WORK IN PROGRESS
Avoiding the physical pitfalls of the common desk job.
For those who find themselves chained to a desk Monday through Friday, getting adequate exercise can be a challenge. Sitting causes certain parts of the body to get stiff and others to get weak. Basically, if you don't use it, you will lose it. If you aren't using muscles and joints enough, they will get weaker over time. Eventually, your overall ability to function or do things with those muscles fades, making normal activities more difficult and eventually, impossible. Likewise, when held in any one position for a long time, joints and muscles tend to adapt to that position. When your mom would say, “Don’t make that face or it will stick that way,” she really was onto something. The muscles you use during your job stay active, while those you don’t use waste away.
The key to preventing this from happening is to keep your joints and muscles active throughout the day. If you are already heading down the road of disuse, be patient. It will take at least a couple of months to get your body back up to speed. It has been said that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. This couldn't be more true than when referring to fitness and health.
In addition to things getting stiff and weak, posture can begin to break down if not addressed. Postural breakdown over many hours at work is nearly inevitable. Keeping the core muscles strong and active is quite important as it helps you maintain better posture and body alignment. As your posture begins to slump while sitting, it puts your neck and shoulders in bad positions which may cause pain in either area. However, it's the postural slouching that actually causes the neck and shoulder pain.
The following suggestions are aimed at addressing areas of the body that tend to get neglected as we sit at our desks or drive.
1. Make sure your seat is properly adjusted. Ideally, you want to be able to access your most important things (phone, keyboard, steering wheel, etc.) without body rotation or excessive reaching. When reaching out your arms at your desk or while driving, make sure that your body position doesn't have to change. Secondly, your seat should be positioned such that your feet can touch the ground. When your feet rest comfortably on the floor, they support your body and posture.
2. Sit up straight and supported. To do this, remind yourself to pull the stomach in as if you are putting on a tight pair of pants. Don’t hold your breath, just the muscles. This abdominal activity fires up the core muscles that support your posture.
3. Get up. At least every 2-3 hours, get up and move around if possible. Sitting tends to allow blood and fluid to pool in your legs as well as place increased pressure on the disks in your back. Standing up (whether you are able to walk or not) helps relieve both of these issues.
4. Stretch. The handful of stretches featured in the link above can help prevent some of the most common deficits seen as a result of frequent sitting. Doing the stretches 3-4 times per day for a total of 10-15 minutes will make a noticeable difference.
5. Exercise regularly. Make exercise a priority. You should attempt to invest yourself in about 30-60 minutes of some type of exercise 4-5 times per week. That may be a half hour of walking 2 times a day, or an hour of running. As long as you are up, moving and getting your heart rate up, you're doing well.
Other Trusted Sources:
WebMD
