THE 3 THINGS THAT EVERY WINNIPEG WORKER NEEDS TO PRACTICE DAILY TO AVOID INJURY AT THE HOME OR WORK DESK!
The great thing about these points is that they apply to everyone, anytime, anywhere.
If you sit at a desk all day, you NEED to practice these three things. They are quick easy and can dramatically decrease your discomfort and risk of injury. If you are at a home office these are even more important. Although it is probably more convenient to get up and move around at home sometimes our home office set ups are not as great as they could be.
#1 Sit up straight and lengthen your spine.
A neutral spine is the natural position of the spine when all three curves of the spine — cervical (neck), thoracic (middle) and lumbar (lower) this is the most stable position of the spine; it requires the least amount of muscular effort to sustain and puts the least amount of stress on your joints and ligaments.
Think of stacking your vertebrae on top of each other like legos all in a nice smooth line and in between each leg; you want a lot of even space. If you think of lengthening up towards the sky, the other stuff will reflexively fall into place. Instead of thinking of 5 different cues, like this: 1. Shoulders back and down 2. Tuck your pelvis 3. Double chin 4. Ribs down 5. Relax your jaw. Try just one useful cue of lengthening your body up through the crown of the head. Learn how HERE.
Poor spinal posture is like trying to get somewhere fast on a winding road with lots of lights; good posture is like driving a sports car on a long stretch perfect road, you get the picture.
#2 Breathing
Focus on breathing out, breathing in is the passive part of respiration and breathing out is the active part, the part that requires muscular contraction and effort. When I was running regularly, I found it very helpful to focus on breathing out and just letting the air ‘flow’ back in.
Click HERE for some exercises to help with breathing
• Inhale normally for 2 seconds, hold your breath for 2-3 seconds and exhale in 2-3 consecutive shots or in one bigger shot.
• Lay down or sit nice and tall with your head over your shoulders and pelvis.
o Put your dominant hand on your belly and the other hand on your upper chest.
o Take the time to feel your breathing.
o Gradually push with your hand on your belly to engage the thoracic region and diaphragmatic breathing.
o Take deep breathes and feel your abdomen expand under the lower hand.
If you don’t practice proper breathing, you are creating weak muscles for your lungs. If you are always in a slouched position, you are making it more challenging for your body to do what it was designed to do. Breathe in a long neutral spine! It will increase your lung capacity.
#3 Move Often
Patients will very often ask what is the best position to sit it or work in? The answer may sound a bit flippant, but I usually tell them “the next position.” I go on to explain that moving often is key and staying in one position for long periods; even a great position is a challenge for our bodies if we stay that way too long.
No matter the position after a while, the muscles will start to fatigue, and more strain is placed on the ligaments that support your spine. If those ligaments are under stress, they will eventual start to stretch; this is called ligament creep; when that happens, it takes those ligaments a long time to return to their normal length. The way to prevent this is to move frequently, every 20 min or so would be ideal.
In the real world, this can be as simple as getting up to get a coffee or checking in with a colleague. Or you can spend a couple of mins several times a day doing some basic exercises.
Set a timer for every ½ hour or so. The pick a couple of exercises and spend two or 3 min doing just a couple of simple movements to unload your spine and muscles and give your ligaments a rest.
Click HERE for some ideas.
Whether at home or at your office, doing these three things consistently is sure to make your day more comfortable and help you to avoid some of the common repetitive strain injuries that are common in folks who sit too much.
