This one is for my fellow makeup artist friends. Every artist I know feels the affects of standing all day. Its the same for retail and restaurant work. The circulation slows, legs and feet swell, the back aches and your feet really can end up hurting.
Resting in feet up the wall pose for 15 to 20 minutes, after a long shoot, can benefit you immensely. This gentle inversion helps inflammation, reducing the swelling and pressure on the veins in the legs. It helps release the tension in your lower back. The increased circulation also helps calm the mind and helps nervous system chill out.
Try this after your next job! Grab a book or a tablet with your favorite show or even better just settle into the stillness and allow your body to relax.
Durning my last trip, after being in a car for 4 hours the day before and standing all day at work my hips needed a stretch and my mind needed the stillness. I used the available space which ended up being the bed in my hotel room.
When traveling for work I find that frequently hotels don’t always have enough space to do a full practice of yoga asanas and sometimes I wind up using the available space as best I can, in this case it was the bed. This involves some modifications to poses, like this pigeon pose quad stretch.
Did you know tightness or weakness in your hips can cause pain/issues in your knees? Pigeon Pose works into your external rotating muscles (think glutes) but also stretches your hip flexors and lower back, which are commonly tight. Pigeon or Sleeping Pigeon can alleviate mild lower back or hip pain.
Modifying Kapotasana (pigeon pose) is simple. If you find your hip with the bent leg is off the floor place a bolster it under that hip (or use a folded a pillow). This takes the pressure off the hip, the higher the bolster the less of a stretch you get, so if you find this is difficult to hold and relax into boost your hips up a bit to lessen the sensation. To deepen the pose transition into sleeping pigeon and gently lay your torso over the bent leg, starting by supporting yourself with your elbows or lay all the way across the bent leg.
One of my favorite things to do after a long day on set is to lay down and stretch my legs out. Reclined Big Toe Pose – Supta Padangusthasana releases the hips and lower back while stretching and relaxing the hamstrings (the backs of the legs). It also gives you some benefits of inversions. Another reason I love this after a long day of being on set is this releases my lower back in such a nice way. So my fellow makeup artist and hair stylist friends please try this out and see how refreshed you feel.
Lay flat on your back with one leg straight out on the ground and one leg raised straight towards the ceiling. Gently pull the raised leg towards your chest, you can use your toe, your calf or a belt looped over your foot. Only pull as far as is comfortable, that may mean your leg is just straight up or it may mean your leg is closer to your chest. There is no right or wrong to this, its just about allowing the muscles to relax.
