As we age the injuries that we received at children playing sports or rough housing comes back to haunt us. Aches and pains take longer to go away. Healing time slows down. What use to take a day to bounce back from, now take weeks. Protecting our body, mind and soul enables a better quality of life. Making changes even five minutes a day may seem like a hassle at first. However, if you incorporate this into your daily routine, for 21 days, this chore now becomes a part of your lifestyle. What you wish for, will become, if you “will it”. That idea may seem a little too daisy-aged for the straight-laced person. But the small efforts we make daily can have a huge impact. Take recycling for instance, by doing this small task has a huge environmental impact over the course of a year.
Here is a link to a fantastic video on Ergonomics for Service Technicians. This is a great example of a company promoting workplace safety.
Image from: U.S. Department of Labor, Ergonomics the Study of Work, 2000
Some Tips to Counteract Prolonged Sitting:
- If you are sitting for long periods of time the results are: shortening the hip-flexors and putting stress the lower back
- To counter balance the shortening effects, perform leg lunges and forward bends. Optimally you should do the stretches every hour. At a minimum every every two to three hours.
- Deep lunge (one leg at a time)
- Quad stretches (one let at a time)
- Forward back bend (rag doll)
- Ergonomics for Prolonged Sitting
- Vary your seat height every so often
- Knees should not be higher than your hips
- Try using a lumbar roll to support your lower back
- Otherwise, adjust the back rest every hour so it minimizes fatigue