Working From Home Aches and Pains
Do you find yourself sitting at your desk all ready to work with a pain in your neck?
And no, we aren’t talking about the person/people you are stuck in the house with. Since being in isolation (or if working from home is your regular situation) have you assessed your workspace? Or did you put that in the ‘too hard basket’ because this isn’t a ‘forever’ situation.
It may be a good idea to review not only your set up but your posture and your routine. Here we will chat through ways to help avoid those aches and pains in your upper or lower back and/or your neck and ways to relieve them.
Firstly, let’s check in with your set up. Are you working on a laptop? Do you currently find yourself slumped over looking at the screen?
Laptops are not ideal for helping us to create our optimum working position as they encourage this slumped or stooped posture and they are not good for working on throughout an entire 8- or 9-hour day.
If you can, find yourself a detachable keyboard and mouse so you can prop your laptop up to an appropriate eye level. If this isn’t possible then try taking some regular postural breaks.
If you find throughout the day or even just after an hour of constant sitting you get that dull ache through your lower back, you are not alone. This may happen even if you think you have the ‘perfect posture’ with great lumbar support, feet flat on the ground and supported through your upper back.
The reason being, there is no such thing as the ‘perfect posture’. We are not designed to sit like toy soldiers whilst doing our work. The body loves movement and so does the back. For this reason, make sure to give yourself regular postural breaks. Perform a couple of sit to stands on your chair, bend over to touch your toes or perform some seated cat camels to reset.
If you can, mixing up your work set up to a standing position is ideal. This doesn’t mean you need to stand all day but your body will thank you when you give yourself that variety.
You are not being less productive by taking postural breaks either. As a matter of fact, studies show that by taking these micro-breaks you will actually be more productive as it allows you to re-focus and reset. If you find yourself struggling to get into a position that isn’t giving you those aches and discomforts, this is generally your body telling you to give it a break, take a walk around your room or your house, stretch out and re-set ready to refocus.
If you’re unsure whether you have the correct setup or are looking for specific stretches or exercises to help look no further. Get in touch with one of our Exercise Physiologists today.