Having a good chair and properly arranged desk can make a huge difference in keeping your spine in line when sitting cannot be avoided. Use these tips when arranging your desk at work or at home.
Pursue Your Passion - Video Testimonial
"You don't even realize how bad it is until you start getting some relief, and you go, 'Oh my God, is this what I've been dealing with?'"
As soon as Roger told us his story, we knew it needed to be shared. Roger, a Vietnam Veteran, has been struggling with back pain for years. His passion is music, but the pain kept him from playing. Physical therapy helped him fight the pain and start enjoying his music again.
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Muscle Weakness, Joint Stiffness, & Arthritis
If it's been a long time since you've been active or you've never really been active, getting started is hard. Physical therapy, while often used after an injury, is also a great resource to use for getting in shape. We can provide you with recommendations and oversee your exercises to make sure you are both doing enough and not too much.
Remember: Any level of physical activity is beneficial. So don't get overwhelmed; start small.
Have you hard of sitting disease? Accusations about the effects of a sedentary lifestyle are growing as the landscape of our workplace and our personal lives shift. But what happens when you can't avoid most of the sitting you're doing?
Have you ever asked yourself how many hours a day you spend sitting? While the data varies, sources claim that the average American spends anywhere from 6.5 to 10 hours a day sitting, and that number has been increasing by about a quarter of an hour a year since 2007. An even more startling statistic is that of teenagers, who sit anywhere from 14 to 19.5 hours a day between school, jobs, and at home. Are you standing up yet?
Drastically reducing the time you spend sitting isn't always possible depending on your job and office layout. So your best options are often to:
1. Use good ergonomics when sitting down.
2. Make the most of the times that you aren't sitting down.
The impact of movement, even leisurely movement, is profound. When most of your day is spent sitting at a desk, taking a few minutes to move throughout your workday can make all the different. Taking a break from sitting every 30 minutes should be the goal. This doesn't mean taking a break from work; instead, find aspects of your job you can do while standing. For instance, when taking a phone call or reading a long newsletter (like this one...), stand up and if possible walk around during the duration. If you're having a meeting with a colleague, could the meeting be on the move rather than sitting in a conference room? Standing desks are also a great alternative to a traditional desk; however, you can improvise with a high table or counter. There are many ways you can change the amount of sitting you do without expensive specialty equipment.
Tip #1: Stand up while you read this newsletter
Exercise & Your Spine
You've heard it before: movement is medicine. And that couldn't be more true when it comes to your spine. Researchers from Mayo Clinic analyzed 13 studies of the effects of sitting and reduced activity levels and found that those who sat for more than 8 hours a day with no physical activity levels and found that those who sat for more than 8 hours a day with no physical activity had risk of dying similar to that posed by obesity and smoking. While those are pretty jarring finding, the good news is that 60 to 75 minutes of moderately intense physical activity a day often countered the effects of too much sitting.
So what exercises should you be doing? General guidelines state that you should aim for 150 minutes of moderate aerobic activity each week. That can seem like a lot when you are just getting started, but even small amounts of physical activity are helpful, and if done throughout the day can add up. Additionally, you should be strengthening all you major muscle groups.
Here are some exercises you can try at work or at home to get you moving:
Still exploring your options? We'd love to discuss them with you.
If you'd like to set up a time to speak with one of our therapists for a free consultation, give us a call at 308.872.5800 and we'll find a time that works for you!