Sitting Posture & Repetitive Stress Injuries
As technology and regulations advance, work place environments are also evolving. More and more frequently people are succumbing to their desks and computers for greater periods of time and therefore repetitive stress injuries (RSI) are occurring more frequently.
Repetitive stress injuries not only create neck and back pain and strain, but also set the stage for early degenerative disc disease. However, all is not lost. RSI’s and computer based occupational musculoskeletal injuries can be well managed and maintained when a posture exercise protocol is performed regularly.
It is important to understand what a repetitive stress injury is. RSI’s are “an injury that occurs due to recurrent overuse or improper use.”(1) Postural exercises help prevent repetitive stress injuries by correcting the balance, alignment, and motion of the spine.
It is equally, if not more important, that an individual continues to do their prescribed exercises daily. It is crucial to perform the balance exercises 3 times per day, the alignment exercises 2 times per day, and the motion exercises 1 time per day at the minimum (or as prescribed by a Certified Posture Exercise Professional). If performed regularly and correctly one will begin to see the “fruits of their labor” with less tension, strain, and pain in their upper back, neck, and low back regions.
Improve Posture at Work
Along with performing your regular exercises it is also important to modify your workplace into an ergonomic work space so that everything you use is within arm’s reach and in a neutral plane with your eye.
“Research consistently shows a healthy employee has better concentration, higher energy levels and a more positive attitude, which translates to creativity, higher level thinking and better work product.
Still our work environments and tech built for efficiency minimize our movement – guaranteeing negative impact on posture and health.”
“Regular posture breaks to move are essential. So is setting up your posture environment. Raise your monitor to eye level and get a chair support that allows pelvic motion and optimizes sitting posture. Your chair support should not rest behind your back pushing you forward, it should support from beneath and gently tilt your hips (we like SitSmart or an ergonomic foam wedge).” ~Dr. Steven Weiniger
A fun way to improve posture at work? Add a progression to your regular postural exercises, try using a stability ball to sit on while at work. Using a stability ball regularly will help strengthen and train your spine to more effectively sit for longer periods of time with less strain and injury.
Postural exercises are important not only for RSI’s from the workplace, but also to help avoid early onset degenerative disc disease. Many people who sit at their desk for long periods of time tend to look downward, causing too much flexion in the neck and therefore more wear and tear on the front aspect of their vertebrae. This repetition, if left uncorrected, over the years will eventually cause for the breakdown of the outer, fibrous rings of the intervertebral disc, dehydrated, bulging discs to appear, and create an environment where facet arthropathy, bone spurs, and nerve root compression run prevalent.
However, if treated, corrected, and postural exercises regularly practiced, early degenerative disc disease can be significantly delayed and ideally prevented.
When postural exercises are performed regularly, with frequent form checks by a posture specialist, it is simple to avoid repetitive stress injuries and early degenerative disc disease caused from our work environment and habits.
Our favorite benefits of creating an ergonomic and active work environment? Employees with less work related injuries have lower healthcare costs and tend to be happier allowing for greater productivity and creativity at work and when away from the office.
