The importance of movement in an office setting

Office work has a way of sucking the desire for movement out of us. It is not uncommon for an office worker to snap out of a hard working streak to find that their neck is stiff and set forward, and that they can’t remember the last time they moved. Indeed, the only movement that they are performing is typing, a repetitive motion that has the potential to cause carpal tunnel syndrome. Because the nature of office work is sedentary, the onus is upon the worker to keep themselves moving in order to mitigate the risk factors inherent in this kind of work. Movement in an office setting presents a challenge that has implications in your long-term health- it’s time you started paying attention and moving more. 

Moving in an office setting

Regular movement in an office setting helps us prevent many office injuries, including:

• Headaches
• Stiff/sore neck
• Back pain
• Eye strain
• Carpal tunnel syndrome

The majority of these injuries are caused by three primary factors: 

1. Sedentary nature of office work
2. Repetitive tasks
3. Poor posture

Purposeful movement away from the keyboard helps us prevent these risk factors from translating into the above injuries. Here are some ideas for adding more movement into your workday to prevent injury: 

• Take frequent breaks from typing. Stretch your fingers and shake out your hands,
• Stretch regularly: even gentle upper body twists in your chair can help improve blood circulation.
• Take a walk to break the monotony of sitting
• Constantly change your posture: even maintaining the best posture for an hour straight will leave your body tight and reeling. Make sure you move your upper body as much as possible. 

Chiropractic for office workers in Hackensack

The way you work has important implications in the way you will feel later in life. Don’t let your job take your body down- instead, use regular movement to keep your circulation flowing and prevent tension from setting in. At Associates in Chiropractic, our natural modalities treat workplace injuries in an effective way that facilitates your body’s natural healing capacities. From here, we focus on strengthening parts of the body that matter for maintaing good posture so that you can work more effectively with less risk for injury.