LITTLE ROCK — Here’s something you probably never expected a personal trainer to say: If you get up from your desk and walk around a little every 20 minutes or so, it’ll help your body more than a 45-minute session at the gym.
“From a cardiovascular disease and metabolic syndrome perspective, your results will be significantly better,” says personal trainer Jamie Atlas of Bonza Bodies in Denver.
“You might feel that you’re justifying your deskbound position by going to the gym. But your body will benefit more if you get up and move around” frequently, throughout the day. “Even doing things like standing when you’re trying to plan meetings, or going across the room to talk to someone, can help keep the body awake.”
Walking through an office, Atlas often can correctly predict physical ailments just by looking at how someone sits at the desk.
And sometimes, a desk jockey’s attempt at good posture only contributes to the problem.
“We’re taught to sit up straight, but most people sit forward in their chairs, leaning into the screen,” says personal trainer Rick Olderman, author of Fixing You: Shoulder and Elbow Pain and two other books.
The result, Olderman says, is shoulder and lower-back pain.
One solution: Set the chair at a lower height to let your knees be even with your hips, and scoot back in the seat until your spine contacts the chair’s backrest.
“There’s a myriad of problems caused just by working at a desk,” Olderman says. “Over time, that leads to carpal-tunnel problems, migraines and neck aches.”
Desk jockeys tend to assume one of three positions that encourage injuries.
The first is what Atlas terms The Sloucher - sitting slumped, hips forward, the middle of the back leaning on the back of the chair.
The second is the Facebook Lean, which anyone who saw The Social Network can identify - body hunched over the keyboard, head leaning toward the computer monitor,shoulders aiming to unite with earlobes.
The third is the Designer Lean, named for graphic designers who tilt slightly toward their dominant hand as it rests on the computer mouse. Their torso is motionless, except for the subtle, sporadic motion of hand on mouse.
The Sloucher has tight hip flexors that pull the lower back forward into a swayback, even when the Sloucher stands. It contributes to lower-back pain and poor digestion.
The Facebook Lean puts enormous stress on the muscles of the upper back and neck - the same muscles that help support the head. In this position, Atlas explains, chest muscles tighten, shoulders round forward, forearms rotate internally and wrists tilt, all contributing to carpal-tunnel problems, along with neck pain.
“Imagine: For every inch forward the head sits from the spine, that adds about 10 pounds to the load the neck muscles must carry,” he says.
Graphic designers and artists are especially prone to the Designer Lean, which shortens muscles on one side of the lumbar spine and lengthens muscles on the other. The position encourages someone to sit off-center, making it difficult for muscles to right themselves when the user stands up. The result: midback pain.
What’s the antidote? Stretches that are specific to the problematic positions, Atlas says. He suggests three that are specifically designed for desk jockeys.
Desk Cleaner
Helpful for: The Sloucher.
How to do it: Sitting at your desk, place your palms together and rotate your body to the right. Place one elbow on the desk, then tilt back as if to point the other elbow to the ceiling. Let your head drop toward the desk as you twist. Breathe regularly, relaxing your neck as you rotate the upper body to the right.
As you rotate, you should feel a gentle stretch in your right low back, your right pec minor (just inside your armpit) and the side of your neck.
Stay relaxed when stretching (don’t strain) and keep your breath steady. Complete 20 seconds of stretch (about four deep, relaxing breaths) then repeat on the left side. Complete two sets on each side.
Seated Neck Tilt
Helpful for: those who overuse the Facebook Position.
How to do it: Sit with your feet flat on the floor and your spine erect and relaxed. Tilt your head to the left as if listening to your shoulder. Keeping your chin straight, take your left hand and reach up and behind, resting it just behind your right temple. Gently apply pressure but do not pull.
Allow the gentle pressure of your hand to stretch the muscles on the right side and slightly to the front of your neck. Breathe deeply into the stretch, allowing each inhale to stretch your neck slightly further. Continue for five to six breaths or 20-30 seconds.
Slowly release the neck. Take a deep breath and continue on the other side. Complete this stretch every three to four hours to keep your neck (and posture) tall and relaxed.
Supported side tilt
Helpful for: anyone suffering from the Designer Lean.
How to do it: Take your left hand and grasp the opposite (right-side) elbow, reaching across your body. Keeping your feet at shoulder width and your posture tall, stretch the right hand overhead as if reaching for something directly above your left shoulder. Slowly tilt the body to the left.
You should feel a gentle but deep stretch all the way from the back of the shoulder, through the ribs and slightly in the right side of your lower back. Rest and repeat on the other side, completing three sets of 20 seconds on both sides.
ActiveStyle, Pages 23 on 02/21/2011