Stretch what's Important
Like most people, you may believe that you only need to stretch or strengthen the muscles you use most often in your work. Well, in my opinion - that's not entirely true. I believe in strengthening AND stretching muscles, not only for strength and stability but also for flexibility and circulation.
Since so many people work at a desk, I'm going to share some stretching and strengthening exercises to focus on muscle groups specific to desk workers.
Being in a seated position not only makes muscles tight, but it also leads to weak and overstretched muscles, which can cause pain and discomfort. But one way you can work against the effects of your desk job is by taking a few minutes out of your day to stretch and strengthen the muscles affected by sitting. This week we will look at the stretching tips and next week we will look at the strengthening exercises.
Muscles to focus on
Hips and Hip Flexors
Being in a seated position causes the angle between your torso and thigh to become smaller, which causes the muscles in the front of your hips to shorten. By sitting and shortening the muscles over a long period of time, your hip flexors will begin to tighten. This can cause several issues, including lower-back pain. Tight hip flexors can also be problematic for people who have desk jobs but also run for exercise. Since these muscles are used during running, the combination of having tight hip flexors with overuse can lead to injury. One stretch than can help with tight hip flexors to avoid these issues is the kneeling hip flexor stretch. This stretch really opens up the hips and can help undo the damage of a long day at work.
How to do the stretch: Get in a kneeling lunge position with one knee on the floor and the other leg bent 90 degrees in front of you with foot flat. Place one hand on your hip. Squeezing your back glutes, shift your body weight slightly forward while maintaining an upright torso.
Chest and Anterior Shoulders
Not only do most of us sit all day, many of us also sit at a computer, which leads the body to lean forward and slouch the shoulders. This can lead to tightness in the chest and front of the shoulders. One stretch to loosen up a tight chest and shoulders is the doorway pec stretch. Standing about an arm length from the wall- anchor your hand and rotate away until you feel the stretch. Bring your hand up to near head height and repeat and again low to near waist high.
How to do the stretch: Stand next to a doorway or the protruding corner of a wall. Place the upper arm against the side of this door frame or wall, with a 90 degree angle at both your upper arm and forearm. Now slowly lean your body forward, keeping your shoulder stable and being sure not to rotate your shoulder forward. To make the stretch more challenging, simply turn your head in the opposite direction.
Lower Back
Over the course of eight-plus hours, we can get a little lazy in our posture. This can cause the shoulders to hunch forward, but it also causes the back to round, putting extra stress on the lower back and vertebrae. There are several different stretches you can perform for the lower back. One stretch that can help alleviate tightness in the lumbar spine is the lower back twist. This stretch can be done while laying down or when sitting in your chair. One important thing to remember with all stretches, but especially stretches involving the spine, is not to force it. Just stretch until you feel the muscle is being stretched.
How to do the stretch: Start by lying on your back with your knees bent and feet flat against the floor. Extend your arms out to the side in a T position. Keep your shoulders against the floor as you move through this stretch, and tighten the core to support the upper spine and shoulders.
There are many other great stretches that can be incorporated to help loosen tight muscles from sitting at a desk. To find more stretches simply do a quick Google search for upper body stretches at a desk. A variety of other stretches for your neck, shoulders and back are available that can be performed right at your desk.