4 great moves to stay active at your work desk
It can be detrimental to your health if you are remaining seated for extended hours of the day, if this is a requirement of your job here are 4 simple things you can do to break up and free up the body; as we all know the saying 'if you don't use it you'll lose it'.
1. Add movement - Try adding some chair squats with a calf raise to bring you up on your toes and add a breath in as you stand and the breath out on the way down to de-stress; Wall or desk push ups can be a great upper body exercise to add in. Try sets of 10 every hour or so and if you have space take a gym mat and you can work on your core with some 30sec plank holds.
2. Add stretches - If you find your neck and shoulders are getting stiff and tight its time to jump up and reach tall and fold low; think yoga forward fold with a half lift to stretch the spine. finish out with seated spinal twist and a nice neck stretch and don't forget to roll those shoulders. If the lower back is getting you down try a seated figure 4 fold to release the glutes that may be causing tension, tight hips then try a wide low lunge (lizard pose) with the back knee touching the ground and make sure to drive the hip down and forward.
3. Add massage - Bring a ball to work, think tennis or maybe a spiky massage ball. If your lucky enough to have a good back on your work chair you can place that bad boy between your back and chair and get yourself a good myofascial release; while you get through those dreaded emails. Not to worry if you don't have said chair it works equally well on a wall, but you may have to wait till your break. Remember the feet love a massage also so if you're able to slip the shoes off you can give the ball a roll there as well, the feet will love you for it.
4. Add meditation - Re-centre with breath and sound focus, this is an important one if you've found yourself trying to focus on several different tasks and aren't nailing any of it. Start with acknowledging the sounds around you and begin to tune them out, start to listen to your breath and as it becomes the main sound in your space. Begin to inhale slow and pause before the exhale, making the exhalation the slowest and longest part; start with a 4 count in 2 count pause and a 6 count out breath and see how you feel. Do as many rounds as feels right for you and extend the breath count when this feels easy.
These 4 top tips can also be used for other industries that require constant repetitive positioning and I highly recommend the breathing and sound focus to de-stress and reset your mind set when things are starting to effect performance.
As always if anything doesn't feel right its important to get checked with a qualified health professional, as there may be a reason behind constant tightness, headaches and other aches and pains.
