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9 Stretches For Sedentary Sitters To Do At Your Desk
Sedentary Sitters have common health issues. Neck and shoulder strain combined with a hunched over back pain. Here are 9 stretches to do at your desk.
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Health Risk Prone To Sedentary Sitters
Cheap office chair or cheap gaming chair. It doesn’t matter – here are a few things that will happen when you use an invalid chair for too long.
- Muscle Strain: Sitting for lengthy periods of time with poor posture places greater stress on muscles and joints. Muscles and joints out of alignment must work harder, leading to chronic pain in the back, shoulders, neck, arms, or legs.
- Joint Pain: Repetitive Movement Strain–Muscle which has been over fatigued.
- Joint Stiffness: Muscles which have been over fatigued get stiff and has a less range of motion.
- Lesser Balance: Muscle fatigue and stiffness will affect your balance and can increase the risk of falling over with age.
- Poor blood circulation: sitting with poor posture prevents optimal blood flow. Poor circulation leads to varicose veins, especially in women.
- Emotional Disorders: Depression: There have been studies conducted over the years that have found a correlation between negative emotional states and poor sitting posture.
So your basic body language shows a lot when we sit upright, we are more alert, energetic, and positive. On the opposite side, when we slouch, we tend towards lethargy, weight gain, and negative thinking.
9 Stretches to do at your workstation when your in pain or need a break.
Most office chairs on the market do not provide ergonomic back support. With so many people sitting in cheap office or gaming chairs, is there data showing any negative ramifications?
The American Chiropractic Association notes that 264 million workdays are lost per year in U.S. on the sole cause of back pain.
In contrast, gaming chairs are specifically designed to provide the support that our backs need. They are great for our circulation and they are helpful in aligning our spines.
If you sit for long hours and suffer stiffness or pain, a gaming chair will help straighten your back and support good posture.
Sitting Back Extensions
Sit up straight with your feet firmly on the ground.
Place your into the dip of around your love handles, above lower back.
Slowly Lean back with your hands anchored in place, feeling the stretch in your shoulders, mostly. For a deeper stretch, dip your neck SLOWLY.
Scapular Retraction
Roll your shoulders forwards and backwards to loosen them up.
Pull the bottoms of your shoulder blades downward and towards towards mid-line.
Hold longer for a deeper stretch. The tops of your shoulder stay relaxed.
Seated Spine Twist Back Stretch
Sit up straight with your feet firmly on the ground. Cross your arms over your chest.
Grab your shoulders with your thumbs placed on your shoulder blades.
Twist your waist using your upper body, gently turning from side to side.
You should feel at the deepest part of the stretch on the sides of your lower back as you twist.
Shoulder Extensions | Method 1
Both feet firmly on the ground raise both arms above your head.
With your palms facing the sky, inter-lock your fingers with palms facing upwards.
Pulling your fingers slightly apart, reach as high as you can for the deepest stretch.
Shoulder Extensions | Method 2
Stand up and stretch your arms out behind you.
Clasp your hands together and gently lift your arms.
You should feel the pressure in your shoulders ease off.
Shoulder Shrugs
Both feet firmly on the ground raise both arms above your head.
With your palms facing the sky, inter-lock your fingers with palms facing upwards.
Pulling your fingers slightly apart, reach as high as you can for the deepest stretch.
Posterior shoulder stretch
Standing tall while keeping the natural arch in your lower back.
Shoulders relaxed, reach one arm over your chest, parallel to the floor.
Using your other arm, place your hand on the elbow.
Gently tug your elbow inward to your chest and hold.
Neck & Shoulder Stretch
Sit on top of your hand with palm facing down
Lean your head opposite of whatever hand you’re sitting on.
Lean your head forward slightly towards your shoulder.
This is a deep stretch that you will feel the instantly repeat stretch on both sides.
Neck Rotations
With your back straight and head upright (proper posture).
From Side to Side, Gently turn your head
You should feel the deepest stretch outside of your neck, on top of your shoulders.
This can be done up 30 seconds or as long as you feel is necessary.
Take around a 5 minute break for Every Hour At Your Desk
When your body hunches over, it may be an indicator it’s time to take a break. If you’re at your workstation, this is also a good time to relax your eyes from being in front of a monitor or three if you’re like me.
Take micro-breaks are around 30 to 120 seconds twice an hour. If you still feel stressed, try out some stretches explained by experts in the videos below.
Good posture yields many benefits
Sitting proper with better posture at your workstation shows that the muscles around the spine are balanced so they can healthily support one’s body’s weight. Being mindful of your posture will promote these following benefits:
Cheap office chair or cheap gaming chair – It doesn’t matter
Cheap office chair or cheap gaming chair. It doesn’t matter – here are a few things that will happen when you use a bad chair for too long.
- Adjust your chair’s height so that your knees bend at a 90° angle. If you’re shorter than average, it may help to place a footstool at your feet to stop any dangling.
- Remember to have your feet flat on the ground! Try not to cross your legs or propping one foot up against the desk.
- Distribute your body weight evenly across the chair.
- If your chair lacks lumbar support, put a firm pillow, foam roller, or cushion behind your back as an alternative.
- Adjust your chair to your desk and make the proper adjustments until the computer is at the optimal viewing angle (eye level).
- Instead of leaning over to rest your elbows on the desk; save your shoulders the strain and rest your elbows on the on the armrest of the chair.
- Make sure your arms are in a slightly open position (Around 110° angle).
- Your arms should be comfortably parallel to your keyboard.
- If using multiple monitors in your workstation, make sure they’re properly aligned next to one another and are at equal eye level.
- Your eye level should be with the top of the computer screen (2″-3″ Inches Above Seated Level) and NOT the center of the monitor.
Interested in learning more about the benefits of a healthy posture? While researching if gaming chairs can hurt your back, I gather videos and tips on the proper ways to sit and other tips.
Related Questions
Helpful Info About Stretching & F.A.Q. Answered
How Often Should You Stretch While Working At Your Desk?
Sitting at your desk for extended periods of time will tighten the muscles and make them fatigued. Set a timer to go off every 50 to 55 minutes and try out any of the stretches discussed above.
How Often Should You Get Up From Your Desk?
Sitting at your desk for extended periods of time will make us uncomfortable and lose focus on the task at hand. To improve stay pain free of both the body and mind; take a 5-15 minute break every hour.
If your thinking about switching to a standing workstation, I self-reported a two month long switch from office chair to standing desk.
Why Is Stretching Important?
Stretching properly and frequently increases your muscle elasticity. Stretching daily also leads to an increase in muscle dexterity, flexibility, and mobility of motion.
SOURCE
Clinic, May. YouTube, youtu.be/xOsBYE1jb9Y.
Sharp Health Care.YouTube,youtu.be/v=NKVmexL3hLI
Figure 2f from: Irimia R, Gottschling M (2016) Taxonomic revision of Rochefortia Sw. (Ehretiaceae, Boraginales). Biodiversity Data Journal 4: e7720. https://doi.org/10.3897/BDJ.4.e7720. (n.d.). doi: 10.3897/bdj.4.e7720.figure2f
. Paragon. The New Guide to Relaxation : Pilates – Yoga – Meditation – Stress Relief. Bath, England, Parragon Press, 2005.
Claude
ChairPickr | "Writer"
Hello, My name is Claude and I enjoy sitting comfortable. Research into what separates the good from the bad, in the matter of chairs started when I made a new year’s resolution to have better posture.
You clicked here to find that first-rate chair. Why not stay and learn some self care?
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