC area where I taught my Level 1 PhysioSTRIDE™ training, we've moved and been to and from Boulder and Denver a couple of times. While traveling, the piece that struck me most was the fact that wherever we go these days, folks are on their smart phones non stop. In airports, walking and looking down. In cars, driving and looking down. Crossing streets and on sidewalks looking down. And, in restaurants, sitting at a table with one, two or three other people and looking down at their phone, or periodically checking it since they have it out and on the table. This has become a broken record topic of our time, but are we really more connected with all of our technology, or less? In some ways, of course we're more connected when it comes to the amount of communication is at our fingertips. But, I feel that there is a time and a place to use this technology. While crossing the street is not one of those times. While out at dinner is not one of those times. While in a public class, like a yoga class, is not one of those times. There is a time and a place for most things. Smart phones seem to have infiltrated our every moment and look to me like they've become the exception. Let's change that as things progress even further down the technology trail. We need to know when to put it away. If you're walking in a busy airport terminal, please look up so you don't bump in to me. If you're crossing the street, please look up so you're not hit by a car. And if we're out at a meal or having coffee together, please look up and put it away so that we can connect face to face.
Besides the obvious factor of being "present" with who you're with or your surroundings, and not drowning in i phone land, I'm very curious about the long term postural effects this will have on us. The inevitable rounded shoulders, forward head and overly flexed neck and upper back. And then, people wonder why they're shoulders, neck and upper back are sore. Humans have developed in to beings that are meant to be upright and have our eyes forward, not down at a screen. I feel like its inevitable that most people will be using technology more and more. I also hope that in this evolutionary process we take the time to do physical activities that counter balance "technology posture". Get outside to stretch your eyes. Walk backwards after sitting at a desk or in a chair (my personal favorite "go to" remedy for many things), or doing chest, shoulder and neck stretches.
I'm certainly not anti technology. In fact, we ordered new phones yesterday since our's are on their last leg. Its going to cost us our first born for the phones, but we ordered them non the less. Technology is fun and certainly useful. We just need to make sure that for each moment we're looking down at our phones, or at our computers, we ideally take an equal amount of time putting our phone down to look out, look up, open our chest and stretch our eyes. Especially while crossing the street.
