|
|
Report on long-term health of office workers
"This report shows how recent workplace trends... are negatively impacting workers’ health. The most dangerous of these? Our research suggests one overshadows all others — sitting still. We’re regularly spending hours at our desks with little movement, and our bodies are starting to atrophy in response. It’s accelerating not just musculoskeletal disorders and weaker limbs, but blood clots, heart disease, diabetes and even cancer. "
"Reassessing working practices and redesigning workstations should be a priority. "
"Companies... should encourage regular breaks and stretch sessions. More radically, they could look at ways to combine office work and physical work."
"This report shows how recent workplace trends... are negatively impacting workers’ health. The most dangerous of these? Our research suggests one overshadows all others — sitting still. We’re regularly spending hours at our desks with little movement, and our bodies are starting to atrophy in response. It’s accelerating not just musculoskeletal disorders and weaker limbs, but blood clots, heart disease, diabetes and even cancer. "
"Reassessing working practices and redesigning workstations should be a priority. "
"Companies... should encourage regular breaks and stretch sessions. More radically, they could look at ways to combine office work and physical work."
There is no such thing as the perfect sitting position. The body needs movement.
Changing positions is moving. Make sure you change positions OFTEN!
Please see guidance below.
Transition slowly and gradually.
Active sitting
Turn your sitting time into strengthening time
(using your core is strengthening it)
Other nice ideas:
Transition to squatting
Benefits: fully flexes the hips, knees and ankles. Elongates the spine. Strengthen the glutes and hips.
Standing
|
|
1. Set up computer near a window (eye strain prevention)
2. Back up your hips (for leg muscle and bone strength and back pain prevention) 3. Relax your ribcage by pointing your sternum forward (back pain prevention) 4. Stack your head by sliding your head back and up 5. Add movement by changing position often (calf stretch, pelvis list, top of the foot stretch, bottom of the foot stretch, textured mat) |
Please note that standing still is just as detrimental to our health as sitting still. Inactivity is the problem.
There is no such thing as the perfect position to work at a desk. There is no healthy way to stand or sit at a desk and look at a screen for hours on end.
I suggest aiming for many changes of positions and movement breaks throughout the day!
Here are five more tips for standing at your desk, and in daily life!
There is no such thing as the perfect position to work at a desk. There is no healthy way to stand or sit at a desk and look at a screen for hours on end.
I suggest aiming for many changes of positions and movement breaks throughout the day!
Here are five more tips for standing at your desk, and in daily life!
Lying down
|
|
What’s the difference between slouching at the laptop and psoas releasing at the laptop?
The psoas release (bottom picture) puts the body in a position where you find the resting length of your psoas major muscles (one on each side of your pelvis). The idea is to anchor the lower part of the muscle (which attaches to your leg bone, femur) on the floor, hamstrings touching, and to adjust the height of the upper part (which attaches to the lumbar spine) in order to restore length in the soft tissue.
The release is passive. In other words, there is no pulling or stretching applied to the tissue, either by you or by someone else.
All you do is relax there and let gravity work for you, relaxing your spine (to which the psoas attaches) towards the floor. You’re neither flexing nor extending your hip but you’re finding the “neutral” position or “centre” of each muscle (one may be shorter than the other!). Everyone will be slightly different:
This resting position will help undo any excess of flexion which most of us suffer from due to excessive sitting (hip flexion), including cycling, rowing and walking/running on a treadmill.
The red lines show the femurs. The green line represents the spine. The blue line shows how far my ear is forward of my shoulder. The grey line represents the psoas – shortened in the top photo, lengthened in the bottom photo.
To sum up, the position at the top of the photo will give you backache and neckache, the position at the bottom of the picture will give you some relief for (and prevent) both!
The psoas release (bottom picture) puts the body in a position where you find the resting length of your psoas major muscles (one on each side of your pelvis). The idea is to anchor the lower part of the muscle (which attaches to your leg bone, femur) on the floor, hamstrings touching, and to adjust the height of the upper part (which attaches to the lumbar spine) in order to restore length in the soft tissue.
The release is passive. In other words, there is no pulling or stretching applied to the tissue, either by you or by someone else.
All you do is relax there and let gravity work for you, relaxing your spine (to which the psoas attaches) towards the floor. You’re neither flexing nor extending your hip but you’re finding the “neutral” position or “centre” of each muscle (one may be shorter than the other!). Everyone will be slightly different:
This resting position will help undo any excess of flexion which most of us suffer from due to excessive sitting (hip flexion), including cycling, rowing and walking/running on a treadmill.
The red lines show the femurs. The green line represents the spine. The blue line shows how far my ear is forward of my shoulder. The grey line represents the psoas – shortened in the top photo, lengthened in the bottom photo.
To sum up, the position at the top of the photo will give you backache and neckache, the position at the bottom of the picture will give you some relief for (and prevent) both!
Movement break (ideally every 40-45 minutes)
Vary your chair sitting position
Vary your floor sitting position
