Keeping Hips & Shoulders Open for Business by Coach JoelTimes are changing and the state of where and how we do business has changed including working partially or entirely from home. This becomes a great opportunity to control our workstation environments and adapt them to better suit how we are actually designed to physically function. Whether we are working from home or at the office our lives require us to spend multiple hours at a desk. We need strategies to use in order to stay supple and mobile. That plan should include awareness around proper posture, a dynamic workstation, incorporating movement and mobility breaks into your work day and having a strategy to battle going back to bad sitting habits. The Dynamic Workstation We know standing while working is far better than sitting due to the demand we put on our full core (trunk and glutes). It's not the perfect solution but it does become a gateway to stronger static and shifted positions and will allow opportunities for movement. A good standing workstation will include the following aspects: Desk- The ideal standing desk allows you to position your monitor, keyboard, and mouse at the proper heights and alignments that correspond with good postural positions. Footstool- Resting your foot on an elevated surface automatically unloads many of the passive forces tugging on your spine, making standing more sustainable. Use a footstool, slant board foot rail, or fidget bar that reaches to about the middle of your shin. Monitor- Position your monitor so that the top portion of the screen is aligned with your eyes about 18 to 30 inches away (larger monitors should be farther away). Tilting the screen upward could improve seeing the entire screen better. Footwear- Being barefoot is the best option, but it’s unrealistic for most people in their workplace. The ideal shoe should make you feel as though you’re barefoot. A shoe with a flat sole and just a little bit of cushion is a great option. Avoid high heels, restrictive dress shoes, and flip flops whenever possible. Keyboard & Mouse: Having your forearms parallel to the floor, shoulders back with elbows and wrists in straight lines while you work. The primary consideration with the proper orientation of the keyboard and mouse. Floor: If you work on concrete or hard surfaces, using an anti-fatigue mat or wearing a shoe with a bit of cushion will help. If you work on soft carpet, wear a flat shoe with little to no cushion or better yet, work barefoot. Stool: The stool should be used primarily for leaning against, not necessarily for sitting on. A simple bar-height metal or wood stool works well as long as it has a hard seat with a squared edge and a wide enough base that doesn’t roll or fall backward when you lean against it. The Active Workstation: A movement-rich work environment A standing workstation enables you to burn more calories, activates more muscle groups than sitting, and increases blood circulation. Standing also reduces your risk of cardiovascular disease, obesity, and diabetes. But when you are accustomed to sitting, standing all day can be strenuous. This is especially true if you are overweight or have been deskbound for the majority of your adult life. The fact that standing is strenuous is a sign that your body is out of whack. That said, the transition from sitting to standing can be challenging at first. The simple keys to making the transition smooth is movement by shifting positions regularly and doses of mobility into your work day. Shifting Positions: This doesn’t require you to leave your computer or interrupt your work. It’s as simple as switching from one braced neutral standing position to another every two to three minutes, or whenever your body sends you a signal to move. Check out this video to get a great demo of how to do this while working. Movement: Even if you change your position often, you still need to infuse your work day with actual movement that forces your body into different shapes. The goal is two-minute movement breaks. This practice will get blood circulating to areas that have been idle. Take these short breaks every 20 to 30 minutes. Mobility Breaks: Two-minute body maintenance or mobility breaks should be interchanged with your movement breaks. Try performing one of the techniques below to reopen your hips and shoulders: mobility breaks hip flow banded hip mobs
Transitioning safely to a standing workstation Most people are sold on the benefits of having a standing desk and active workstation yet if you have spent the majority of your life sitting for hours on end, it will take time and effort to transition to a standing workstation. Therefore, listen to your body and progress at your own pace. While the ultimate goal should certainly be to eliminate optional sitting from much of your life, give your body time to adjust. You may initially experience sore muscles, that's a positive adaptation. Shifting from sitting to standing turns on muscles that may not have been used in years—muscles that take time to develop and strengthen. Learn to distinguish between good pain and bad pain. Start slowly. To start, rather than trying to stand for the entire day, stand for 20 minutes of every hour you spend at your desk. It doesn’t even have to be 20 minutes straight. Break it up by standing for five minutes and then sitting for 10. If you implement that strategy every hour, you’ll have stood for two hours by the end of your eight-hour workday. That’s a good start! Keep progressing. Stick with your routine of standing for 20 minutes of every hour until your muscles are no longer painfully sore, then progress to 30 minutes of every hour. Depending on your level of health, this might take a week, a month, or longer. The key is to progress at a rate that your body can keep up with. It’s not a race, yet you want to push yourself. If setting a timer isn’t your thing, consider standing for certain tasks. For example, if you spend a portion of your day making and receiving calls, commit to standing while you’re on the phone. If you spend time answering emails or doing social media work, try standing while performing those jobs. As long as you keep increasing the amount of time or the number of tasks that you perform while standing, you’ll soon be on your feet for the majority of your day. However, if at any time you feel pain brought on by strain or fatigue, reduce the amount of time you spend standing until your body can catch up. As usual if you need some ideas of how to improve your mobility while working or need some ideas around creating a dynamic workstation please reach out. Stay healthy and as always, Stay Mobile My Friends!
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