Biomechanist Katy Bowman talks to biologist Jeannette Loram about the importance of head and neck movement. This year, Katy’s annual exercise advent offers 24 moves for the head and neck and Katy explains her personal and professional reasons for choosing this theme.

Jeannette and Katy discuss the head and neck as a hub for our sensory, nervous, immune, digestive and vestibular systems, all of which require movement to support their functions. They discuss common issues of the head and neck region, as well as how repetitive head positioning and neck immobility can relate to broader experiences in the body, such as Katy’s discovery of a decrease in her height that she is working to reverse.

They discuss the basic movements of the head and neck and also cover the structures of the region including a neck anatomy lesson provided by their favourite 1970s musical ‘Grease’ and a third-grade attempt to mimic the album cover!

They share their own head and neck care practices and suggest strategies for listeners to add more daily movement for this part of the body; from changing their sleep set-up to pairing specific neck movements with a daily cue.

Biomechanist Katy Bowman talks to biologist Jeannette Loram about dog movement. This discussion stemmed from witnessing a balance ball therapy session for dogs. Just like modern humans, modern dogs now require physical therapy. In this episode, Katy and Jeannette discuss how to use Katy’s ‘movement nutrition’ framework and apply it to your furry friends.

Katy and Jeannette discuss the evolution of dogs and the difference in movement experience between free-ranging ancestral dogs compared with today’s urban canines. They discuss how human-chosen pacing is not necessarily the most comfortable for dogs since their most efficient gait pattern is a trot, not a walk. They discuss the importance of meaningful movement for a dog, emphasizing the importance of smell and play as ‘command-free’ movement. They also talk about the importance of mentoring movement for dogs, especially safety skills such as swimming.

Finally, they talk about their own dogs and their favourite —and often quirky—activities from climbing trees to log dragging and how dogs and humans can enhance each other’s movement diets.

Biomechanist Katy Bowman talks to biologist Jeannette Loram about a recent New York Times article “ Why Sitting All Day May Shorten Your Life”. Katy was a source for this article and she talks with Jeannette about the journalistic process, and why the short-form might be letting us down.

Katy and Jeannette talk about the benefits of sitting as well as the risks associated with uninterrupted hours in a chair. They discuss sitting as a two-part issue; first the inactivity and second the fixed body geometry. Katy and Jeannette discuss recent research showing that long hours of sitting are associated with a more rapid rate of cellular aging and how many experiences we put down to aging: muscle and bone loss, low energy levels and low back pain are really influenced by how much we sit.

Katy and Jeannette critique the recommendation to offset hours in a chair by increasing exercise time, noting that this is not really how biology works. Katy suggests that this approach is a bit like flossing your teeth diligently while not brushing them.

SPONSORS: THE DYNAMIC COLLECTIVE

This episode of The Move Your DNA podcast is brought to you by The Dynamic Collective, a group of six companies that create products and services helping you to move more. The Dynamic Collective is:
- Peluva: reimagining minimalist footwear

- Movemate: Dynamic active standing board

- Smart Playrooms: design and products for active living indoors

- Correct Toes: anatomic silicone toe spacers

- WIldling: minimal footwear made with natural and sustainable materials

- Venn Design: Functional furniture for a balanced life - sit still less and move more