Where should you look when running?
Consequences of running and looking down!
We have become accustomed to keeping our eyes down when walking or running or even when we are just chilling on the couch scrolling on the socials!
Keeping the eyes down has become hardwired in our brains because of the use of electronic devices cell phones etc.
We no longer look up! There are barely any advertisements on billboards anymore since we now see those ads on our phones.
Due to covid, we have become much more accustomed to staying indoors and because of lockdown, we look at our devices like no tomorrow.
Eyes looking down while walking has tremendous neurological consequences that REFLEXIVELY ruin our postures, our muscle tension and pain levels.
When eyes look down, a portion of the brain called the Midbrain is being activated via 2 nerves located within it called the Oculomotor and the Trochlear Nerve.
The nerves are responsible for looking close and down (motor movement). Once the midbrain is activated for long periods of time with eyes looking down:
• The sympathetic (fight or flight) nervous system is kept on high alert. The sympathetic nervous system LIVES in the midbrain
• Flexor Tone increases giving you rounded shoulders and upper back
• Ruins Upright Posture
• Decreases posterior chain musculature activity: decreased hip extension, altered arm swing
• Increases breathing challenges due to stress on the diaphragm
Imagine now what the after effects of all this can do when you’re not running such as stress and anxiety throughout the day, poor sleep quality, poor recovery from training, etc.
So it may be a small detail to you but BIG when it comes to the nervous system and human performance!
Next time you get a stroll in, LOOK UP!!!
Keep those eyes in the horizon!! Breath through your nose ONLY no matter how hard it is, it’s a habit that needs to be trained.
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Jayden Seracino | Director at MyoActive