We’ve all been told how much or little we should sit or stand at work, but there are very few information out there on the proper technique when it comes to sitting and standing. But we can’t just forego our jobs and tasks!
Because of this, many use poor technique which includes slumpsitting, archsitting, parking weight poorly on joints, and many more. Sitting is being considered “the new smoking” for desk employees, and standing too long was shown to cause increased hospitalization due to varicose veins, increased atherosclerosis, etc. Spine Center of Texas lists down easy techniques on how you can minimise pain while working:
- Perform stretch-sitting
Stretch-sitting is a technique that is easy, safe, comfortable, and therapeutic for people who sit long hours:
- Use a towel or flannel so it contacts you at midback, below the shoulder blades.
- Scoot your bottom all the way back in the chair.
- Lean forward from the hips and tilt your ribcage forward, like you are doing a minicrunch.
- Push downwards on the armrests/side bars/seat pan of your chair to get a gentle stretch in your lower back.
- Keeping the stretch, lean back from your hips and stick your midback on to the towel.
- Come out of the minicrunch and relax completely, letting the towel keep you in mild traction.
- Roll each shoulder back and rest your hands close into your body.
- Angle your chin down slightly, letting the back of your neck be long.
- Change your baseline posture
Even if you have good posture, you still need to change it. Those with computer jobs need to change their posture every 20-30 minutes. If you can walk when talking to the phone, then that is a great way to change up your position. Remember that the more baseline postures and movements you do, the better.
- Do exercise, movement and even rest during and outside the workday
On break, use this time to rest, stretch or strengthen your abdominal muscles. ? There are hundreds of muscles and tissues in your body that have needs, so make time for exercise. A varied movement regimen such as walking, running etc. is as important as a varied diet.
- Use well-designed furniture and tools
There are a lot of furnitures and tools out there that can help you. Learn and experiment with what constitutes healthy furniture. Some may cost more, but this is an investment in how you will be spending half of your waking life.
