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It is time to have rest: tips for those who sit a lot

Prolonged sitting at the table, whether in the office or at home, can lead to adverse health outcomes. Find out in this article tips for workspace organization and discover how to take a break to mitigate the risk of muscle symptoms.

Good Posture

Sitting

  • Back upright with a natural “S” curve through your spine – hips slightly higher than your knees
  • Shoulders relaxed
  • Forearms horizontal
  • Feet flat on the floor

Standing

  • Natural “S” shape curve of your spine maintained
  • Shoulders relaxed back and down
  • Feet hips width apart with weight evenly through both legs
  • Head central, not tilting forwards or backwards

Avoid

  • Slumping
  • Lowering your chair
  • Sitting or standing unevenly for long periods
  • Leaning forward
  • Twisting
  • Hunching your shoulders

KEY: Move regularly. No matter how good your posture, even this can become painful after some time. Take breaks little and often, rather than one long break.

Posture, finding neutral sitting bending/straightening

In the EMG experiment, results from the joint analysis of the spectral and amplitude method showed muscle fatigue after about 40 mins of sedentary work. In the intervention experiment, the results showed that standing and stretching for 5 mins was the most effective break type, and this type of break could keep the muscles’ state at a recovery level for about 30-45 mins.

Workstation

Let`s see what is the best workspace organization in the office or at home.

Adjust your chair so that when your buttocks are right at the back of your chair, your feet rest flat on the floor, and your hips are slightly higher than your knees.

Adjust your desk to ensure that when your shoulders are relaxed, your forearms rest horizontally on the table.

Your keyboard should be positioned directly in front of you with your wrist and forearms supported on the table. This helps to prevent forearm and wrist aches and pains.

You’ll often see people reaching for their mouse, so en­sure it is positioned near to the end of your keyboard so that you do not have to move your arm too much to reach it.

If you are in pain, it is time to turn over your health care to professionals. Contact us to book an appointment.

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