Do not let your 9-5 working hours be a 24x7 exhaustion. With increased modernization, all the work can now be done sitting from anywhere and anytime, thus saving time and hard work.
But these prevailing digital jobs demand sitting in front of computer screens for hours. Such prolonged sitting often makes your joints immobile, resulting in painful, inflamed, and stiff joints. That’s one of the typical reasons why long sitting health problems including cervical pain and back pain hit office-going people the most.
Once entered into such a condition, it will be a virtuous circle where one may not be able to work properly, nor be able to perform any other routine work.
Never Mind!
We understand your condition, and to help you we will be sharing some easy yet effective tips that may help you prevent joint pain without bothering your office routine.
Understanding cervical and Back Pain
You might have often heard people complaining “I have cervical, my condition is very bad.” but our question is why so?
Cervical itself is not a problem, in fact, it is the area of your spine- consisting of 7 stacked bones, also known as vertebrae. Any pain, inflammation, or injury to the area is also considered cervical pain.
We highly advise individuals to seek cervical pain treatment as soon they experience any sort of pain, both mild or major in their neck region. Otherwise, showing negligence toward timely treatment may lead to multiple serious complications.
Now let’s talk about the second major topic of our blog- BACK PAIN.
The body area between your neck and gluteal regions is defined as the back area. The inflammation, injury, aging, or degenerative changes, may make your spine weak, and as a result, you may experience pain in the back. The most affected areas of back pain are the lumbar (lower back), cervical, and tailbone. If you do not seek an effective back pain treatment timely, such pain may also spread over to other body parts such as the buttocks, legs, or abdomen.
In addition to yoga for lower back pain, there are several ways available through which you can strengthen your spine and attain relief, even while sitting in the office, and in this blog, we will be discussing all major of them.
Why is it more common in office-going people?
As stated earlier, these concerns are seen among the office-going people at a higher level. The irony is that their work might not involve any type of physical hard work like extracting oil or breaking down the stones.
Still, such individuals are suffering from these problems the most. The underlying reason is that the nature of their work might involve sitting, but as you know excess of everything can be a deficiency itself.
Your joints require a certain amount of movement to stay mobile, and flexible, but contrary, office-going people stick to their chairs for hours, resulting in joint stiffness, and immobility.
It is often seen that individuals with hectic work schedules do not pay enough attention to their diet. The practices such as taking excessive junk, stale, or undercooked food, may deliver adverse results on your joints, or diminish their density.
Apart from that, it is a common manifestation that workaholics are addicted to coffee, tea, smoking, or alcohol, as their engine-boosters, which is completely unacceptable. Not only the joints but overall body health can be badly impacted by these harmful substances.
Tips to alleviate cervical and back pain in the office:
Work on your position: One of the major tips for cervical pain management is to maintain a proper posture at your workplace. Make sure your spine is straight, shoulders relaxed, and your face is pointing forefront. Your feet must be flat on the floor and knees at a 90-degree angle. You can use an ergonomic chair that will support the natural curve of your spine.
- Short breaks: Being devoted to work is good, but overinvolvement is not always necessary. Take some breaks from the work, and relax. Rather than taking 1-2 long breaks, prefer 3-4 small sessions in which you can either rest, do a simple walk, or perform certain neck pain stretches. For example: If you take a 1-hour break from your 8-hour work job, then you can substitute it with 4 breaks of 20 minutes. Such tiny pause intervals will act as a refill for your exhausted energy, and mood.
- Work on your diet: Never compromise with your diet. Take timely meals. Don’t skip your breakfast in a rush to get late for the office. Learn to manage your time so that you can reach the office in time along with managing a calm breakfast. Similarly, take a wholesome lunch, and dinner. Herbal soups, juices, and salads are a very good option to calm your mid-hour cravings. You can also keep a jar of dry fruits right after your computer screen for time-to-time consumption.
- Engage in physical activities: Keep your body active as far as possible. Regular body movement helps in improving blood flow, & joint flexibility, and reducing muscle tension. Suppose your office is located on the 4th floor, then prefer stairs over elevator/lift.
- Adjust your screen: Desk job neck pain solutions also involve positioning your keyboard, mouse, and other gadgets at a comfortable height. Also, adjust your computer screen/monitor to eye level to avoid neck strain. You can also wear anti-reflective glasses to help your eyes get a direct reflection, which may otherwise result in reduced eyesight, eye strain, or fatigue.
- Use supportive accessories: One of the best back pain prevention tips is utilizing certain supportive accessories. Using a lumbar roll, or cushion for lower back support is quite beneficial for the spine. Prefer sitting on a chair, where the mattress/surface is not so hard or so soft but somewhere in between. Also, if you are going for a long online meeting, wear a comfortable headset.
- Mild stretching: Performing some light stretching such as neck stretching, and moving hands, shoulders, and feet (both clockwise & anticlockwise) from time to time may help pain and will provide you with neck and lower back pain relief.
- Office Yoga: Only some of you would be familiar with this topic. Office yoga is a relatively new style that includes poses that can be performed while staying inside the office. You can do some of these poses while sitting on your office chair.
The concept has been especially designed by experts who understand the growing concern for office people. It mainly involves simple neck rolls, hand movements, and breathing exercises such as inhaling & exhaling. The examples for the same are given below:
Best yoga asana for cervical pain relief in office: Seated Neck Release
How to do?
- Firstly, sit up straight in your chair.
- Now, drop your right ear towards your right shoulder and hold for a few breaths.
- Now, it’s time to switch and repeat the same procedure on the left side.
- Make sure you breathe deeply while doing it.
Best yoga asana for Back pain relief in office: Seated Forward Fold
How to do?
- Sit on the edge of your chair where your feet are flat on the ground.
- Hinge at your hips and lower your chest towards the thighs. But make sure that your back is straight.
- Hold for a few breaths to stretch your back and hamstrings.
Learn to manage your professional and personal life hand by hand. Your muscle health can also be affected by your mental state. Avoid any type of stress, or tension. Practice stress management techniques like deep breathing or meditation to reduce muscle tension. Also, drink plenty of water to keep your intervertebral disc well-hydrated and healthy. Still, if cervical and back pain are haunting you, then consult our experts. We are always ready to help you.
Takeaway
Remember, prevention is always the leading key. We ensure that the implementation of these spine health tips for desk jobs in your daily routine will help you reduce the risk of cervical and back pain induced by prolonged office chores.
Let your office sack be a bag, not a burden.
Surely, your spine will thank you.
Article By:
