3 Exercises To Alleviate Pain Caused By Your Desk Job
You may be surprised to hear that a large portion of work-related injuries come from desk jobs. Sitting for eight hours every day for five days a week can lead to musculoskeletal problems, like carpal tunnel and muscle strains. When this happens, it’s time to call your Chiropractor in Fort Lauderdale and protect your physical wellbeing with the following moves.
Loosen Up Your Back Muscles
Sitting at your desk for hours can lead to lower back pain, which can prevent you from enjoying life to its fullest. You can treat lower back pain in a variety of ways. First, correct your posture and never lean back in your desk or sit forward, as this can throw your spine out of alignment, which strains your back’s ligaments and muscles. Correct your posture by using a pillow to close the gap between your back and the chair. This can also prevent you from leaning forward towards the desk, which is another form of bad posture.
You can alleviate pain and discomfort at work by rocking your pelvis back and forth. Tilt your hips up and round out your back, then tilt your hips back. When you get home, do abdominal exercises at least three times a week to strengthen your core. A strong core will make it easy to maintain good posture while at work.
Stretch To Alleviate Wrist Strain
If you spend your days responding to emails, creating copy, or writing up long reports, you may have noticed a slight pain in your wrists. Don’t ignore this, as it can lead to serious injury. When you position your hands over the keyboard, it puts your wrists in an awkward position, forcing the parallel tendons to move back and forth, ultimately creating friction.
This can cause inflammation and fatigue. You can resolve this problem by fixing the way you pose your hands. Don’t put your hands on the desk. Instead, float them above your keyboard, but make sure your wrists are not higher than your hands.
When you need a quick fix to alleviate the tension building in your wrists, do the prayer stretch. Place your fingers and palms together as if in prayer, centered in front of your chest. Keeping your palms together, lower your hands until you feel an uncomfortable (but not painful) stretch and hold for five seconds.
Get Rid Of Tension With Neck Stretches
It isn’t uncommon for people who work in front of the computer to develop a hunch in later years. This is because you are jutting out your neck and shoulders while performing tasks on the computer. This seemingly harmless pose shifts your neck and shoulders completely out of alignment with your spine.
As a result, this places strain on the surrounding muscles and soft tissue. An effective way to prevent pain and discomfort is to position your computer screen in front of you and not off to the side. This prevents your head from continuously shifting at an awkward angle.
We understand that neck pain can be uncomfortable. When it feels tight, stretch out your neck by jutting your chin out as far as it can go, then reverse, pulling your head back in the opposite direction as far as it can go.
Make sure your head stays level throughout the exercise. Repeat this a few times and you will feel quite a difference. If the pain in your neck and shoulders gets too severe, visit your chiropractor in Fort Lauderdale for a long-term solution.
Final Thoughts
While it isn’t practical to quit your job because it causes muscle tension, at the same time, you shouldn’t endure pain and discomfort. By talking to a chiropractor, doing easy exercises, and implementing new practices, you can get rid of the tension caused by your job.
Visit Spine and Joint Center
For over 35 years, our physicians have served Great Fort Lauderdale and the surrounding areas, offering chiropractic services and other proven techniques to relieve pain, injury, and illness. When many of our patients thought surgery was the only solution, we showed them another way to improve their spinal and overall health. For a chiropractor in Fort Lauderdale that you can trust, contact Spine and Joint Center. Call (954) 395-2461 to schedule an appointment.
