Crippled By Your Computer?
A dear friend of mine recently suffered some crippling neck and back pain that literally had him out of action for the better part of a week! He couldn’t leave the house for fear of causing any further damage as he was so fragile during this time. Laying down was the worst, so he was having trouble sleeping at night. With his permission, I wanted to talk to you about this today as, quite frankly, this could be any one of us. Here’s why.
Working from home, it’s quite easy for us to sit at our desks for extended periods of time without breaks. We start our day around 9am and before we know it, it’s 1pm and we haven’t moved for so much as a bathroom break.
I don’t know about you, but I’m not getting any younger; my body can’t handle as much as it once could. Those aches that you feel at the top of your back and lower neck, believe it or not, aren’t supposed to be there. But, something can be done about them.
I recently paid a visit to the doctor’s office and, while I was there, I mentioned these aches that I experience every so often. It goes without saying that he knew straight away that I work in front of a computer all day. He went on to explain that sitting in front of a computer, combined with constantly looking downwards at your phone will have an impact on your back and neck muscles. Not to mention your posture!
So, here’s a tip for you:
Wall Angels!
Along with taking regular breaks away from your desk throughout the day, doing wall angels in between will make a huge difference to how you feel going forward. They’re straight forward to do and quick too!
Stand with your back against the wall, ensuring that your hips, shoulder blades and head are touching the wall also. To ensure the correct angle and posture, make sure that the back of your head is touching the wall and not just the top.
Once you’re in the correct position, lift your arms up so that your knuckles are touching the wall. Keeping your knuckles in contact with the wall, slowly raise your arms above your head and back down to the original position. Repeat this movement 10 times.
Doing this will help you strengthen your neck muscles, improve your posture and, guess what? Eliminate those neck and back pains! Check out this YouTube video for a visual of the above (jump to 11 minutes, 25 seconds) along with a few more neck muscle exercises.
Don’t take your posture for granted. Most of us have to be in front of computers for the majority of our working day; there’s no way around it. But breaking up the time and adding in short and effective exercises in between can make a world of difference!
