Why does merely sitting at work cause chronic pain, even though not much force is used? Unlocking the secret with the Cinderella Hypothesis
Many people may wonder why work that appears not to require much force, if done continuously for a long time, makes us have chronic aches. This answer can be explained with the Cinderella Hypothesis.
Our muscles consist of several kinds of fibre, but the main character is the small fibre (Type I), or the endurance muscle, which is like Cinderella when she was a maidservant:
- Diligent and enduring: designed to be able to work continuously for a long time
- Awake first, finishing last: this group of fibres is called upon to work first, and stops working last
Although it is light work (such as typing or staring at a screen), contracting without stopping makes the blood vessels be squeezed, until the muscle lacks blood and oxygen, leading to injury at the level of the cells and knotting into a hard lump called a "Trigger Point", which is the root cause of chronic myofascial pain syndrome (Myofascial Pain Syndrome) that spreads radiating pain through various parts of the body.
The treatment that is most on target is stopping the continuous work
- The rule of breaks (Micro-breaks): every 20-30 minutes, move the body or stretch lazily for 1-2 minutes, so that the blood goes back to nourish the muscle
- Stretching the muscles (Stretching): in order to unlock the fibres held in contraction so that they release
- Twisting the trunk (Seated Spinal Twist) helps release the back and the chest: sit with a straight back, twist the body backwards and hold the backrest, holding for 20 seconds on each side
- The cat arching its back (Seated Cat-Cow) helps release the spine: sit with the hands on the knees, alternating arching the chest and lifting the face with lowering the face and arching the back, 5-8 rounds
- Stretching the buttocks (Seated Pigeon Stretch) reduces pain in the lower back/hips: sit with the legs crossed and the ankle laid over the knee, lean the body forward, holding for 20 seconds on each side
- Stretching overhead, stretching the flanks and the arms: clasp the hands with the palms turned up, stretch the arms up to the sky as far as the body will go, holding for 15 seconds
Doing a little of each posture but often, every 1-2 hours, will best help stop the accumulation of trigger points.
Chronic pain does not mean that the body is weak, but that this group of muscles is protesting at working hard continuously without rest, until the blood cannot reach them in time and they become trigger points.
Getting up to stretch lazily or moving the body briefly during the day can help the muscles come back to breathing and working happily once again.