Thought Bytes...
February 2002

Plane Relief

I had to fly to Toronto a couple of weeks ago to attend a council meeting for the Association of Canadian Ergonomists, of which I am the Alberta President. Despite the fact that I am too cheap to pay $5 for the headsets, I got quite a kick out of the video entertainment. In between tired re-runs of "Everybody Loves Raymond" were a series of info-mercials showing stretches to do while traveling by air.

These clips showed an athletic woman (in form fitting clothes) sitting in a first class seat… on a beach! The first time I saw her on the screen she seemed to be extolling the virtues of drinking lots of water and doing deep breathing exercises. I have no problem with drinking lots of water and deep breathing. The concern here is how realistic the rest of the exercises she presented were.

First, let’s look at some rough demographics. Considering that I was flying on Tango (Air Canada’s discount competition for Westjet), absolutely everybody was crammed into economy class seating. Anyone who flies regularly has noticed that economy class seating has gotten narrower from hip to hip (or have we gotten wider?) and there is significantly less leg room. Most of the people around me were male, in their upper middle aged years. Some could barely squeeze into their seats. And most had their knees at or above hip level because there wasn’t enough room between the seats to shift their feet forward. And if the person in front of you reclined their back rest, you were practically ruffling their hair with your breath.

So, when this athletic actress started doing stretches in her spacious first class seat, I could barely contain my laughter. Let me give you some examples of the stretches she did:

• Torso Twist – for this you are supposed to shift forward in your seat and grab either the left or right arm rest with the opposite hand. By pulling against the arm rest, twist the torso to stretch the abdominal obliques and paraspinal muscles.
  Reality? You can’t shift forward without hitting the seat in front of you. If you try to twist from this position, you actually have to lean back slightly which means you are co-contracting the same muscles you are trying to stretch.
• Knee to chest – grasping one knee with both hands, pull it toward the chest. Repeat with the other knee. Reality? If you have been sitting for an hour, your contents of the spinal disks have been unequally compressed and the nucleus pushed toward the spinal column. Flexing further by bring the knee to the chest is just about the worst thing you can do as it further compresses the front edge of the disk. Reach up and then out to the sides – sitting tall and unsupported, reach both hands toward the ceiling holding for about 5 seconds. Then reach out to the sides as though both arms were being pulled on.
  Reality? Sitting at a window seat, I couldn’t get my elbow over my head, let alone reach up. If I had reached to the sides, I would have had to put one hand through the window and the other would have smacked my neighbour in the head.
• Hamstring stretch – standing in the aisle, support the upper body by placing one hand on the back of your seat. Step forward with one foot and bend the back knee. Keep the toes of the forward foot pointed up. Slowly lower the buttocks to feel a stretch on the back of the front leg.
  Reality? I teach this stretch quite often. It is an excellent hamstring stretch, but it takes a bit of space. (See the "Stretch your Imagination" section for instructions and a picture of how to do this stretch). In our cost conscious airlines, there is barely enough room to walk down the aisle. If people are doing stretches in the aisle, the flight attendants can’t do their job. When my parents made an overnight flight recently, a woman in the seat behind them did some of these stretches, but used my Mom’s seat back for support. Talk about turbulence!!

While I wholeheartedly promote the concept, the exercises presented have to be realistic. There are movements that can be done in the seat to improve comfort, promote circulation and decrease the risk of deep vein thrombosis. Starting with correct seated posture is essential.

Legs and feet: If you have long legs, put your baggage in the upper bin so that you can stretch your legs out a bit. If you have short legs, put your feet on top of your bag or briefcase. Short legged people will also need to get a pillow to put behind their buttocks and lower back. This will effectively decrease the depth of the seat pan, taking pressure off the backs of the knees. To increase circulation, alternately flex and extend your ankles, while keeping your toes on the floor. Press the ball of your foot the floor as you raise your heels. Do this for 3-4 minutes every hour.

Lower back: Use a lumbar support or small pillow to force the lumbar curve of the spine when seated. Reposition the lumbar pad often. Periodically rock the pelvis forward and back and from side to side. Rock your whole body from side to side slowly. You can raise your knees one at a time while doing this as though you are "walking" on your buttocks. Clench your buttocks and release. Alternate sides too.

Upper back: Push your elbows into the back of your seat, stick your chest out and breath in deeply. Hunch the upper back forward, tightening your stomach muscles and exhale. When you get up to go to the washroom, reach for the sky – this is also very good for the lower back to help equilibrate disk pressures.

Neck: Drop your head forward and then pull the chin tight to the chest. Turn your head toward a shoulder and push your chin out, reaching your chin toward the shoulder. Repeat on the other side, trying not to frighten the person in the seat beside you with the strange face you are making. With your head upright, drop your chin slightly and pull your head back against the headrest.

The most important thing to remember is that we were not designed to sit! So, don’t sit any more than you have to. Stand in the waiting room, even if seats are available. Or, better still, walk around the terminal and get your blood flowing. Keep your carry-on baggage light and balance the load on both sides of the body. At the end of the flight, take a few minutes to stand and let the disk pressures equilibrate before getting your bags out of the overhead compartment. When you get to your destination, avoid the temptation to sit and have a chat or a meal. Consider standing and/or walking for at least 10 minutes for every hour you have been seated. Swollen feet, deep vein thrombosis and back pain are very real issues for long distance travelers. Keeping moving will help make the entire trip more enjoyable.

Home | Services | About ErgoSum | Contact