Productivity
Here’s how to fix your posture at work
The sad truth: we’re spending more time hunched over a desk, and staring at a screen. Not only is this screwing up our health, but it can also affect your productivity and your happiness.
If you’re sitting slouched over for hours on end and contributing to a bad posture, you aren’t just setting yourself up for back and neck pain and expensive medical bills – you’ll end up affecting everything from your general flexibility, injury risk, and movement through to your circulation, mood levels and metabolism. The good news is that there’s plenty you can do, and which don’t come with surgery bills. Here’s where to start:
1. Invest in a decent standing desk or a sit-stand option.
This is first prize, and you can alternate between sitting down and standing up (there are desk options where you can change the height quickly and easily), and it helps to cut out the slouching and sliding forward that happens in bad office chairs (see point 2). Our advice: don’t go straight into attempting to stand all day, as your body won’t be ready for it. Start with 10 to 15 minutes out of every hour, and then build it up. Once you are standing, the best way to keep your body moving (which is actually what the main goal is) is to shift your weight from foot to foot and then from heels to your toes, and vice versa. Once you get into a pattern, this will become second nature and you’ll do it subconsciously. You can also focus on keeping your ears level with your shoulders, and forearms parallel to the ground. A good soundtrack helps too. Here is a local company which makes excellent standing desks: www.deskstand.com.
2. You need a better, ergonomic chair.
And even if your company won’t get you one (a bad sign in itself), then you need to treat yourself – it will be better for your health than a new pair of running shoes or that gym membership that you don’t use. Here are some rules: it should be adjustable (height, arms and ideally the back support too); and it should have both lumbar and recline support, so if you’re sitting upright or leaning back, there is support for your lower and middle back. First prize is having chairs with head support too. Check out www.formfunc.co.za and choose one that fits your style, needs, and budget. Then remember these rules from the American Chiropractic Association: keep your feet flat on the floor; don’t cross your legs; your ankles should be in front of your knees; keep a small gap between the back of your knees and the front of your seat; your knees should be at or below the level of your hips; relax your shoulders and keep your forearms parallel to the ground.
3. If you can’t do points 1 and 2, then focus on your set up.
First things first, find yourself an old school timer or set up a stopwatch on your phone or PC – you need to get up from your desk every 60 minutes (30 is ideal, if you can work towards it). Fetch some water, say 'howzit' to your mate in accounting, or just do a lap around the office – just make sure you leave your chair. Hell, you should even consider some Desk Yoga, it’ll help fix any back and neck issues. There are apps to help with this as well: Stretchly, Big Stretch Reminder, and WorkRave. Then you need to set up your workspace like this: monitor or screen at eye level; don’t cross your knees or ankles; rest your feet flat on the floor (if you can’t reach – invest in a foot support); pull your shoulders back and down, and keep your back flat against the chair support; and if you make long calls at work – invest in a headset to speak hands-free, and so that you don’t tilt your head to the phone.