Istanbul Gelisim University -

"Balance resting and being active during the lockdown"

Stating that the full closure may result in various health problems in many people as a result of being inactive or wrong resting, Physiotherapy Specialist Gülşah Konakoğlu from Istanbul Gelisim University (IGU) School of Health Sciences Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation warns, “First of all, we need to balance resting and being active since the muscles in our body have a certain working capacity and when we do not use them, their strength decreases. This situation may lead to a decrease in cardiovascular endurance and spine problems that negatively affect waist and neck health.”

Experts warn that sedentary life invites various health problems and even lying down and resting is dangerous. Lect. Physiotherapist Gülşah Konakoğlu states that many people move less especially during the pandemic process, and she gives information about the diseases that can be caused by sedentary life and the correct forms of rest.

RESTING AND MOBILITY MUST BE IN BALANCE

Stating that it is necessary to balance resting and movement during the full closure process, Konakoğlu says, “We have started to spend time in our homes due to the full closure. During this period, we need to pay attention to a number of issues in order to maintain our physical well-being. First of all, we need to balance the rest and activity. During the day, we should balance the periods of lying, standing and sitting. Because the muscles in our body have a certain working capacity and when we do not use these muscles, the strength of the muscles decreases. If we stay in a sedentary lifestyle for a long time, we will get tired more quickly when we want to use the muscles in our body. In this period, we do not want to move, we want to lie down although we cannot clearly understand why. In fact, this is a situation related to the decrease in our muscular endurance capacity due to total inactivity.”

PROBLEMS DAMAGING WAIST AND NECK EMERGE

Stating that it is necessary to strengthen the muscles by moving or exercising, Konakoğlu says, “Especially when we spend time at home, we take our computer on our lap in front of the television and when we are buried in soft sofas, we invite spine problems that completely harm our waist and neck health. Moreover, when we do not use our muscles for a long time and our muscle strength decreases, and when we do not stand and put weight on our bones and sit or lie down for a long time, the bone destruction process accelerates since we do not apply enough weight to our bones. Especially in older ages, we observe this a lot. The decrease in muscular endurance also causes a decrease in cardiovascular endurance at the end of the day. Because the heart also works with muscle. "The endurance of our heart muscle also weakens."

Konakoğlu made the following recommendations regarding the movements to be made during the day:

“We must do our activities in a balanced way during the day in order to prevent health problems and maintain the endurance of body. We should walk for at least 30 minutes. We must place exercising or sports in the center of our lives. Stretching and strengthening exercises at home will be beneficial and should be done as much as possible. Especially the muscles in the front of the body and the back leg muscles shorten. These can be stretched. Exercises done with body weight will also maintain physical capacity."