Five Moves you can do Right Now to Counteract the Dangers of a Desk Job
The beginning of the year is often an extra busy time for many people, resulting in longer days at the office and more cumulative hours spent at your desk. Both the mental and physical strain can be extremely taxing on the body and actually begin to sabotage your training program.
The hours you spend outside your office and being physically active are incredibly beneficial, but it is the cumulative hours spent sitting at the desk that increases the risk of injury and causes the low back pain, neck pain, tight hips and shoulders, weak core and a host of other imbalances and ailments.
While finding an alternative such as a standing desk is recommended, here are a few yoga poses you can do when your back starts to ache or your body is extra stiff from those long seated hours. It will only take a couple minutes each time but will do wonders for your spinal mobility as well as mental clarity!
Slow Neck Stretches
This is the easiest stretch to do and requires the smallest amount of commitment, but can be incredibly refreshing. Sitting up tall, inhale and slowly allow your right ear to fall toward your right shoulder, take a few slow deep breaths there and then inhale back to centre. Next, turn and look down towards your back pocket (keeping your spine tall). Repeat as needed about 3-5 times on each side.
Cat/Cow, seated or against your desk
Move your chair and stand a few feet from your desk so just your hands can touch. Drop your head between your arms to achieve a good shoulder stretch. From here you can take a deep inhale and begin to round the back, drawing your pelvis underneath you, exhale and arch your back, opening up your chest towards the desk.
Mountain Pose against Wall/Wall Angels, or seated at your desk
Reconnecting to a neutral spinal position is always important as well as working on shoulder mobility after hours of hunching over a desk. Sitting up tall at your desk or standing against a wall, bring your arms perpendicular to the floor. Inhale and keeping your shoulders down and elbows in line with the body, raise your arms overhead, potentially straightening them at the top. Exhale and draw your elbows back down, returning to the starting position. Repeat 5-10x.
Standing Forward Fold
Stand next to your desk, fold over in half with soft knees and let gravity take over. Hold for at least 20 seconds and sway side to side if that feels good. By letting your arms and head hang, your neck and shoulders will decompress from all that typing. Plus, reversing the blood flow will give you a boost of energy for the rest of your work day!
Pigeon Pose, on desk/seated variations
On desk (make sure your desk is very sturdy for this one!) – standing up facing your desk, lift your right leg up and place your knee and ankle on the desk perpendicular to your body, flexing your toes. Standing here or beginning to lean forward, keep your spine long, and feel a stretch in the outer hip/glute, but no pain!
Seated- Place right ankle on top of left knee, flex the right foot and press the inner border of foot away from the body. Straighten the spine with a deep inhale and as you exhale, begin to fold forward. Feel that stretch in the outer hip/glute but no pain. Make sure your knees are comfortable and use your breath to move deeper into the stretch.
Stay in either variation for 5-10 breaths.
Give these stretches a shot during your next work day and see how much better you feel afterwards!
Heather Thornton, NASM CPT
Professional Training Coach
Innovative Fitness Vancouver
791 West Georgia Street
Work: 604-609-5450
Cell: 1-204-3307216
Email:
Website: https://www.innovativefitness.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/InnovativeFitnessVancouver
Twitter / Instagram: @IFVancouver
