Desk Set
May 29th, 2008 by Kathleen Bolton
I’m going to foray into Therese’s area of expertise, which is health, just for today. Lately I’ve been chained to my computer for long patches of time as I try to finish a project, and my back has been on fire, and I feel like an old wonton folding in on itself.
In desperation, I looked around for some desk stretches, and lo and behold I found one at WebMD that is a miracle of relief: the leg hug.
- Sit on the edge of your chair (if it has wheels, wedge the chair against the desk or wall to make sure it does not roll). Put your feet together, flat on the floor.
- Lean over, chest to knees, letting your arms dangle loosely to the floor. Release your neck.
- Now bring your hands behind your legs, right hand grasping left wrist, forearm (or elbow if you can reach that far), left hand grasping the right. Feel the stretch in your back, shoulders and neck. Hold.
- Release your hands to the floor again.
- Repeat three times or as often as it feels good.
Doing so will make your forehead feel like it’s going to explode if you hang over your legs for too long, but your back will thank you.
I’ve been taking more walking breaks as well. I’ve found that pumping my arms while walking briskly will ease tension out of my upper back. If you’re like me and you tend to hunch forward over your keyboard, it’s essential to move your body in the opposite direction.
Advil works wonders too. But moving around while sitting at my desk has provided drug-free relief. It’s something I have to force myself to do, but it’s worth it.
4 Responses to “Desk Set”
One of the things I suggest to my patients (I’m a physical therapist) is to invest in a kitchen timer. Set it for 20 minutes and every time it goes off, stand up, stretch, and reset the timer. There are computer programs to do this too, but too often people find them annoying and disable them.
Research has shown that 10 second micro breaks every 20 minutes or so are better than longer breaks at longer intervals.
I don’t know if your shoulders are fatigued and/or tight, too, Kath, but I love using an extension band (like a big rubber band) at my desk. I keep it draped behind my chair and over my arm rests, and then when I need it, I pull the band up and stretch my arms and back and shoulders. Feels so good.
Good luck with that project!
These are both good suggestions. Thanks, guys.
This is a huge issue to me, as well, so much so that I use a timer on my computer to remind me when to exercise, and have a document on the computer desktop containing various exercises to do while sitting, plus a list of links to other desk exercise options in case I get bored. come to think of it, I should probably go put those up on my blog!