That has since led me down one of the most fascinating biomechanics rabbit holes I've ever been down, and since then, I've come to realize...oh shit. That internet stranger is totally right.
For as long as I can remember, I've slept on my left side, with my right leg drawn all the way up, my left leg straight, my right side crunched up/engaged/short, my left side long/disengaged, and my hips twisted and facing the bed, with my left hip lower than my right hip.
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| I'm #6 |
"Sleeping with one knee raised over the other torques the pelvis for the duration of sleeping. Again no good can come from a pelvis that is misaligned for hours at a time...The classic manifestation of the psoas when tight is for the affected leg and foot shortened into the hip socket and turn out with the pelvis and shoulder of the same side to draw closer to each other. The whole affected side shortens."
That...sounds familiar. Look at my non-riding position habits. I:
- Typically stand with most of my weight on my left leg and my hips dropped down to the left
- Typically sit with my weight on my left seat bone (regardless of leg crossing or not) and my right side crunched up tight
- Drive with all my weight on the left seatbone and my right side crunched up
- Generally move with my right foot toe out with a lot of stress on my medial knee compared to the left
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| Blowing off steam with the boys in a random Ohio park after an awful funeral this fall. I can guarantee swinging this way was a lot easier for me than the other way. |
And in the saddle:
- I can easily pick my right seatbone up, but I almost can't lift the left one up at all.
- I can easily move my right seatbone forward, but I almost can't move the left one at all.
- My right foot tends to point out and the left points forward.
- The saddle fitter had to adjust my flocking because the left side was flattened from me sitting over there all the time.
- I hear "lengthen your right side" and "sit over the right side" from both my trainers. A lot. I have also heard it from clinicians.
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| Weight on the left, saddle on the left, left foot forward, left side long, right toe out, right side short, no weight on right seatbone, oh hey, that all sounds really familiar... PC: Leah |
This is definitely a chicken-and-egg thing, so, I could have started sleeping like this because it's easier for my more dominant muscles, or sleeping could be the cause of those muscles being more dominant. It's probably a combination of both.
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| I also heard it from JenJ's T last year, when he was like "Ahhhhhhhhhhh I can't move the direction you're telling me to why are you sitting on the left side so hard?!" |
Either way, it doesn't matter. It's pretty clear to me that spending 8 hours a night with my right side crunched so closely together my ribcage almost touches my hip bone is definitely either contributing to or at least not helping the things I'm trying to overcome in the saddle. It's also become clear to me that my left side obliques are waaaaaaaaay weaker than the same muscles on the right.
So...how do you sleep? Is your sleeping position eerily similar to the way you sit on the horse too?
Yes! This is the missing link! I am also a 6, but opposite side to you and I constantly struggle with my left hip. I ALSO sit crooked when I am focused on a task. I have been trying to sleep like a 5 this last year but I turn in my sleep. A habit so hard to change. Pillows help.
ReplyDeleteYeah, definitely hard to change! I've been making progress with it though, maybe because I'm exhausted from work lately and falling asleep isn't hard right now.
DeleteSame! I’m also a 6 but opposite side. Plus I sit with my legs up, cross legged at work but always with the same leg crossed in the same way so my right side is shorter. I was a stomach sleeper but now I’ve moved to sleeping more on my side and I’m hoping to get to sleeping on my back at some point.
ReplyDeleteInteresting! Stomach is supposed to be the worst from just a general body perspective because of the torque on your neck. Back would definitely be best if I could get there.
DeleteOh god. I sleep just like you do! I don't know if I can change but it makes so much sense now.
ReplyDeleteRight?! I was amazed I'd never thought of this before.
DeleteYuuuuup, how you sleep definitely affects your body. I used to be a stomach sleeper but that caused neck pain, then I always slept on my left side but that caused back pain, and now I've been trying to fall asleep on my back (I listen to a meditation app at bedtime and you pretty much have to lie on your back or you can't make all the things work. Life-long habits are hard to break, but awareness is key. I'd also suggest finding a physiotherapist to work on breaking up locked muscles so that you can actually feel them and start to engage them (this is how i rediscovered my left seatbone). Oh and if you don't have a yoga ball to sit on at work, get one and work on balancing exercises. Hella hard, but really helps with awareness of body parts!
