Life Is Flexion.

Reading Time: 10 Minutes

The real problem with this flexion-stress that we experience is that, if we aren’t careful, we get into a position as a result of flexion and we stay there. We don’t move out of it.

Being in a physically flexed position means we’re more prone to:

• Back/neck pain – your spine is placed in an overly stressed and loaded position which can contribute to things such as a painful (or even herniated) disc
• Muscle tightness/imbalance – your muscles are shortened and tense up in this position which can restrict your normal movement and range of motion
• GI symptoms – your internal organs can become compressed when in flexion leading to symptoms such as heartburn, acid reflux, and poor digestion
• It can even have a significant impact on your mood

All of this sounds like great fun, right?

But, again. Let’s think differently here. Let’s go beyond all of these purely physical things. Let’s take a step back and view another perspective of flexion as more of a metaphor that represents our lives.

Flexion can be seen as the weight of expectations, stress, and what’s “normal” that brings us into a mentality of being complacent and passively shaped as individuals.

It’s normal for us to experience this flexion that I’m talking about, just like it’s normal for most people to find themselves in a flexed posture.

Unfortunately, what’s also normal is many of us get stuck here. Becoming passively molded and shaped like a piece of thin rubber under flexion and staying there.

So, what can be done? Unfortunately, not much. Flexion is inevitable.

But, there is something you can do. You can resist the forces that drive you one direction and begin to push against the grain and into the opposing direction. I’m talking about moving yourself into extension.

Intentionally pushing against flexion and the undesirable normal while being well-aware that you’ll be met with that same constant, nagging, resistant force that continually drives you in the direction of flexion.

I’m not just talking about chin-tucks, straightening your low-back, and stretching your hip flexors. I’m talking about solidifying the crucial behaviors that act as extension counter-forces in your life. Things that push against and oppose the metaphorical flexion weighing on you.

• Focusing on your health and fitness is extension.
• Being mindful to better eating habits is extension.
• Deepening your connections to others is extension.

These extension counter-forces are what take you out of the flexion stress that results in, not just the problems mentioned earlier, but also more broad concerns that affect how you live and enjoy your life.

So, I ask you to think for a minute.

What can you identify as extension in your life? And more importantly, how can you add in more extension-oriented behaviors to resist passive, repeated flexion that continues to drive you into the negative?

I’m almost certain you want that at this point, but I won’t assume.

What I’m saying is that we need to avoid getting helplessly trapped and solidified under the stress of flexion in this broader sense. For the sake of our health, well-being, and the quality of our lives.

There is something we can all actively do. We can extend.