Covid19 has seen much of the work force working form home. I am often asked :

“How do I sit to protect my spine?” or “What is good posture?”

The message that you should take home is no posture is great if it is maintained for long periods of time. The key to a healthy spine and body is GET UP AND MOVE . It does not matter how expensive your chair or desk is , our bodies are not designed to stay sat in one place for 8 hours. Our systems are designed to move every 20-30 minutes. Below you will find some tips to help you set up for good spinal health.

Try to set up your workstation so that you can spend part of your day sitting and part of the day standing. However, you need to take care to stand well - ensure your weight is on both feet and don’t lean on one arm.
Perhaps take telephone calls whilst walking around your house.
Place a small towel in your low back - the lumbar spine to support the natural curve of the back.
If using a lap top place the screen on a pile of books so the screen is at eye level and use a separate keyboard and mouse.
Set an alarm to ensure you don’t sit for more than an hour
Get some sleep- Our bodies heal at night when we are asleep. The inactivity of lockdown combined with the stress of the pandemic and extra screen use is playing havoc with sleep. Try to be “screen free” for an hour before bedtime and practice good sleep hygiene habits.
Go out for a walk at lunchtime.

You could also include some Simple exercises whilst the desk.

Hamstring stretch.

Sit forwards in your chair and stretch one leg forward -pull the toes up to the ceiling and keeping the back straight lean forward at the hips feel a stretch in the back of the leg. Repeat in the other leg.

Pelvic Tilts.

Sit forwards in your chair: and tilt the pelvis aback and forth to release the low back.

YWTL stretch.

Stand up:

Take the rams up in the air to form a Y.

Draw the elbows down keep the arms back to form a W.

Take the arms out to the side and with the palms forwards take the arm back drawing the shoulder blades together to for the T.

Draw the elbows to the side with the elbows bent to 90 degrees. Rotate the forearms out to form an L.

Quadriceps and Hip Flexor stretch.

Stand up and bend the knee to bring the foot up the bottom. Keep the knees together and the hips tilted forwards.

Calf release

Put your hands against the wall engage your tummy muscles, keep the heels on the ground and lean into the wall and feel a stretch in the calves.

The above information is for your interest and information, if you have any specific concerns or aches and pains that you would like to get sorted out Victoria at ThamesPhysio would be very happy to address any individual needs.