HEALTH & FITNESS : Stretching the Comfort Zone for Arduous Drives Home

Millions of years from now, evolution may modify the human body to make it better adapted to driving a car. Shoulders will no longer stiffen, neck muscles will not tie themselves in knots and the lumbar spine will remain frozen for hours on end without so much as a twinge.

But by then, we probably won’t even have cars anymore. Even if we do, it’s a good bet that all the construction on the Costa Mesa Freeway will be completed, so our traffic problems will be much improved.

Who knows? The barricades blocking off that new car-pool lane on the San Diego Freeway may even be gone by then.

In any case, today’s drivers have to come up with a more immediate solution to the aches, pains and overall strain of spending sizable chunks of our lives stuck behind the wheel.

For some, the answer is a drink to take the edge off after the car is safely in the garage. (Life on Wheels does not recommend this method; we only acknowledge it.)

Others prefer a workout to exorcise some of the aggressions and tensions. That can help, but with a typical daily commute of more than 40 minutes round-trip (that’s the case for 43% of us in Orange County, according to a 1988 survey), not everyone can spare the time.

But all you need is 90 seconds, according to Dr. Carl Held of Newport Beach, who deals exclusively with the treatment of chronic pain at his Headache and Backache Institute. Take just 1 1/2 minutes for stretching exercises before and after driving, Held says, and you can escape what he calls “that drained feeling.”

Too many drivers, he says, just assume that the physical side effects of driving are unavoidable. “I think people see the strain of driving as a fact of life,” he says. “I don’t think they realize how much of a problem it is and what it does to the body.

“You get a stiff neck, but that’s not all that’s involved,” Held says. “When you’re driving, your whole upper body gets involved, all the way to the lower back.”

Because most of his patients cannot avoid driving or other activities, such as working on computers, that aggravate their chronic pain, Held says his job often seems “like trying to heal somebody’s black eye and have them go back into the ring every day.”

So in the last seven years Held--who began his medical career as an internist and psychiatrist before developing his specialty--has developed a sequence of nine stretching exercises to release muscle tension. He recommends “The Held 9 in 90” routine not only for driving but also for those who spend much of their working day at a desk or, worse, at a computer.

“Of all the (treatment methods) we have, if I could use only one, I would take stretching,” he says.

After watching a demonstration by Held, I tried his stretches before and after my least-favorite drive: the Costa Mesa Freeway, from one end to the other, at 5 p.m. on a weekday.

I must admit I felt a little silly bending and stretching in a parking lot before I got behind the wheel.

Mine was a typical reaction, Held says: “A lot of people say, ‘I don’t want to look foolish; I don’t want anybody to think I’m crazy.’ Well what’s more important?”

He admitted, however, that once when he was in the middle of a bent-over stretch, a concerned passer-by walked up and asked whether he was all right.

But by the time I was halfway home, I realized my shoulders and neck were not nearly as tense as they usually are. The traffic was more stop than go, nothing unusual for that time of day. As I drove down the exit ramp, I noticed I did not have the headache that usually overtakes me by then.

Still, when I got home, I went inside (lest the neighbors think I was weird) to repeat the exercises.

Here they are:

* Overhead stretch. Clasp hands overhead with fingers interlocked. Turn them so palms face up. Stretch arms over head as far as comfortably possible. Holding this position, relax a moment, then stretch further. Relax again, then stretch further again. The sequence of stretching and relaxing is repeated three times.

* Secretary stretch. Hold arms in front of you at a 45-degree angle with fingers interlocked, palms outward. Stretch, moving shoulders forward as far as they will go comfortably. Relax, stretch, relax and stretch again. This stretch can also be done in the car with the hands at a different angle, over the steering wheel, but only if you are stopped at a light or in some other situation in which you can safely let go of the steering wheel for several seconds.

* Roll shoulders back. Interlock fingers behind back. Stretch, rolling shoulders back as far as comfortably possible. Stretch, relax, stretch, relax and stretch again.

* Side lean. Place hands behind head, interlocking fingers. Lean to side, bending at the waist, as far as you can go comfortably, using gravity to assist you. Relax and allow yourself to drop a little more, then relax and drop even more. Repeat with other side.

* Touch floor. Stand with feet slightly apart for balance. Bend forward, allowing arms and head to dangle. Drop as far as you can drop comfortably, tensing abdominal muscles as you relax your lower back. Stretch, relax, stretch, relax and stretch again. Instead of straightening up, proceed directly to next stretch.

* Upper body pullover. From bent position of previous stretch, reach arms behind you, interlocking fingers, and stretch arms backward and upward. Relax, stretch, relax and stretch again. Then place hands on knees and straighten slowly without letting go of knees. This prevents dizziness.

* Twists. Stand with feet slightly apart for balance. Twist and stretch upper body as far toward one side as you can comfortably go. Relax, stretch, relax, stretch again. Repeat twisting toward other side.

* Shoulder pretzel. Place one arm behind back and crawl hand upward. Reach over shoulder with other arm and crawl hand down. Stretch, relax, stretch, relax and stretch again. You may or may not be able to touch your hands together, but don’t worry if you can’t. Reverse hands and repeat.

* Turn head. Turn your head toward one side as far as it will go without discomfort. Relax, stretch a little farther, relax, and stretch again. Repeat, this time turning head toward the other side. This exercise can also be done in the car if you are completely stopped in traffic.

For extra-long drives, such as trips to Los Angeles and back, Held recommends stopping halfway to stretch a third time.

Watch Out! Slow Down! Turn Left!

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