neck pains - what to do?

C

cadboy

New member
so i started painting again after a year and a half. GD Canada is almost around the corner, so i decided to get my @$$ in gear, and i figure i\'ll slack off at work a bit to make sure i have time to paint.

porblem is, i remembered what i hated most about painting - not the painstaking slow speed, but the stiff neck i keep getting everytime i\'m crouched over my models. any ideas? i\'ve already tried lowering my seat to the level of the table, and it\'s still not helping much.
 
W

Wolf_Fang

Guest
no idea... i get the same problem too lol then again i do paint for about 6 hours strait when i do... sometimes 9... heck ive painted 12 hours strait before :wow:
 
N

Naukhel

Active member
Lewiscraft stores sell a magnifying glass that hangs off your neck for $15. Not needing to bend over as much might help your neck.

Alternately, do some head rolls and yawn-stretches to loosen up your neck, and pause in your painting every 10 minutes to repeat the exercises to keep your neck loose.

Also, stand up and walk about at least once every 30 minutes, as part of the problem that comes to the neck is related to lower back strain, also from the hunching over.
 
laurence

laurence

Brushlover
achin\' neck.. no fun at all

Hi dood,

One trick to avoid neck aches is to take a ten minute break every hour. So, you paint for 50 mins and rest for 10 mins. It\'ll make a difference.

Another thing is, you may need a little more exercise in your daily routine. Swimming is a really good way to keep the ol\' frame feeling good.

I hope this helps. I also hope you can find a way to paint without hurting.

Cheers
 
C

cadboy

New member
thanks folks for the advice

yeah, i suppose going 6 hours at it doesn\'t help. i did stop periodically (more because of the pain than anything else!) and rolled my neck around. i guess i\'ll have to get in that habit, and not get too absorbed.

@ naukhel - a magnifying glass hanging off my neck? rofl - never heard of that before. have you used this, and does it really help? i\'m sure i\'ll be able to find one in scarborough somewhere, even if it is a completely different world than the rest of the GTA.....
 
N

Naukhel

Active member
Yes, a magnifying glass hanging from your neck.

It\'s set with resting pads that sit on your chest/upper abdomen, and has a string that you loop over your neck to hold it at the given height.

Alternately, if you head to a Curry\'s Art Supply store, you can get a lamp with a flexible neck that has a magnifying glass on it, too. I don\'t know if Curry\'s has a location in Scarberia, off-hand. I go to the location just below Yonge and College, on the west side. Blue and white sign. Can\'t miss it.
 
M

Modderrhu

New member
Naukhel got it right; the next best thing to good ergonomics is regular breaks. Get up, go bother the girlfriend, get something to nibble on, or whatever. This isn\'t just to help your neck, it\'s to help your eyes too. Eyes take the most strain when focussing on close objects, and they need to rest by focussing on something more distant.

I\'m not crazy about using a magnifying glass, because it reduces your field of depth. You cannot rely on your eyes handling the focussing for you anymore, so you will find that you will need to hold the mini in a particular position, and have your eyes at a particular distance from the lense. This can be even more straining, since you are also limited to a single posture.

Of course, if you want to get rid of the real pain in the neck, you could tell her it\'s time to shut up or clear out. ;)
 
S

sebrushworth

Guest
I think the best idea might be to get a height-adjustable desk for your figure painting. I know they sell them at ikea. That way you can heighten the desk so that you\'re sitting straight while painting, instead of sitting crouched over.
 
S

sebrushworth

Guest
I don\'t think magnifying visors will help against neck ache, because they have such a limited field of depth, usually only a couple of inches if you want decent magnification. So you\'ll probably be just as bent over anyway.
 
S

supervike

Super Moderator
no pain, no gain.

C\'mon you want one of them trophies, you GOTTA sacrifice!!

(actually, I have a similar porblem with my mid back)
 
T

THuff

New member
Try resting your elbows on the table when you are painting. It may mean having to move farther to get your paint, but it helps keep your back and neck straight. I found myself having to do this when I was getting the same pains.

Or you can rest your elbows on your knees. The lower back will still be bent, but your neck will straighten out.


-Terry

Mageworks

My Gallery
rank.php
 
M

Modderrhu

New member
Originally posted by supervike
no pain, no gain.

C\'mon you want one of them trophies, you GOTTA sacrifice!!

(actually, I have a similar porblem with my mid back)
Click to expand...
Is being a CMON nanny not enough masochism for you, vike? ;)

Kinda on-topic, my left hand tends to cramp while I\'m painting. My fingers are quite long, and need to perform some interesting moves to hold the bases/corks/whatever. It actually caused me to screw up some sculpting I was doing on a base last night. Any tips for a gollum-fingered (as opposed to dick-fingered) git?
 
S

supervike

Super Moderator
Yeah...I guess I like it rough...LOL


I do have a solution for your hand cramping problem. I\'m assuming you paint with your right hand, and try to hold onto that tiny thing with your left?

Take a plastic water bottle with a screw on lid. Tack your mini onto the lid (I use superglue) Place it back on the water bottle. You may want to leave it filled with water, or sand to keep it from being top heavy and tippy.

Viola...A nice little mini holder with a decent sized grip. Depending on how big you need it you could just keep upping the size of the bottle....
 
Y

yaro

New member
painters\' kamasutra :D

i know that it can sounds crazy but i paint laying on the floor :D years ago i was used to paint on desk but had same problem with my back.
There are two BIG advantages :
- your hands are stady - all time your elbows are on the floor so hands are stady
- back is not weight so much.

few weeks ago i had commission deadline :/
For 3 days (72hours) i was painting for more than 60 hours (excluding breaks for eating and similar it will be more than 50h). I almost didnt sleep (last 3 nights - 3 hours, two ours and none at all). The only problem were eyes and lack of sleep, but i didnt have a back or neck pain at all, so I think it is the best way to avoid them :D
BTW have anyone some other strange habits? ;)
 
E

EricJ

Active member
Originally posted by Naukhel
Yes, a magnifying glass hanging from your neck.
Click to expand...

you know, this definately wouldn\'t help for a hobby already facing image problems in the public eye...

ok, but as for this problem. The obvious #1 solution would be to have a 6 hour massage from an attractive woman while on these marathon painting sessions. However, should this be unavailable, I\'m a big advocate of just generally increasing the amount of exercise you get every day. Since I\'ve been routinely running and using the gym I haven\'t had any problems with neck/back pain, since I do now regularly use those muscles. Also while it\'s not usually as obvious, it relieves arm and leg pain as well, which I didn\'t even notice I was getting from painting, until it was gone...and it\'s real nice it\'s gone!

Now this doesn\'t really help with eye strain, which is now my biggest nemisis...
 
Dragonsreach

Dragonsreach

Super Moderator
Staff member
Originally posted by supervike
no pain, no gain.

C\'mon you want one of them trophies, you GOTTA sacrifice!!

(actually, I have a similar porblem with my mid back)So do I but it\'s caused by a spare tyre.... lol
Click to expand...
 
R

Rodnik

New member
The last time I told my doctor I had neck pain he said the best solution for my case was to amputate.

I chose to take regular breaks to stretch and such....
 
F

finn17

New member
I found out the cause of my stiff neck....

You are supposed to swallow viagra tablets quickly, not suck them slowly...


...I\'ll get my coat...
 
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