ReplyDeleteI don't even know how to start finding a physiotherapist but I'd sure like to start going to one, for a lot of reasons.
DeleteThis is super fascinating to me because I've always been a bit of a "pretzel" sleeper and within the last year or so I've noticed a correlation with back pain and general muscle stiffness, so I've been making a concerted effort to sleep flat on my back evenly. And I saw that same COTH comment and it definitely made me evaluate how I sit for my 2 hours of driving each day and my lengthy sitting at my desk.
ReplyDeleteYeah! It's amazing how these normal life activities can really contribute to the way we ride.
DeleteChanging how you sleep is super hard! I started several years ago when I realized my propensity to sleep on my right shoulder was one of my contributing factors to right shoulder pain (unfortunately sleeping on one side or the other is great for my ability to breath at night - damn you allergies!) So back when my shoulder pain was really bad (2012-2014) I started falling asleep on my back figuring if I learned to sleep on my back I'd at least guarantee several hours in that position compared to others, I started also laying on my left side more (or my stomach) if I was reading in bed to save my arms. Most mornings I still wake up on my right side, but I know when I have those momentary wake ups in the middle of the night I will always correct myself to my back. Takes a lot of work but eventually you and I will both get there.
ReplyDeleteYeah, it is a lot of work. I don't tend to move at all in my sleep when I'm in my #6 position, and so far I haven't in the new positions either. Fingers crossed that continues.
DeleteI was a 1 for years and have more recently become a 6. And before this, I was pretty happy on my stomach. With the advent of a lot of neck and shoulder pain lately, I've realized (very recently) that I should retrain myself to be more like a 4 or 5 above. I've had a lot of success this week and am both able to fall asleep and still wake up on my back. I'm hoping this will help a lot of my postural issues because I've got a lot of the ones you noted and am really motivated to correct them!
ReplyDeleteThat's so interesting! Yeah, I'm working on being a 1 or a 5. Both work, but I've noticed that my #6 position also contributes to losing the eyelash hairs on the outside of my left eye and left side chest wrinkles, so, even more ammo to change to being a back sleeper!
DeleteI go between 1 and 5, though have never been a very good sleeper. I remember being a little kid at sleepovers lying in my sleeping bag wide awake long after everyone else is asleep, then being the first one up in the morning and hanging out with the parents while the other kids sleep in. I don't sleep much and don't feel tired during the day, it just makes nights very long! But at least it's coming in handy now with the baby!
ReplyDeleteWow, you were losing sleep on both ends then. I've always been a good sleeper but my husband is a terrible sleeper and actually got hauled in for sleep studies as a child.
DeleteOH NO!!!! I don't think I even want to analyze how I sleep. I tend to twist and contort myself in all kinds of crazy ways. And then adding in how I sit on the sofa for interneting/gaming...how I stand at work...omg, it's amazing I can do anything!
ReplyDeleteHaha! Now that you've seen this post you can't unsee it :D :D :D
DeleteI have tried to learn to sleep on my back and I just can't. I sleep on my arm and my shoulders have been forever damaged because of it.
ReplyDeleteYeah :( That's the other bad thing about my #6 position, I'll put my arm straight out under my head and then my shoulder ends up hurting. It's not chronic, yet, but your comment is a good reminder to knock that off too.
DeleteI'm a 2, aka fetal position, but I swap sides pretty consistently so at least there's that. I also can tell if I've slept really well because I wake up on my back.
ReplyDeleteThat's good!
DeleteI've worked on this for years. My right side is my shorter side (easier to bend my body right). Thankfully I don't sit much at work, so I don't have that problem. Driving - I try to sit on both seat bones, and put my left foot forward instead of drawing my knee up. When lying in bed reading on my back), I'll take both legs and move them a bit to the left - and oh man does my hip ever feel the stretch!
ReplyDeleteI try to sleep more on my back these days, but I've always been a side/stomach sleeper. I wake up some nights with my tight right psoas in pain, so I give in and pull my right knee up so I can get back to sleep. And then try to remember to do some more stretching during the day.
You're doing really well with that much self awareness! It's so hard to break those habits, because our tight muscles are not helping us.
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